WWE’s Extreme Rules pay-per-view is once again living up to its name.
After the 2021 version had just one match with an extreme rules stipulation, Triple H has put together a card where every bout comes with one. Add in that the show is in Philadelphia — the home of ECW — and that we could see a payoff to WWE’s “White Rabbit” clues with a potential Bray Wyatt return and fans could be in for quite a night on Saturday at Wells Fargo Center (8 p.m., Peacock).
Here are Post pro wrestling columnist Joseph Staszewski WWE Extreme Rules 2022 predictions:
Imperium over The Brawling Brutes (Good Old Fashion Donnybrook Match)
We have seen Gunther vs. Sheamus and Butch and Ridge Holland vs. Giovanni Vinci and Ludwig Kaiser. None of these matchups disappointed and putting all six of them together with few rules should be equally or even more entertaining. With no place really left to go with this feud, and with Gunther being the Intercontinental champion and Imperium the newer faction with more upside, I expect Imperium to put this all to rest.
Finn Balor over Edge (I Quit Match)
It’s hard to get too many first-ever matches between two competitors with this much history in pro wrestling, but that is what we are getting from Balor and Edge. There is a lot running under the surface here as Balor replaced Edge in The Judgment Day faction he created. The group knocked Edge out of action in storyline and has been terrorizing him and the Mysterio family – recently having Dominik join The Judgment Day as part of a heel turn.
Because it’s easy to see this going to a Survivor Series-type match, I think WWE can get creative with the finish here. Maybe the rest of The Judgment Day – Dominik in particular – gets Rey Mysterio in a spot to seriously injure him and force Edge to quit to keep it from happening. A.J. Styles could potentially interfere in a way that helps Edge win. Even so, Balor and his group are finally gaining momentum and there is no reason to stop it now.
Karrion Kross vs. Drew McIntyre (Strap match)
Kross has been taunting and stalking McIntyre ever since his return to WWE, and botched fireball from Scarlett aside, it’s been well done and intense. A strap match isn’t one we see often in WWE, so Kross and McIntyre have a fairly blank canvas to work with.
Unfortunately for the Scotsman, his moment passed for now with his loss to Roman Reigns and Clash at the Castle and WWE needs to start building Kross up as a serious world title challenger. Kross is leaving victorious – probably by making McIntyre pass out – one way or another.
If Bray Wyatt is going to be revealed as the “White Rabbit” and it doesn’t close the show, this would be the match for it to happen during. There have been references to Kross in the clues and fan theories Wyatt could be returning to form a super group with Kross and Scarlett in it.
Seth Rollins over Matt Riddle (Fight Pit match)
Former two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier being added as the special guest referee is a great touch to a feud that really is boiling hot over the past few months. Riddle and Rollins even dished out more very personal jabs on Raw this week. The Fight Pit is one of the most unique and newer structures WWE has to offer, and you can only win by submission or knockout.
So this should be it for these two. My only complaint here is, did WWE spoil the finish by already putting Rollins in a United States championship match on the season premiere of “Monday Night Raw” two days later? Excited to see what these two guys try with the Fight Pit, but it’s hard to see Rollins not winning and possibly beginning a well-deserved push into the main-event scene afterward.
Bianca Belair (c.) over Bayley to retain the Raw women’s championship (Ladder match)
This may be the most intriguing match on the card because it’s easy to see this going either way. The ladder match stipulation allows the rest of Damage CTRL to help Bayley claim the belt so Belair doesn’t take a clean loss. I suspect they try, but Alexa Bliss and Asuka get involved to give Belair enough time to retain. This whole feud feels like it’s getting ready for WarGames at Survivor Series and WWE should be in no rush to end Belair’s reign before WrestleMania.
Ronda Rousey over Liv Morgan (c.) to win the SmackDown women’s championship (Extreme Rules match)
WWE has done enough to legitimize Morgan and her title reign by having her beat Rousey at SummerSlam and then the former UFC women’s bantamweight champion’s friend Shayna Baszler at Clash at the Castle. The Extreme Rules stipulation is the perfect chance for either Rousey to allow Morgan to lose while showing toughness or have Baszler find a way to interfere and cost her the match to officially kick off a heel turn and their pairing. Rousey taking a third straight loss to Morgan would be very surprising.
