Review for WWE Extreme Rules 2022

Extreme Rules was a great PPV and with only six matches only one sticks out like a sore thumb, but the rest of the event was very watchable and I was glad to revisit this event. It wasn’t the brutality you would expect from this type of event, but each match felt like it meant something.

Sheamus, Butch and Ridge Holland against Gunther, Vinci and Kaiser in a Six-man Good Old Fashioned Donnybrook (so essentially a No-DQ Match). After the Five Star match at Clash in the Castle I expected this to be a bit of a let-down especially (as I always say) these matches would be better and more exciting with an Elimination format. Instead, this match was just as great and ten times as brutal. The use of the Shillelagh reminded of the days of Finlay tearing up the ring and this was filled with moments that were just fantastic.

Liv Morgan put her Smackdown Women’s belt against Ronda Rousey in an Extreme Rules match which was a bit of a one-sided affair and despite holding her own against Shayna Baszler last month, she seemed to have no chance against Rowdy Ronda Rousey. This could have been the point when WWE really solidified Liv as a credible champion, instead Rousey mopped the floor with her.

In a Strap Match, Drew McIntyre took on Karrion Kross in an odd 24/7 style Hardcore match made all the more watchable due to the appearance of the stunning Scarlett who is easily becoming my favourite female valet of the last few years. This was a good match, but nothing special and the ending was a bit lacklustre.

Bianca Belair put her Raw Women’s Championship against Bayley in a Ladder match which definitely had its moments, but if there was ever a time when the EST should have had an upset it should have been this match. Even with Damage CTRL helping she could not get the better of Bianca and this felt bizarre and her losing that way would not have hurt Bianca, but it certainly made Bayley and Damage CTRL look weak and stupid.

Edge against Finn Balor in an I Quit match was the very definition of ‘Emotional Damage’ and by the end I was utterly destroyed and felt so bad with Edge. The match was almost exactly what the previous match should have been, with the Judgment Day group destroying Edge and everyone he was allied with and by the end it was just a sad sight to see. Though this will make his revenge all the more sweet.

Riddle against Seth Rollins in a Fight Pit was an odd-looking match set in a cage which had a little platform going around it. I’m not sure of its purpose and it didn’t really come into play much to make it memorable. However, the match itself was fantastic and these two have had a great rivalry and feud going into this match.

The match itself was upstaged by the ending and the return of Bray Wyatt (seemingly in the original Wyatt Family ‘Whole World in His Hands’ persona).

Extreme Rules has no extras and so thankfully it can still stand on the quality of the PPV itself. If you haven’t seen it there are some great matches to watch and if you have there are definitely matches you will want to relive.