Extreme Rules is upon us – the one time of the year WWE gets Extreme! The marquee PPV’s headliner this year was initially panned by the hardcore fans and critics, and hasn’t really gotten over with the casuals either.
Nevertheless, it still is a solid matchup on a decent pay-per-view card. Five of the red brand’s top Superstars will do battle in a Fatal 5-Way Extreme Rules Match as Bray Wyatt, Samoa Joe, Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns and last but not the least, the inaugural WWE Universal champion Finn Balor, compete in order to determine the number 1 contender for the Universal Championship presently held by Brock Lesnar.
Trending
WWE Extreme Rules 2017 Results, live updates
Will the Eater of Worlds slay the Beast or Triple H’s terrifying henchman put Lesnar to sleep with the Coquina Clutch? Can the Kingslayer dethrone the former UFC Heavyweight champion and current WWE King or will the Big Dog clean out Paul Heyman’s most valuable client from his yard?
Maybe, just maybe, the Demon King, for whom Heyman himself had words of high praise on a recent edition of RAW, may go on to stay true to his role of a dark horse, win the Fatal 5-Way and then, perhaps, lay waste to the notoriously untraceable and conspicuously absent Beast Incarnate.
Come June 4th we shall set forth on the path to getting the answers to all our questions. Baby steps, mind you! Extreme Rules will give us a clear, undisputed challenger to who’ll go on to face Lesnar on July 9th at Great Balls of Fire.
For now, let’s take a look at a select few Extreme facts that further solidify the legitimacy of how tough and gritty the five participants in the upcoming Extreme Rules headliner truly are.
#5 Bray Wyatt
A third-generation professional wrestler, born Windham Lawrence Rotunda, the man formerly known as Husky Harris started off being nothing more than a jobber in his days as part of the Nexus back around 2011.
A brain-rattling punt from Randy Orton sent him packing to WWE’s developmental territories and within the span of a year, the 30-year-old re-invented himself as Bray Wyatt. Under the guidance of the legendary, late-great Dusty Rhodes, Rotunda transformed himself into the Wyatt Family patriarch, the Eater of Worlds - Bray Wyatt.
Gone was the non-threatening, goofy flip-flopping Husky Harris and in place of him stood the ever-conniving, out-and-out charismatic, universally feared and deceptively agile Bray Wyatt. Wyatt would go on to become a WWE Champion in his second run on the company’s main-roster and is presently one of the brightest young stars on Monday Night RAW.
Former WWE Superstar JTG narrated the following story about Wyatt in his book, a story so Extreme and so death-defying, it’ll give one goosebumps.
As per JTG, Wyatt and him were driving in their rental car, with Big E and Alex Riley in another. All of a sudden a speeding car almost sideswiped Wyatt and JTG but drove off without causing damage.
Nevertheless, a while later, the same car knocked off Alex Riley and Big E off the road, in response to which Wyatt and JTG pursued the car in hopes of catching up with the rash driver and teaching the people in the other car a lesson.
However, whilst in hot pursuit of the car, Wyatt and JTG saw the driver of the car lose balance, following which the car did 6 complete barrel rolls and land up upside down with smoke coming out of the totaled vehicle.
Bray Wyatt, for all his villainous ways inside the ring, rushed to rescue the occupants of the totaled car, with complete disregard for his own safety, with the smoking car a ticking time bomb that could’ve gone off at any moment. Wyatt rescued a teenage girl from the passenger seat of the car on his own, following which, JTG narrates that he mustered the courage to help Bray pull the other girl, ergo the driver of the car, out after a brief struggle.
JTG stated that they called 911 to help the girls and left the scene in order to avoid any unnecessary media attention as well as to tend to their WWE obligations without wasting any more time. He also revealed that Bray Wyatt never bragged about the incident to anyone backstage nor did he seek any attention from the media on his said heroics.
#4 Samoa Joe
Born Nuufolau Joel Seanoa, Samoa Joe is widely regarded as one of the best professional wrestlers of this era. But it wasn’t until recently that he got credit for his tireless efforts and undeniable work ethic.
Joe first feuded with John Cena when the two of them were no-names in Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW) – a WWE developmental affiliate – in what was merely scratching the surface of the now-polished diamond by the name of Samoa Joe.
Joe would also appear on WWF Jakked, following which he joined ROH (Ring Of Honor) as future TNA foe Christopher Daniels’ hired mercenary. In 2005, he would go on to perform with TNA (Impact Wrestling) where he rose to prominence and is perhaps, to this day, known for his otherworldly mat work.
The 38-year-old then debuted in WWE’s NXT brand in 2015 and on the main roster earlier this year, and fast-forward to the here-and-now, Samoa Joe is one of the biggest names on Monday Night RAW, besides being primed for a title shot if he is to win the all-important Fatal 5-Way Match at Extreme Rules.
Joe is a martial arts fanatic and grappling savant, having extensively trained in the arts of BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) and Muay Thai. His road to the world’s premier professional wrestling promotion has been long and tedious no doubt, but the fact that Triple H himself sees him as a potential main-event star, speaks volumes about the Destroyer’s in-ring abilities and intimidating mic-skills.
#3 Seth Rollins
Seth Rollins aka Colby Lopez has had a strange career, to say the least, in the WWE thus far.
The 31-year-old has been a competitor in the sport since 2005 and it was only in 2012 that he truly broke through into the big leagues, as part of the Shield.
That was preceded by a run as NXT champion, and when you look at Rollins’ career trajectory over the past year and a half, nothing makes sense at all. He suffered a career-threatening knee injury and came back to a hot-and-cold reception from the WWE Universe.
He injured his ACL, MCL and medial meniscus in late 2015, promised fans that he’d redesign, rebuild and reclaim the throne of WWE- something that he was groomed for by his mentor Triple H.
And being the Architect that he is, Rollins did exactly that, and more! The former WWE World Heavyweight champion not only rebuilt himself but also slay his aforementioned one-time mentor-turned-bitter rival ‘The King of Kings’ Triple H on the grandest stage of them all.
Rollins’ is a true story of perseverance and undying spirit – something that will be a part of professional wrestling folklore for years to come. It doesn’t get more Extreme than that.
#2 Roman Reigns
Born Leati Joseph Anoa’i, Roman Reigns has got to be the most hated wrestler not only in the WWE but also in the entire sport of pro-wrestling today.
I’m not a part of the ‘Reigns Hate Brigade’, so to speak, and specifically wish to seize this opportunity to show the Big Dog’s critics how far the 32-year-old has really come since his days as a troubled youth.
A few years back Reigns was arrested for disorderly conduct, intoxication, unlawful assembly and affray - an incident that’s repeatedly brought to the fore by most of the so-called hardcore professional wrestling fans, in an effort to discredit him.
Always one to own up to his mistakes, Reigns turned around his life, rising to prominence in the WWE and blazing a trail that only a select group of stars have been able to in the sport.
Roman Reigns overcame all kinds of adversities in his rise to the top in WWE, be it sky-high expectations from him, with the fact that he comes from a rich lineage of highly-respected professional wrestlers, to moving on from personal issues in his younger days – the WWE truly is the Big Dog’s yard now!
#1 Finn Balor
As a longtime member of the Balor Club, it was great to see him become the inaugural WWE Universal champion and equally disheartening to see him having to relinquish his title owing to injury.
Balor suffered a labrum tear that had him out of action for months, only for the Demon King to fight back like the warrior that he is, and come back to what is currently a seemingly uphill task as he faces four other hungry, wild fighters at Extreme Rules.
If anyone knows how to get Extreme, it’s Mr. Fergal Devitt aka Finn Balor. And just in case you don’t believe me, watch some of the highlights of his work in NJPW – a true master of the art!
Extreme Rules is going to be brutal, majestic, twisted, chaotic, thrilling, mind-blowing, epic, otherworldly, and most of all… extreme.
Randy Orton picks the next Randy Orton HERE.
