Extreme Rules 2019 Preview: 3 expected title changes revealed, surprising finish to main event (July 14th)

It's time for one of the biggest B-PPVs of the year - WWE Extreme Rules 2019. This PPV is the one prior to WWE SummerSlam 2019, so it's safe to say that leading into the second biggest show of the year, this one is going to make quite a difference.

We're not going to lie. On paper, we're actually quite thrilled about this card. The match card is pretty solid as a whole, but that's where it presents a problem - the ability to disappoint. Take, for example, WWE Stomping Grounds 2019. We mentioned multiple times that despite the completely underwhelming card, it was usually the kind that would go out of its way to deliver against low expectations - and that's exactly what happened.

With a solid, hyped card, there's a chance that the PPV may disappoint, though we would like to keep our optimism about the PPV. The Kickoff show match is expected to be the Cruiserweight title match between Drew Gulak and Tony Nese, though it hasn't been confirmed just yet.

Here's what you need to look forward to on Extreme Rules tonight!

#9. Aleister Black vs Cesaro

For a while now, Aleister Black has been impatiently waiting for someone to knock on his door and pick a fight with him. Cesaro stepped up to the challenge and after quite a bit of mind games, he revealed himself to be the one who knocked on Black's door.

This is going to be an extremely interesting match-up and we fully believe that it's going to be the potential match of the night. Cesaro must be given due credit for stepping up to the challenge, but will his dynamic strength and agility be enough to stop the once-unstoppable former NXT Champion?

#8. Daniel Bryan & Rowan (c) vs The New Day vs Heavy Machinery - SmackDown Tag Team Championship

Daniel Bryan & Rowan haven't exactly had the best few weeks. After being pinned two consecutive nights in a row by The New Day, the SmackDown Tag Team Champions had clear new contenders on their plate.

However, Heavy Machinery was added to the mix late on and on the latest episode of SmackDown, Otis gained more momentum for his team as he defeated Daniel Bryan and Xavier Woods in a triple threat match.

Now, the planet's champion and his intellectual peer Rowan will look to defend their tag titles in a huge challenge - a Triple Threat match. Given the level of opposition that they're going up against, don't be surprised if they walk out without the titles.

In fact, we even expect Otis and Tucker to pull off the upset and become SmackDown Tag Team Champions.

#7. Ricochet (c) vs AJ Styles - United States Championship

Ricochet has the toughest test of his career

The up-and-coming Ricochet has been an instant hit on WWE's main roster. After his brief tag team run with Aleister Black, Ricochet looked to live up to his potential as a singles star and has been on the rise faster than anybody on the RAW roster.

His success translated to him winning his first United States title from Samoa Joe quite early on, but AJ Styles instantly emerged as a challenger. While there was respect on week one after AJ Styles beat Ricochet (in a non-title match), Ricochet would get his revenge a week later, only for Styles to assault him with the help of Gallows & Anderson.

With all the respect thrown out of the window, this is a grudge match. Expect AJ Styles to pick up the United States title thanks to help from Gallows & Anderson. We fully expect these two to meet again at SummerSlam.

#6. Braun Strowman vs Bobby Lashley - Last Man Standing

This one is going to be exciting. Last time we saw Bobby Lashley and Braun Strowman together, they both went through the LED screen, infusing a series of short fuses that could have caused life-threatening injuries to both.

Braun Strowman is still believed to be injured, but that won't stop him from showing up at Extreme Rules to take the fight to his arch-rival Bobby Lashley. This time around, it's a Last Man Standing match, so expect both men to bring the fight to each other like never before.

What we can definitely expect from the match is for both men to take each other to the limit, with the winner only walking out victorious by a narrow margin. Given their size and strength, it's going to be quite difficult to put each other down, but we feel Strowman will be the one to emerge victoriously.

#5. The Revival (c) vs The Usos - RAW Tag Team Championship

The rivalry comes to a head at Extreme Rules

One thing we're glad about is that The Usos have stopped their childish antics and taken serious focus on the RAW tag team titles again. The Revival won the titles from Zack Ryder & Curt Hawkins in the cleverest way possible and since then, their rivalry with The Usos has resulted in a big title match.

This match is undoubtedly going to be a very fast-paced affair and ultimately, it's all going to boil down stylistically. So far, The Usos have proven time and again to have The Revival's number, so despite being champions, The Top Guys aren't the favourites in the contest.

Expect The Usos to once again beat them, capturing the RAW Tag Team Championships. While this will be their first official RAW tag title, they won the title in the same lineage years prior.

#4. Bayley (c) vs Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross - 2-on-1 handicap match for the SmackDown Women's Championship

It's been an extremely interesting rivalry between Alexa Bliss and Bayley. While Bliss undoubtedly had Bayley's number a couple of years ago, it looks like the renewed Hugger has fixed the holes in her game, outlasting and defeating Alexa Bliss at WWE Stomping Grounds (albeit indirect help from Nikki Cross).

But ultimately, the real story here has been the fact that Nikki Cross has been doing all the heavy lifting for Alexa Bliss. From earning her a title shot to protecting her, Bliss knows that Cross has been extremely valuable to her and her title aspirations.

Bayley now faces the odds in a 2-on-1 handicap match. Will Alexa Bliss allow Nikki Cross to pin Bayley for the title? Or will we see Bayley capitalise on conflict and pick up a sneaky win?

#3. Kofi Kingston (c) vs Samoa Joe

In another instance of a SmackDown champion defending their title against a RAW superstar, Kofi Kingston takes on Samoa Joe in another major defence of the WWE Championship.

Kofi Kingston has lived up to his word since WrestleMania, truly proving to be a great WWE Champion. He's defended the title at every PPV and every given opportunity, coming out victorious on each occasion.

Samoa Joe has been the latest thorn in Kofi Kingston's side, opting to go right after the WWE Championship rather than regaining the lost United States title from Ricochet. This presents an extremely interesting match-up from a stylistic perspective and it'll be really interesting to see if Samoa Joe actually steps up to the plate and grabs what he feels is his, or if he'll once again fall short on a big occasion, something that he's somewhat gained a reputation for doing.

#2. Seth Rollins (c) & Becky Lynch (c) vs Baron Corbin & Lacey Evans - Last chance winner takes all Extreme Rules mixed tag team match

We know. The stipulation match name is longer than it needs to be. In short, the power couple of Seth Rollins & Becky Lynch will put both the Universal Championship and RAW Women's Championship on the line against Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans, two competitors who have been defeated on multiple occasions.

Though they're clearly undeserving of further title opportunities, the power couple decided to grant it anyway - and we got a mixed tag team match for Extreme Rules. The Extreme Rules stipulation itself was added later on, but it's certainly made things very interesting.

Rollins & Lynch have been on absolute fire, gaining more momentum this past week as they defeated Andrade and Zelina Vega in a mixed tag team "elimination" match (a stipulation which we quite frankly, still don't understand).

Will the power couple prevail and walk out with their titles intact? Or will Brock Lesnar make his presence known?

#1. Roman Reigns & The Undertaker vs Shane McMahon & Drew McIntyre

This is going to be one heck of a main event!

On the RAW after Stomping Grounds, Roman Reigns was getting beaten down 2-on-1 by Shane McMahon & Drew McIntyre. Out of nowhere, The Undertaker, Reigns' former rival appeared out of nowhere and made the save.

Why he made the save, we're not yet sure. Either way, it's resulted in an extremely interesting situation for Roman Reigns, where he teams up with his WrestleMania 33 opponent to take on his WrestleMania 35 opponent and Shane McMahon, the man who beat him at Super ShowDown.

This match is expected to be the main event, so don't sleep on it. The Undertaker may be old but there's no doubt he'll put up a fight. However, he is the weak link of his team and with that said, we fully expect Drew McIntyre to pin The Undertaker in a surprising main event finish.

What do you think we are going to see at WWE Extreme Rules? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!

Edited by Anirban