The second Monday Night Raw exclusive pay-per-view – or first if you're not counting Backlash – is just a few days away. WWE Extreme Rules 2017 comes to us from the Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore, Maryland and expectations are high for a great show.
Finally, we will see a Number 1 Contender crowned for the WWE Universal Champion and even though the WWE Universal Champion, Brock Lesnar, isn’t going to be defending his belt at the show, it’s a good start to seeing the top belt on Monday nights back in the picture.
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All the other titles will be on the line as Austin Aries takes on Neville for the Cruiserweight Championship in a Submission match, The Hardyz defend their title against Sheamus and Cesaro in a Steel Cage match, Dean Ambrose and The Miz battle for the Intercontinental Title, and last but not least, Alexa Bliss and Bayley go head to head in a Kendo Stick on a Pole match.
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What this offers is a great chance for some unexpected results. Let’s get into our list of 5 twists that can happen at WWE Extreme Rules 2017:
#5 Austin Aries doesn’t win via The Last Chancery
Austin Aries’ finisher, Last Chancery, has been built up as one of the most devastating submission moves over the course of his feud against the Cruiserweight Champion, Neville. And, it is almost a certainty that he will finally best his foe using the move.
It is, after all, a Submission Match and The King of the Cruiserweights just about escaped with his crown when the two met at Backlash 2017. Any other outcome seems inconceivable, but maybe that’s why the WWE creative team will throw a swerve.
Maybe Neville can pull a rabbit out of the hat and continue his reign as champion or maybe AA has another trick up his sleeve and is going to use that to tap out his opponent and become the champion.
#4 Sasha Banks interferes to cost Bayley the title
The WWE has been teasing a Sasha Banks heel turn for ages before they shelved the idea after The Superstar Shakeup. With Alexa Bliss ruling the WWE Raw Women’s Division right now, this might be a good time to pull the trigger on the long-coming heel turn.
The most obvious target for the turn would be the beloved Bayley, whose character needs a solid shot in the arm as well. The two have proven that they can put on stellar matches during their time together in NXT and they can certainly do so on the main roster as well.
It would definitely come from out of nowhere but would add some real fire to a Raw Women’s Division that has been struggling for solid storylines as of late.
#3 Matt Hardy is Broken and turns on Jeff
Matt Hardy has been in a weird limbo between his old V1 days and his new Broken gimmick, that got him such popularity on the independent scene. Unfortunately, upon his WWE return, the elder Hardy brother hasn’t been allowed to go full Broken.
If the legal disputes between The Hardyz and Anthem – the group that owns Impact Wrestling – can be resolved before Extreme Rules rolls around, we could see the shocking return of Broken Matt.
And, what better way to make an immediate impact with the new gimmick than to turn on Jeff and start a Hardy vs Hardy vs feud? It’s an unlikely scenario, but don’t rule it out from happening.
#2 Dean Ambrose vs The Miz ends with a clean finish
The Intercontinental Championship match between Dean Ambrose and The Miz comes with a stipulation that if the champion, Ambrose, is disqualified, he then loses the title to his opponent. This is a fallout from a previous match between the two on Monday Night Raw where The Lunatic Fringe got himself disqualified intentionally.
It would indeed be a twist if there was a clean finish to this match.
With the stipulation and the fact that Maryse is going to be at ringside, all the components required for a dusty finish are readily available, which is why the creative team might just fool everyone and end the bout with a clean victory either way.
#1 Finn Balor doesn't become Number 1 Contender
Despite the fact that there are five elite level talents battling it out in the Extreme Rules Fatal Fiveway match to become the Number 1 Contender for Brock Lesnar’s WWE Universal Championship, the money seems to be on Finn Balor to pick up the victory.
After all, he has been riding a massive wave of fan support through the weeks and his star has been made brighter by the ringing endorsement he received from The Advocate of The Beast, Paul Heyman.
It seems unlikely that anyone other than The Demon King will walk out of Baltimore as Number 1 Contender and it would be the biggest twist of the night if any of the other four participants landed the victory instead.
Then again, Roman Reigns is involved in this match so we’re probably going to see another victory for The Big Dog.
