Dolph Ziggler was the man who brought Drew McIntyre back up to the main roster a few years ago and The Showoff hasn't let him forget it. Ziggler is a former World Champion in his own right, but when he saw that his old friend had been able to vanquish Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania, he decided to cash in on a debt.
McIntyre owes Ziggler at least a shot at the WWE Championship after the help he gave him on Monday Night RAW and that favor will be cashed in this weekend as part of The Horror Show at Extreme Rules.
The show already has the interesting "Eye for an eye" stipulation but Ziggler has been given all of the power in his match and has decided to wait until the day of the show to announce his advantage.
Here are five potential stipulations that Ziggler could decide to add to this weekend's WWE Championship match at Extreme Rules.
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#5 Handicap match and the return of Robert Roode
Over on SmackDown, Braun Strowman has become quite the victim of handicap championship matches in the past, but it's not something that has become common on Raw.
Ziggler stated that he would be adding a stipulation to the match that had never been done before, and technically this hasn't been done ever on RAW for the WWE Championship.
Robert Roode has been out of action in recent months because the travel ban prevented him from flying in from Canada, but it's thought that he should be able to make his return and could be Ziggler's secret weapon. Roode and Ziggler were working closely as a team before the COVID-19 pandemic wrote him out of storylines. Extreme Rules could be the perfect place for Robert Roode to make his return.
Could Ziggler be about to challenge Drew McIntyre to a WWE Championship match at Extreme Rules in a handicap situation?
#4 A title can change hands on a disqualification
It's written in the rule books that a Championship can not change hands on a disqualification or a countout. The match has to end via pin or submission in order for the title to change hands.
Of course, in the past, there have been a number of matches that have seen something like this happen when the feud has become so intense that there have been added stipulations.
A disqualification finish definitely helps Dolph Ziggler because he knows how to get under Drew McIntyre's skin. He could bait him into attacking him with weapons or even make him so angry that he can't stop assaulting him and then he gets disqualified.
This would definitely get Ziggler the heel heat that he requires throughout this match and it would force McIntyre to be the underdog and have to prove that he has what it takes to be the Champion and come back from behind.
Ziggler has been around the wrestling business for a long time and he's a tactical genius, so whatever stipulation he chooses at Extreme Rules, you have to believe it's going to give him the edge.
#3 No-DQ match but Ziggler gets an advantage
It's strange having Extreme Rules without an Extreme Rules match, that being said, all an Extreme Rules match really is, in definition, is a No-DQ match.
If Dolph Ziggler waits until the match begins and then announces that his stipulation is that it's a NO-DQ match, but only for him. That means that Ziggler can assault McIntyre with as many weapons as he wants and go against the rules as much as needed without getting disqualified.
McIntyre, on the other hand, has to continue to wrestle the match to all of the rules and isn't allowed to use any of the weapons otherwise he will be disqualified.
There is enough heat between the former friends for this to be the stipulation that Ziggler has chosen and given that he's waiting until the last minute to announce it, it could give him a clear advantage.
Could we see Dolph Ziggler walking out of Extreme Rules with the WWE Championship around his waist? This seems like the best option for that to happen.
#2 Dolph Ziggler chooses someone else to wrestle in his place
It's highly unlikely in a Championship match, but Dolph Ziggler has become someone who has enjoyed having friends around him over the past few years. His storyline with McIntyre proved that he was alright with helping push someone else to the top.
McIntyre has spent the last few weeks preparing for an Extreme Rules match against Dolph Ziggler, but it would be a huge swerve if instead, Ziggler unveiled someone from NXT as his new protege and asks them to fight for him.
Of course, it's highly unlikely that this star would win the WWE Champion in their first match this weekend at Extreme Rules, but it would put McIntyre on the backfoot and introduce an entirely new angle heading into SummerSlam. Since Brock Lesnar is no longer an option, there's no reason why this angle can't be continued between McIntyre and Ziggler.
The biggest question here would be who the NXT star is that Ziggler wants to bring up and who will walk out of Extreme Rules as Champion?
#1 Claymore Kick is banned
This is definitely the most obvious Extreme Rules stipulation that Dolph Ziggler could add since the Claymore Kick has been Drew McIntyre's power since his return to the main roster.
Of course, Ziggler did promise that his stipulation for Extreme Rules would be one that had never been done before, and this has been done in the past. A few years ago when Seth Rollins took on Randy Orton inside a steel cage, the RKO was banned but Rollins used it on Orton to pick up the victory.
Hopefully, if this is the stipulation that Ziggler chooses then he finds a way to add his own spin to it so that it isn't as similar as it was back then.
It's likely that it won't be that both of their finishers are banned because Ziggler will want to be able to use his own, but if he bans McIntyre from doing the Claymore then he might decide to use it himself.
There are many ways that Dolph Ziggler can gain an advantage this weekend, hopefully the stipulation is the added twist that the Extreme Rules pay-per-view currently needs.