WWE Extreme Rules 2012: Daniel Bryan and Sheamus Give Match of the Year Showing

Sheamus needed more than 18 seconds to defeat Daniel Bryan on Sunday night.

While the matchup ended with the same result, on April 29th the WWE’s product  proved to be superior to the complete joke on April Fool’s Day. Of course, it isn’t like it could have gotten much worse, but the Extreme Rules title match surpassed all expectations—even the highest.

The wrestlers' match earlier this month was pitiful. To put such little priority in a championship showdown while Kelly Kelly and Maria Menounos’ Divas match vs. Beth Phoenix and Eve lasted almost seven minutes was a disgrace. It would have ruined the entire night if it weren’t for The Rock and John Cena’s legendary performance.

Arda Ocal of the Baltimore Sun reported that Bryan was surprised by fans' distaste of his quick knock out. He then went on to preview his rematch with Sheamus saying:

"

Hopefully this [match] doesn't end in 36 seconds. I'm hoping that we can go out there and really steal the show. That’s what I was aiming for at Wrestlemania, but it didn’t actually happen, so hopefully it turns out this Sunday.

Me and Sheamus are two of the hardest-hitting guys in WWE. And I don’t think there’s anybody that can put on a match like Sheamus and I can. So we’re gonna go out there and beat each other up, and I think people are really gonna enjoy it. The crowd in Chicago should be rabid as well, so it should be a really fun show.

"

He couldn’t have been more off with his initial assumption. But with his projection, he was dead on.

Sheamus was actually forced to earn his victory in the two-out-of-three falls match. In fact, Bryan should have come away with the title.

A disqualification allowed Sheamus to take an early lead. Bryan continued to punish him earning the second fall by means of submission. Sheamus looked finished before he followed a miraculous recovery with a Brogue Kick for the triumph.

Hopefully the ratings tell WWE the story of the superior match.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

Follow @TheRealDDaniels