WWE Extreme Rules 2016 Matches: Best Possible Finish for Each Contest
The success of any match can be traced back to its finish—the last thing fans see and the moment that either sets up the next chapter of a given feud or brings it to a definitive conclusion. At Extreme Rules, several of the top feuds in WWE will wrap up with a high-profile gimmick match, while others will live to tell another tale, and the finishes of those respective matches will dictate which is which.
Sunday night, Roman Reigns defends his WWE World Heavyweight Championship against AJ Styles in an Extreme Rules match. The strength of the champion's reign will be determined by the way he manages to beat Styles. If The Phenomenal One leaves with his arm raised in victory, how he does it will give fans a taste of what kind of champion WWE will present him as.
Charlotte and Natalya will bring their feud to an end in a Submission match. There is only one way to win, but the creativity that goes into the finish will determine whether or not the bout is more suited for Raw or deserving of the pay-per-view stage.
With a stacked card, including some of the most talented Superstars in the industry and rivalries that have contributed to the best WWE television of 2016, the outcomes of each bout will determine the path some of the most recognizable stars in the WWE Universe will take into the summer and whether some of the most entertaining feuds are successes or failures.
On the eve of Extreme Rules 2016, we preview the night's eight matches and check out the best finish for each one of them.
No Disqualification Match: Dolph Ziggler vs. Baron Corbin
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The No Disqualification match between Dolph Ziggler and Baron Corbin during the Extreme Rules pre-show will be a rubber match of sorts—the third high-profile battle between The Showoff and The Lone Wolf. Each has scored a victory over the other, leading to what should be a fierce battle to kick off Sunday's proceedings.
The Superstars have demonstrated some solid in-ring chemistry built on Ziggler's willingness to bump all around the squared circle for his larger opponent. The sequences have gotten better the more they have competed, and the intensity displayed by both Superstars has been a pleasant surprise.
Ziggler may be one of the best wrestlers in WWE, but Corbin has a rare presence about him to go along with his size and punishing skill set. He is more valuable to the long-term future of the company, and he should get the nod here.
Best Finish
While the No Disqualification rule may play a role in the bout itself, the finish should be an old-fashioned pinfall that sees Corbin put Ziggler away with End of Days.
United States Championship Match: Kalisto vs. Rusev
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Kalisto's United States Championship run has been one massive disappointment—the result of inconsistent booking and feuds that failed to spark interest within the WWE Universe.
Sunday night, the masked luchador once again defends his title, this time against a surging Bulgarian Brute in Rusev, who has recently begun a recovery from his ill-advised League of Nations stint.
Rusev needs to have his credibility rebuilt. Fans have watched the once-undefeated Superstar get beaten down and devalued for the last year. To get back where he was, he needs several high-profile victories and a championship.
That should start Sunday night at Extreme Rules.
Best Finish
Rusev works over the back of his opponent throughout the majority of the match, capitalizing on the injuries suffered by the champion Monday on Raw. He weathers a spirited comeback by the quick Kalisto and finishes him off with The Accolade to regain the United States Championship he last held in April 2015.
WWE Tag Team Championship Match: The New Day vs. The Vaudevillains
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The New Day has held the WWE Tag Team Championships for 270-plus days—the unquestioned star group of the division. Kofi Kingston, Big E and Xavier Woods have taken an act that failed miserably out of the gate, altered it to make it their own and achieved tremendous success. So over are they that there are few teams able to match them in terms of popularity.
The Vaudevillains are not one of them.
Simon Gotch and Aiden English have, though, rebounded from a rough start to their WWE careers to become solid heels who play off the nonsensical fun of the champions well. They have gained momentum in recent weeks, thanks to strong victories and a cleverly written beatdown of the champions this past Monday night.
Sunday night, though, their championship dreams should be dashed by the creators of Booty-Os.
Best Finish
Kingston pins English following Trouble in Paradise—just seconds after escaping the Whirling Dervish.
Tag Team Tornado Match: The Usos vs. The Club
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While Roman Reigns and AJ Styles have waged war over the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, associates The Usos and The Club have battled across the country in some incredibly heated matches as well. Sunday, their issues will come to a head as they battle in a Tag Team Tornado match.
Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows have netted the majority of the victories in the series, but many have questioned their roles. Too often, they have felt like lackeys for AJ Styles rather than The Phenomenal One's equals. That is problematic, especially as WWE Creative asks the audience to take The Club seriously as a united front.
Sunday night, Anderson and Gallows have the opportunity to silence critics and gain sizable momentum for themselves with a decisive victory.
The Usos, on the other hand, are strong enough to withstand losses to a team like Gallows and Anderson and bounce back in short order.
Best Finish
After taking out one of The Usos with a steel chair, Gallows and Anderson execute the Boot of Doom to secure their biggest win to date.
Submission Match for the WWE Women's Championship: Natalya vs. Charlotte
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The entire storyline between WWE women's champion Charlotte and Natalya seems to point at The Queen of Harts capitalizing on the lack of Ric Flair at ringside, trapping the titleholder in the Sharpshooter and winning her first championship since 2010.
While that would deliver fans the happy ending they cherish, there is something about a Natalya championship reign that does not feel right.
Sure, the third-generation competitor is as talented a technician as there is. She has thrived between the ropes in her battles with Charlotte, but she does not have the mic skills or the natural charisma necessary to carry a division still growing and expanding its role in the WWE Universe.
Charlotte, on the other hand, is an extraordinary athlete and a wrestler capable of carrying the division well into the future. That she has perfected her spoiled daddy's girl character over recent months, much to the dismay of fans who want to see her beaten, only serves as further reason for her reign to continue past Sunday's event.
The daughter of The Nature Boy needs a quality win without the constant interference of her father to lend her further credibility. Winning what should be a hard-hitting, high-profile match will accomplish that.
Best Finish
Natalya appears to have the match won with the Sharpshooter—Charlotte screaming in pain as the referee repeatedly asks if she wants to give up. Ever resourceful and alert, though, the champion grabs hold of the women's title and uses it to strike the previously injured knee of her opponent.
With the third-generation competitor writhing in pain, Charlotte traps her in the Figure Eight and scores the submission victory.
Asylum Match: Dean Ambrose vs. Chris Jericho
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The Asylum match looks like a cluster of massive proportions, a bout needlessly messy and complex for a rivalry born of the destruction of a plant and light-up jacket.
Given the talent of the two Superstars involved and the creativity that both men possess, there is a high likelihood that the match will be suitably awesome. Ambrose and Jericho have made the most of the lackluster writing to this point, somehow generating excitement in a match that has no real reason to exist, especially given The Lunatic Fringe's decisive win over Y2J at Payback.
The weapons inside the steel cage represent a nice change of pace from the traditional gimmick match, but it also has die-hard wrestling fans talking TNA and the similarities between the Asylum and that company's Lethal Lockdown match.
Ambrose and Jericho will silence those comparisons Sunday night with a violent and physical match that brings about the conclusion of their feud.
Who emerges victorious, though? And how?
Best Finish
Ambrose proves turnabout is fair play, trapping Jericho in the same straitjacket he was subjected to a few weeks back and unloading on him with a series of kendo stick shots to the body. Dirty Deeds follows, and Ambrose collects his second consecutive win over Y2J, building momentum for himself at the expense of a legendary Superstar who does not need this particular victory.
Fatal 4-Way Match for the WWE Intercontinental Championship
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WWE Creative has done a masterful job of crafting a four-way rivalry over the Intercontinental Championship that highlights every Superstar involved rather than focusing on two specific stars while allowing the other two to fall by the wayside.
Sunday night, The Miz will defend his title against Kevin Owens, Cesaro and Sami Zayn in a match that has the potential to steal the show. More importantly, it has helped elevate the importance of the coveted championship in the eyes of an audience that has not had much reason to care about the title over the last five years.
While fans would love to see Cesaro or Zayn score the victory, and Owens is delivering some of his best work to date, the only Superstar who should leave Newark, New Jersey, with the IC title is the man who currently possesses it, The Hollywood A-Lister, The Miz.
Zayn, Owens and Cesaro do not need the title. Their immense in-ring abilities will keep them over in the eyes of the fans. Miz's entire gimmick at this point, though, is built on him being an obnoxious and unbearable champion with an IMDB page and a stunningly beautiful wife. That entire package generates him his heat.
Why sacrifice that act to book a championship change that will do nothing to significantly elevate any of the other three competitors involved in the match?
Best Finish
Owens delivers the Pop-Up Powerbomb to Cesaro before eating the Helluva Kick from Zayn. Just as it looks like the beloved babyface is about to score the victory, Miz sneaks into the ring, delivers the Skull-Crushing Finale and successfully retains his title.
Extreme Rules Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship
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Arguably the most anticipated match of 2016 pits WWE world heavyweight champion Roman Reigns against AJ Styles in an Extreme Rules match that will serve as the culmination of the Superstars' intense rivalry.
The two have waged war for the last month, both in official matches and chaotic brawls. The booking of their story has been stellar, with neither man gaining a distinct advantage and both men relying on friends and family to turn the tide in their favors.
With no rules and a desire to emerge with championship gold, this match could be the best of the year so far.
The question is whether WWE Creative has the intestinal fortitude to switch the title from Reigns to the red-hot Styles.
In short, it does not—and with good reason.
The Reigns project is not over. There are still far too many chapters to be told in his story to take the title off of him just to put it on Styles, who will likely find himself involved in a feud with associates Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows sooner rather than later.
To get to that point, there has to be an emphasis.
That emphasis should occur Sunday night.
Best Finish
Roman Reigns pins AJ Styles clean off of a Spear after a wild main event. Frustrated with their friend's lack of success, Gallows and Anderson beat Styles down after the match, their own victory giving them a reason to do so.
