Samoa Joe Beats Bray Wyatt, Finn Balor at Raw Ahead of WWE Extreme Rules 2017

In a partial Extreme Rules preview, Samoa Joe defeated Bray Wyatt and Finn Balor in a Triple Threat match on Monday's episode of Raw.

Balor delivered the Coup de Grace to Wyatt, seemingly putting himself in position to win. Ever the opportunist, Joe threw Balor into the ring post and pinned Wyatt. WWE Universe showed a victorious Destroyer:

Former WWE star Taz praised the three wrestlers for their work inside the ring:

Monday's match was made by Raw general manager Kurt Angle last week after he announced the previous week that Joe, Wyatt, Balor, Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns would battle in a Fatal 5-Way at Extreme Rules to determine a No. 1 contender for Brock Lesnar's Universal Championship.

While Joe and Wyatt have had their issues, they teamed up successfully last week to defeat Rollins and Reigns in the Raw main event when Rollins passed out in the Coquina Clutch.

Balor wasn't part of that bout, as he instead was victorious against former Bullet Club brother Karl Anderson.

Prior to The Demon's clash with Anderson, he was addressed by Paul Heyman, as Lesnar's advocate made a surprise appearance.

According to WWE Universe on Twitter, Heyman paid the first-ever universal champion a massive compliment:

Although he was an important part of the show, Balor asked Angle to allow him to mix it up with the other Fatal 5-Way participants.

The Olympic gold medalist honored Balor's request and booked a match that could have major implications for Extreme Rules.

Since a Triple Threat and a Fatal 5-Way are similar aside from the number of competitors involved, Monday's bout served as a measuring stick for Joe, Wyatt and Balor in terms of gauging how prepared they are.

None of the three Superstars has ever had a singles match against The Beast Incarnate, but they would all make for intriguing opponents at Great Balls of Fire.

Joe is the best match when it comes to size and toughness, Wyatt can complicate matters with his mind games and Balor would play an ideal David to Lesnar's Goliath.

It is difficult to single out any of them as the favorite ahead of the others since there isn't a truly bad option for Lesnar at Great Balls of Fire.

With Joe winning the Triple Threat, however, it could be a sign that WWE is building his momentum to make him a credible threat against The Conquerer.

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