WWE Extreme Rules 2020: Superstars Who Will Steal the Show on Updated Match Card

The upcoming Extreme Rules pay-per-view, dubbed the "The Horror Show at Extreme Rules," figures to be about as WWE in 2020 as it gets. 

The company and its wealth of Superstars continue to put on engaging contests and shows amid an audience-less environment and that will only continue Sunday. At least one pre-taped cinematic match has a chance to close out the event. 

And with SummerSlam plans still seemingly in flux, Extreme Rules feels more important than ever as a stepping stone to the company's second-biggest event of the year. A handful of Superstars have a chance to steal the show and build some serious momentum. 

Match Card

• Apollo Crews vs. MVP (WWE United States Championship match)
• Jeff Hardy vs. Sheamus (Bar Fight match)
• Rey Mysterio vs. Seth Rollins (Eye for an Eye match)
• Bayley vs. Nikki Cross (SmackDown Women's Championship match)
• Asuka vs. Sasha Banks (Raw Women's Championship match)
• Drew McIntyre vs. Dolph Ziggler (WWE Championship match)
• Braun Strowman vs. Bray Wyatt (Wyatt Swamp Fight, non-title match)

Nikki Cross

Superstars seemingly destined to lose in a predictable outcome still have a way of stealing shows. 

Nikki Cross is one of the best examples out there. She's one of the more unique characters on the roster right now, and WWE has been doing some really interesting things in that regard. She's second fiddle to Alexa Bliss and isn't winning a ton (she's won once since the second week of May). 

And yet, the Scot is so entertaining and good in the ring that she's guaranteed to squeak the most out of a title match against Bayley. 

In the end, it wouldn't make a ton of sense for Cross to take the SmackDown women's title right now. It's more functional on The Role Model, whose importance next to Sasha Banks cannot be understated. 

But if fans get some great character work out of Cross and WWE decides to create a divide between her and Bliss for the SummerSlam build, it'll go down as one of the highlights of Sunday's show. 

Braun Strowman

Braun Strowman isn't typically the sort of Superstar who steals shows. 

He usually has his big set pieces in matches (like the sprinting around the outside of the ring hammering opponents along the way), but fans are used to what he brings to the table. It's still impressive he moves so fast for such a big athlete, but fans know what to expect. 

Such a narrative could all change Sunday. 

Strowman is involved in a match with Bray Wyatt in what is surely a pre-taped cinematic match since WWE has billed this as a Wyatt Swamp Fight. That means more mystical elements like The Fiend and fewer instances of traditional wrestling. 

That's the sort of work fans don't get to see from The Monster Among Men often. Given how well cinematic matches have revived Superstars like Undertaker and already permitted Wyatt to excel, Strowman will be the latest to benefit. 

Considering the backdrop is what has otherwise been a ho-hum, if not disappointing, universal title run for Strowman so far, WWE has positioned Sunday as a chance to turn things around in unforgettable fashion. 

Sasha Banks

Part of what has made the current Banks run so enjoyable for longtime fans is the fact that it's seen as a reward for her hard work over the years. 

The Legit Boss, after all, routinely steals shows. 

While she's been stuck in the midcard in the past and used as a secondary character—even with a title around her waist—next to Charlotte Flair, Banks is now top dog.

She's one of the few Superstars who have excelled during audience-less shows, and there haven't been any hiccups with her stepping into the Becky Lynch-sized void in the roster. 

But it's understandable if fans go into Sunday thinking The Boss is in a no-win situation. She's in an unexpected title match against Asuka for the Raw women's belt. She's already a tag champ and WWE keeps using that belt alone as a device to get her on all three weekly programs. In a vacuum, it wouldn't make a ton of sense to have her rip a title from and damage The Empress of Tomorrow right now. 

Regardless of the outcome, though, fans know all too well Banks is capable of putting on a near-classic in any match. Extreme Rules should be no exception. 

And that's before considering the chance of a surprise. WWE has SummerSlam to build, and if the company wants to start some budding problems between Banks and Bayley, Sunday is the spot to do it.

If there is a dusty finish, regardless of the winner, there's a chance the character work in the background by The Boss makes for one of the year's top moments outright. 

Banks stealing the show isn't unusual, but how she does it Sunday is what makes her appearance in the title match so eagerly anticipated.