IF the rules got extreme in Stride Pro Wrestling

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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Please note, this is another 'fantasy booking' blog post. Stride Pro Wrestling is not doing anything like this (at least not now). Jerry Travelstead suggested a post that ties WWE Extreme Rules with Stride Pro Wrestling so I thought I'd have a little fun.

Lead Pipe on a Pole Match

Tony Flood defends against Jay Spade. Flood has used the lead pipe a lot in recent matches with Spade. This time Spade gets an equal opportunity. Whoever reaches the pipe on the poll gets to use it on his opponent. Of course, the pipe can be wrestled away and anything goes. 

Casket Match

Wraith has risen from the grave and tries to send Brookspool to his demise in this match. The winner is the Stride Pro Wrestling Legacy Champion.

War Games

Heath Hatton, Ax Allwardt, Chris Hargas and Daniel Eads take on The Midwest Monster Hunters (Bo Sawyer and Jason Tiller) and the DR Party (Dexter Roswell and Scott Phoenix). 

First Blood Match

I'm not a big fan of blood and gore in pro wrestling, however, the rivalry that has developed between Cash Borden and Roger Matheus it only seems fitting for some violence to be a big part of the contest. This match also has sees the fans bringing weapons for each man to use.

Ladder Royal Match

I have no idea if this kind of match has happened or if it could even be pulled off. But it starts off as a battle royal. The last two men standing immediately start a ladder match with a contract hanging above the ring. Inside is a chance for ANY championship on the Stride Pro Wrestling roster. 

Combatants in this match are:

Joey O'Riley, Farmer Billy Hills, Ryzer, Disciple 2, Jose Magnifico, Jerry Travelstead, Stone Cold Plumster, Redneck Mania, CJ Jordan, Brian Richards, Curly, Justin D'Aire, Ace Hawkins and Brandon Espinosa. 

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Former WWE PPV wrestlers battle in Stride Pro Wrestling

2 is Greater than 1
Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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The headline is true. Two former WWE pay per view guests will be doing battle this Saturday night at Stride Pro Wrestling. In 2012 Jay (Heath) Hatton and Aaron Relic (Ace Hawkins) teamed up and took on Ryback at Extreme Rules. The duo didn't fare well, but having known both men from their time in All American Pro Wrestling, I couldn't have been prouder.

Hatton & Hawkins team with Jay Spade
Courtesy: Steve Belcher

Fast forward to present day, the '2 is Greater than 1' duo is part of Stride Pro Wrestling. Hawkins' appearances have been more sporadic, but he's always a welcomed guest here as the fans in southern Illinois have grown to love his work in the ring. Hatton, of course, has been a staple in Stride and a former heavyweight and Legacy champion. The two have teamed up here and have similar foes. However, the two are about to find themselves on opposite sides of the ring.

That's right, Hatton and Hawkins are signed for the opening round of the Stride Cup Tournament. Eight men are battling for the first-ever Stride Cup. In addition to the abovementioned stars, you'll also see Ax Allwardt, JD Wilk, El Magnifico, Brian Richards, Shane Lauder and a yet to be announced wrestler in the tournament. 

Hawkins and Hatton wrestling overseas

Hatton and Hawkins have a wealth of experience in the ring. Not only have they torn things up on the indy scene here in the Midwest, they've also had big opportunities to wrestle overseas. Those experiences in Europe along with the short time with WWE peppered with their years on the indies, it's going to be an exciting match and will likely steal the show.

Come check out the Stride Cup opening round and all the other action this Saturday night. Bell time is 6:30 p.m. at the Illinois Star Centre Mall in Marion. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for kids.

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All hail King Neville

The King of the Cruiserweights
Courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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"The King of the Cruiserweights" Neville survived another match against Austin Aries. This time the two went at it in a submission match at Extreme Rule 2017. In my predictions blog, I expressed my hope that Neville would survive this match but thought in the end that A Double would finally get a taste of WWE gold. Much to my surprise Neville won the match and retained the championship he won back at the Royal Rumble, making him the longest reigning current champion in WWE.

Courtesy: WWE

That speaks volumes for Neville. I'm the first to admit, I'm a huge fan (some will say mark) of Neville's. If you've read this blog before you know the story, but in case you forgot, we met in 2012 at an indy show (AAPW) when I was doing commentary and wrestling. Neville was Pac then and was brought into battle El Generico that night. Much to my surprise at WrestleMania XXX Axxess he remembered me and again at a meet & greet for WrestleMania 32. 

Courtesy: WWE

But put my bias to the side, it's hard to deny Neville is quite an athlete. His aerial assault has lessened since turning heel, but his Red Arrow is one of the most impressive moves in the business today. A couple years ago, after debuting on the main roster, I thought Neville might become King of the Ring. Bad News Barrett ended up beating Neville in the finals. In hindsight, I'm glad that happened. It seems what Neville ultimately needed was a change of attitude. The mean streak he's displayed since returning to the ring in 2016 has worked.

Courtesy: WWE

He may not be the King of the Ring, but he is THE King of the Cruiserweights. Hopefully, he moves on now after beating Aries three times on pay per view to a new challenge. This will help develop new talent on that roster and showcase the skills of the Superstar once known as "The Man Gravity Forgot." I should also note, I believe the matches against Aries have helped elevate Neville as well. And who can forget the recent endorsement Neville received from Kurt Angle? I totally agree and hope one day he transitions into a contender for the Universal or WWE Heavyweight Championships. 

Extreme Rules predictions

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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Extreme Rules is set for Sunday night. For the last month or so my viewing of Raw has been minimal. I told the story already about the bunny chewing the cord to our DirectTV box. Once the company sent a new one, I was ready to go. But a storm moved through on Memorial Day night, knocking out the signal to our satellite. I did get to see part of the show and I've of course kept up online with what's happening. So here are some quick thoughts...

Rich Swann and Sasha Banks will beat Noam Dar and Alicia Fox. I have no basis on this call, other than I don't usually bet against Sasha Banks. 

I want Neville to retain the Cruiserweight Championship against Austin Aries in a submission match. But my gut tells me they're going to put the title on A Double. I don't have a problem with that, as I'm sure this will be another outstanding match between these two.

Alexa Bliss will retain the Raw Women's Championship against Bayley. These two are battling it out in a kendo stick on a pole match. I'm all in for Alexa and switching the title again this quick is not a good thing.

The Hardy Boys will lose the tag team titles to Cesaro and Sheamus. I love both of these tag teams, with Cesaro and Sheamus really coming into their own. Their evolution has been impressive through the last several months. Many believe (myself included) if the Hardys lose in the cage match, this will set them off to begin singles careers. I haven't read up on the lawsuit over the Broken gimmick, so I don't know what will be next for the duo.

I'm split on the Intercontinental Championship match. Until Elias Samson got involved in the angle I figured the Miz would beat Dean Ambrose and regain the gold. Now I'm not so sure. Of course, I thought Baron Corbin was going to win the title at WrestleMania, so my ability to successfully call IC title matches has been limited.

When it comes to the five way to determine the number on contender to the Universal Championship, it's literally anyone's match to win. I've read that each of these men will eventually face Brock Lesnar for the championship up until WrestleMania, it just depends on what order they want to go and how dominant Lesnar will remain. To me, the WrestleMania matchup should be Samoa Joe and Lesnar. But WWE thinking will be a rematch between Lesnar and Roman Reigns. I like Finn Balor a lot, but I don't see him being the guy to beat Lesnar for the belt, so I'm going to go with him to win this match at Extreme Rules and be fed to the Beast at Great Balls of Fire.

What are your picks for Extreme Rules? Weigh in here or on the My 1-2-3 Cents social media pages. 

Will Extreme Rules Rule?

By Kevin Hunsperger

@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

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Because I'm an idiot, I had forgotten Extreme Rules is this weekend.  I would have included my predictions in this week's podcast (my interview with "Beautiful" Bobby Eaton).  

I'll preface this post with a reminder that I am not a fan of gimmicky pay per views.  TLC immediately comes to mind and Extreme Rules is a close second.  There are a few Wrestlemania rematches (in one form or another) and I get that the WWE wants to spice things up.  But I don't see the need to have silly stipulations added.  I'm looking at the "Kiss My Arse" match as I say this.  

These are the matches and My 1-2-3 Cents on them as of Thursday, April 23.

Tag team title match:
Tyson Kidd & Cesaro (c) vs. The New Day.  Once again the tag team titles are being defended on the "pre-show", but I've said it before.  I don't think the "pre-show" or kick-off matter as much now that the WWE Network is in place.  I like Kidd and  Cesaro.  I WANT to like The New Day.  Kofi to me is one of the most under utilized guys on the roster.  The same could be said for Kidd and Cesaro too. This should be a good match, but I think the champs will (and should) retain.

Chicago Street Fight:
Dean Ambrose vs. Luke Harper.  I don't mind the gimmick being involved in this match.  The build up to it has been good.  These two have beaten the hell out of each other in the weeks leading up to Extreme Rules.  While I'm more for guys being kept apart physically prior to a pay per view, I think it's becoming more rare.  This match will be like watching a car wreck.  I'm picking Ambose to win.  I like both competitors, but I think Harper and Erick Rowan should still be a tag team to help boost that division.

Diva's title match:

Nikki Bella (c) vs. Naomi.  I'm going to put this out there, I am not a fan of the Bella Twins.  Yes, they're beautiful women.  Yes, they've improved greatly in the ring.  But their characters annoy me.  I know that's probably the point, but it's to the point that I'd rather see any other diva on the roster with the gold than Nikki.  Naomi is very athletic and has come a long way in a short time too.  I don't know though that's she's going to be the one to unseat Nikki.  I like Paige and I love Charlotte on NXT.  Would love to see her in the mix on the main roster soon.  That being said, I guess I'll go with Nikki to retain.

Last Man Standing:

Roman Reigns vs. The Big Show.  I think the crowd will be on both men during this match.  I'm going to just restate for the record, I like Roman Reigns.  I think he's still rough around the edges, but he will eventually get to the top of the mountain.  The producers or agents for this match will need to come up with something creative and cool to give Reigns a big win in this match and a better ranking with fans.

Kiss My Arse match: 

Dolph Ziggler vs. Sheamus.  I like the heel Sheamus much more than his persona as a face.  He's embraced the bully gimmick with his look and his actions in the ring.  This match has the potential to steal the show in my opinion, but I hate the stipulation that's been added.  I would be more willing to get behind it (no pun intended) if this was to wrap up their feud. I think this rivalry could carry on for a couple of months.  If things are going to continue, I'd pick Ziggler to win to shut up the overbearing bully.  But because Sheamus just returned, I think having him lose a high profile match this soon would hurt his mojo, so for that reason, I pick Sheamus and his lily white arse to win.

Intercontinental title match:
Daniel Bryan (c) vs. Bad News Barrett.  As I write this, the match is still scheduled to happen.  I know Bryan got hurt on the recent European tour and there has been a lot of online speculation as to whether he's going to be able to wrestle Sunday.  Even more are questioning if the man behind the Yes Movement will be able to continue his career.  I certainly hope he's healing and not putting his health or life in jeopardy by continuing in the business.  Because of all that uncertainty I think the WWE will take the belt of Bryan to avoid having to hold a tournament or battle royal to determine a new champ.  But if Bryan really is okay, he needs to win this and continue to build some stability and prestige for the IC title.

Russian Chain match for the U.S. title:

John Cena (c) vs. Rusev.  WWE claims this is the first ever televised Russian chain match.  I don't have the time or the energy to find footage to dispute that claim, but if you know different, please tell me.  Even though I think Rusev beating Cena at Wrestlemania would have helped his career and add value to the U.S. championship, it's hard to claim that putting it on someone with Cena's star power was a bad decision.  There are plenty of pros and cons as to whether Cena should retain, but with it being a gimmicked match somehow losses seem to matter less.  I think Cena will keep the gold, the story will focus to the impending split between Lana and Rusev and Cena will continue his open challenge.

Steel Cage match for the WWE World title:

Seth Rollins (c) vs. Randy Orton.  Orton got an impressive win over Rollins at Wrestlmania.  But he used the RKO to do it.  That move has now been banned.  Kane, who is an alleged ally of Rollins, will be keeper of the gate.  Seeds of doubt are planted as to whether Kane will turn on Rollins.  Can the cage keep out J&J Security?  I think Rollins needs a win over a top guy like Orton in his first pay per view title defense.  But as I write this I wouldn't be surprised if Orton walks out champ.  I won't boycott WWE if that happens, but I will be extremely (this time the pun is intended) disappointed.  

I Want to Be a Pro Wrestler

Heath Hatton 

Guest post by Heath Hatton
@Heath_Hatton on Twitter
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I have been a professional wrestler for over 5 years, and I love everything about it: the fans, the locker room, the stories, the moves, the bonding, and the history.  It’s not just wrestling to me; its so much more.  It’s who I am. With that being said, this blog is about a question myself and every other professional wrestler is asked hundreds of times: “Where can I train to be a wrestler?” It's not really an annoying question nor is it one that I hate to answer like the famous “Is wrestling fake?” question that I despise.  

However, the answer that I give never seems to be the answer the person wants to hear.  I will confess that sometimes I will be lazy and send them the name of a few wrestling schools or other contacts I know about just to blow them off.  That’s why I am writing this blog. My hope is to explain why I tend to ignore the question and why I don’t always show excitement in helping people who want to become a “professional wrestler.”

The brotherhood of wrestling

            

People who want to wrestle need to understand professional wrestling is not WWE.  Yes, we all love WWE and want to get there, but what we do on a weekly basis is not WWE. It is not fancy or glamorous, and it doesn’t have jumbotrons with entrance music and videos, story lines, tour busses, fancy locker rooms, 4 star hotels, huge crowds, big pay days, t-shirts, and it’s definitely not going to make you famous.  Chances are you will never even set foot in a WWE ring or become a famous star.

Catching a chair

Ask yourself these questions, "What would I be training for, and why do it?"  If you can’t answer, then you probably shouldn’t even start. Wrestling isn’t just “indy wrestling,” it's not just WWE, it's not just “strong style,” and it’s not just “hardcore style.”  Those are just names.  Wrestling is a bond between brothers, an art form, and it’s something that I love and hold close to my heart.  Wrestling is only 30 fans in a hot gym on a Friday night, it is driving 3 hours to a show and possibly making only $30, it is sitting at a wrestling venue for 6 hours on a Saturday, it is setting up a ring and chairs, it is little tiny dressing room where there isn’t enough room to sit down, it’s not being able to walk on Monday, and it’s literally putting your life in the hands of someone else.

Flying high

I would never discourage anybody who loves wrestling to not give it a shot. Being a professional wrestler is one of the best things I have ever done in my life. I loved it growing up, and I love it now. I’m sure you love it as well. I just want you to know exactly what it is you love. Do you love the story lines, the surprise cash-ins, the surprise appearances, the back stage segments or do you love the matches? Do you get excited for the 20-minute mid-card TV matches that are just golden? Do you get excited to see the mid-card tag match or pre-main squash match?  

It’s simple, my neighbor is a great guy who loves wrestling. We talked about Undertaker vs. Shawn Michaels the other day. That doesn’t mean he would make a great wrestler. He has never heard nor seen any of ROH, Evolve, OVW, SICW, USA Championship Wrestling or basically anything other than WWE.  Have you heard of those? Have you sat and watched anything other than WWE? Have you searched Youtube for matches from an Indy show in Tennessee? 

Wrestling hurts

If not, that’s ok. What do you do? You go find a place that is running a show and ask them if you can come help set up the ring and work security. You will know in the first hour of a show if you want to be in this business.  That’s my advice; that’s my long answer. Don’t get in this business and disrespect it by not loving it.  Professional wrestling is one big family, and our family doesn’t take kindly to guys disrespecting what we do. So if you just want to hit a bunch of finishing moves you saw on TV this is not the thing for you.  But if you want to learn an art and respect the history of that art then jump in with both feet to the best business in the world.

           

Editor's note:  Heath Hatton has wrestled for several independent companies around the midwest.  He also had a handicap match as "Jay Hatton" with "Aaron Relic" against Ryback at the WWE pay-per-view Extreme Rules in 2012.  
         

Extreme Rules 2014 Thoughts

Roman Reigns Superman Punches Batista
Photo courtesy: WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

It's been nearly a week since I've last blogged, as in May I do a lot more with my YouTube channel, posting a new video everyday.  If you haven't already, check it out please and don't forget to subscribe. 

Now that the cheap plug is over, here are some very quick thoughts on Extreme Rules 2014.  I've gotta tell you, with the exception of some early glitches on the feed, the WWE Network may be the greatest invention since the Internet itself.  I can't tell you how much I enjoy being able to watch a PPV on my iPad (or iPhone) and be able to watch from anywhere.  

Good news for Barrett
Photo courtesy: WWE

I'm not going to go match by match, but I really thought overall, the show was very solid, even the WeeLC match at the beginning was entertaining, but I will say the commentary got a little cornier than usual at times.  I am glad  Cesaro picked up the win in the Triple Threat match.  The Intercontinental title is back around waist of Bad News Barrett.  I only hope that the company gets on board and gives the IC title the shine it once had.  I felt like they were headed in that direction a couple years ago when Cody Rhodes won it.  Since losing it to the Big Show, it seems like the championship has become a prop.  Give us some GOOD news Wade.

Rollins flies
Photo courtesy: WWE

The six man tag match between the Shield and Evolution delivered big time.  If you ever wondered before this match, I feel like Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns all proved they are legit.  Rollins gets the MVP award from me just based on the crazy things he did with his body.  It was very daring and paid off.  Triple H, Randy Orton, and Batista deserve credit too, as they went toe to toe with these young guys and looked good doing it.  There, I said something nice about Randy Orton (and I mean it)

Rage in a cage
Photo courtesy: WWE

Bray Wyatt and John Cena also delivered, this time inside a steel cage match.  I know Cena has his haters, but he's someone I respect immensely, and while I don't think he's going to suffer from this loss, I believe Wyatt has made a huge jump in the eyes of the WWE Universe.  This angle has been great and creepy all at the same time.  It's showing the cracks in Cena's armor too, which has been interesting.

Kane and Bryan heat things up
Photo courtesy: WWE

And one month into his reign as WWE World Heavyweight champion, Daniel Bryan had an excellent outing with Kane.  I've always been a bigger fan of the Monster over the corporate version of Kane and after all these years, he's proved to me he's still got it.  Those whacks with the kendo stick stung me and Bryan being tossed around like a rag doll surely had to add to be pain, not to mention Kane going through that flaming table, albeit for a moment.  I am glad Bryan defended, and I'm happy to see this ended up as the main event.  I had my doubts, thinking the 6 man tag would be the final match of the night.

Great show.  Big props to everyone who competed and the production staff who brought this event to us live.  

2 is Greater Than 1

Ace Hawkins & Heath Hatton on WWE (WWE)

By Kevin Hunsperger
@kevinhunsperger & @my123cents on Twitter

For the last few weeks the artist formerly known as Skip Sheffield has been mowing down the competition in the ring.  Ryback has been competing against "local talent" on SmackDown! and on Sunday night at Extreme Rules, his opponents including two wrestlers I personally know.

Billed as Aaron Relic and Jay Hatton on the WWE pay per view, All American Pro Wrestling fans know them better as Ace Hawkins and Heath Hatton.  Readers of My 1-2-3 Cents may remember Heath being included in my Stars of 2012 post earlier this year.

Ace vs. Ryback (WWE)

Even though their prematch promo lasted about as long as the match, it was great to see a couple of our guys in the WWE spotlight.  They may have been demolished by the "terminator" but I can't tell you how proud I am of Ace and Heath.  These two guys have worked hard on the indy scene for the last few years.  It's great to see them getting a little time in the national spotlight.

This may very well be the tip of the iceberg for both Ace and Heath.  I want to again congratulate them and let them know how proud I am of their accomplishments and what they did Sunday at Extreme Rules.  Way to go guys.  I wonder if we can get Heath's "2 is greater than 1" trending.

You can catch both Ace and Heath at the May 19 Collision TV in Marion, IL.  Go to AAPW's website for more details or to watch the two in action.

Something Extreme Happened, But It Wasn't in the Ring

Photo courtesy: WWE.com

By Chad Smart

While watching WWE’s Extreme Rules pay per view, I kept waiting for something interesting to happen. Then something major did happen. News broke that Osama Bin Laden was dead. While this news is good to hear as it hopefully means the ongoing war in Afghanistan will soon come to an end and all the troops will be on their way home, there was a pay per view that needs some trivial opinions spoken about it.

Extreme Rules was a show with good action and lame finishes. Outside of the tag team title match, I don’t think there was really any bad match. My dislike for the show comes more from the guys whom I thought should win ending up with their shoulders on the mat.

CM Punk vs. Randy Orton’s Last Man Standing match opened the show with the shocking announcement from the RAW GM banning the New Nexus from ringside. Giving how inept the New Nexus has been presented over the last few months would it matter if they were at ringside? Randy Orton has dominated this feud so I was hoping Punk would pick up a victory. That didn’t happen. I still don’t understand the fans fascination with Orton and will continue to change the channel every time he’s on screen. I’m just one fan though, so the cheers of thousands override the disdain of one.

Rumors proved true as Sheamus defended the US Title against Kofi Kingston in a bonus match. When Sheamus got drafted to Smackdown, Smackdown had both the US and Intercontinental titles. Kofi being drafted to Raw foreshadowed his winning and taking the US title with him so each show has one supporting title. Again, good action nullified by an outcome which was never in doubt throughout the match.

Layla defeated Michelle McCool in a loser leaves WWE match. Word got out a day or two ago about McCool leaving WWE to spend time with Undertaker while he rehabs so the beat continues with a foregone conclusion in place. The shocking moment came after the match when Kharma (formerly Awesome Kong) debuted giving McCool the Implant Buster for good measure. Afterwards the rest of the Divas were shown backstage watching a monitor. I’m guessing they were supposed to be shocked and awed at Kharma’s appearance. Instead they all looked bored.

Cody Rhodes and Rey Mysterio had the rubber match of their feud. While I feel Cody should have won the match to help move him up the rungs of the heel ladder on Smackdown, WWE felt Rey should win to cap off their feud now that they’re on different shows. I sound like a broken record, good match bad outcome.

Much like the Sheamus/Kofi match, after the draft the outcome of the ladder match between Christian and Alberto Del Rio was only in doubt if WWE wanted to really throw a curveball at the fans. Thought this was a good ladder match with some psychology and innovative spots. I had some technical problems toward the end of the match and missed Christian actually winning. Glad to see Christian get his first WWE World title and hope he has a successful reign.

I don’t know if the Tag Team Title match was announced before the show or added during the show. For some reason it was a lumberjack match with Wade Barrett/Big Zeke taking the place of Heath Slater/Justin Gabriel as sacrificial lambs from the Corre to face Big Show/Kane. As I said earlier, this was the only bad match on the show. Looks like there will be more dissention within the Corre while Big Show/Kane will keep the titles while waiting on the next round of makeshift challengers.

During the main event was when news of Osama Bin Laden so excuse me if I watching John Cena win another title wasn’t my primary focus. I will admit during the match I had some thoughts John Morrison was actually going to win. I’ll give WWE credit for creating that suspense. On the other hand, I never felt like Miz was going to win. Even when he had the upper hand, I felt it was only a matter of time until he was beaten. I understand John Cena is the face of WWE, but his being champion is beyond played out. WWE needs to elevate new talent. Cena doesn’t need the title to have the fans cheer for him. Though with The Rock being on Raw tonight, Cena being champ will give them something to add to the ongoing feud.

Overall Extreme Rules was the epitome of a B level show. If you watched it you got some good action. If you missed it, you didn’t miss anything monumental. John Cena winning a title isn’t meaningful it’s boring. That’s just my opinion. I could be bias.

UPDATED: After I submitted this for posting, I realized I forgot to mention the Country Whipping match between Michael Cole/Jack Swagger and Jerry Lawler/Jim Ross. I’m not going to give any thoughts on the match. Just saying I realized I forgot about it and hope my memory won’t let me down by replaying any part of the match.

Sometimes I Go to Extremes

Photo from WWE

By Kevin Hunsperger

Before I break down the Extreme Rules pay per view, my first question is, what's up with the poster?  I mean really, I don't understand the x-ray.  I'm sure there's some logical reason for it, but I'm not getting it.

That being said, now on to the more important issues, like card itself.  Predicting the outcomes of these matches will be a little difficult, just because of the draft and the shift in rosters.  Many of the matches are interpromotional matches.  Hopefully, they'll all bring us some resolution to these feuds.

Alberto Del Rio vs. Christian (Ladder Match for the World Heavyweight Championship): This is the most intriguing match on the card I believe.  Who will pick up the ball and carry it now that Edge has been forced to put it down.  The smart money would be on Christian.  Del Rio has been drafted to Raw.  Raw has the WWE championship.  Having both big belts on that show would be lame.  But I wouldn't be shocked if it were to happen.  After all, at the moment SmackDown has both the U.S. and Intercontinental titles.

Christian though deserves a run as world champion.  He's proven himself and it would only make sense for him to carry the torch next.  Del Rio is starting to grow on me, but I still don't see him as world champion material.  At least not yet.  Give him some more time to grow on Raw and I might have a different opinion of him in six months.  But for right now, the WWE should do the right thing and put the title on Christian.

My pick: Christian

The Miz vs. Cena at Wrestlemania

The Miz (c) vs. John Cena vs. John Morrison (Cage Match for the WWE Title): I'm sure it's happened before, but I don't ever recall a 3 way cage match before.  I'm not sure exactly why John Morrison is in this one.  Don't get me wrong, I like the fact that he's in the title picture, but I storyline wise, he doesn't seem to fit here.  All three men will remain on Raw, so there's no worry about anyone leaving with the belt.  My hope is that the Miz will retain here.  He really should, but besides Rey Mysterio, I don't feel like Raw has any big face contenders to challenge the Miz.  Ideally, they'll put Cena into a feud with someone else and let Morrison and the Miz have a program.  But with R-Truth's heel turn, I can see he and Morrison feuding, which would open up Cena for another title win and then moving into a program with Del Rio.  The more I think about this, the harder it is for me to come up with a follow up feud for the Miz to defend the title against.  However, it's my hope that the Miz will win, but I won't be surprised if Super Cena walks out champ.

My pick: The Miz


Jerry Lawler & Jim Ross vs. Michael Cole & Jack Swagger (Tag Team Country Whipping Match): I've said it before, and I'll say it again.  Cole and Swagger need to loss this match.  JR and the King need to return as the announce team on Raw.  Cole transitions into a manager and works with Swagger.  It makes no sense to have Cole and Lawler announce together on Raw.  They hate one another.  There's too much tension between them, and let's be honest, Cole can't focus on a match to save his life.  He ends up fighting with the King and Josh Matthews before the match is over.  So, I'd not only take Cole off Raw as an announcer, but on SmackDown! too.  Put Matthews in his spot there to work with Booker T.  And let's be done with this silly feud.

My pick: Jerry Lawler & JR

LayCool in happier times

Layla vs. Michelle McCool (Loser Leaves WWE):  Earlier I blogged how I hadn't read any spoilers on this match.  I caved.  I've read that Michelle wants to take some time off to help tend to the Undertaker (for those who didn't know, they're married)  But keep in mind, this is chatter on the Internet, so take it for what it's worth.  I figured when they split these two up, Layla would be the "Jannetty" of team and end up jobbing.  Michelle is better in the ring, so it's hard for me to imagine her losing.  I suspect Kharma may end up appearing and helping Layla get the win.

My pick: Layla


CM Punk vs. Randy Orton (Last Man Standing): More Internet rumors are presenting me with conflicting thoughts on this match.  Some say that CM Punk is not resigning his contract later this year.  It appears that Randy Orton is the SmackDown version of Cena.  While it would not hurt Orton to lose (he's beaten Punk each time in their previous encounters), I don't see the WWE giving someone who could potentially be on the way out a big win over the company's second biggest face.

My pick: CM Punk, however Randy Orton will win this match.

Rey Mysterio vs. Cody Rhodes at Wrestlemania 27

Cody Rhodes vs. Rey Mysterio: (Falls Count Anywhere): This match is much like the Orton-Punk match.  Rey doesn't need the win as much as Cody does.  This will be the rubber match between the two.  Cody got the big win at Wrestlemania.  Rey got a victory on SmackDown

My pick: Cody Rhodes


I'm not crazy about the concept behind the Extreme Rules pay per view.  Gimmick matches are good when used sporadically.  But this is an entire PPV filled with gimmicks. That could be good I suppose as guys like Orton and Cena don't have to lie down for anyone.  I guess it's easier to say I lost because I couldn't get up before the 10 count opposed to losing via pinfall.  Maybe I'm being too cynical, but that's how I'm feeling with the current product.

What are your thoughts?  I'm curious to hear who you think will win at Sunday's pay per view.  Comment here or let us know on Facebook.