WWE Extreme Rules 2012 Predictions

It’s that time of year when WWE gets lazy and fills a PPV with Wrestlemania rematches. I mean, it’s that time of year when the WWE goes extreme. Yeah, that’s it. Honestly, it’s the time of year where they get lazy until the summer kicks in. That was until they resigned Brock Lesnar. Now, it’s a hotly anticipated show… that has one really well built match and the rest just Wrestlemania rematch filler.

Enough jibber jabber! Let’s get to the predictions.

Extreme Rules Match
Brock Lesnar vs. John Cena


It’s the match that everybody’s excited for! The return of Brock Lesnar! The continual downfall of John Cena! More money being raided from your wallet! Well, that’s if you decide to plunker down another forty-five dollars. It’s tempting, I’ll admit.

Plain and simple, I see Brock Lesnar winning this match. I highly doubt he’d come back and lose his first match. It’s not as if Cena would be hurt by the loss. Yes, he lost to The Rock and needs to bounce back. That’s what I’m hearing from many. I disagree.

Cena losing to Lesnar would further an interesting storyline that seems to be boiling. Cena had the weight of the world on his shoulders going into his match with The Rock. He proclaimed he was going to win for every wrestler in the locker room who felt betrayed by the Great One. He’s in the same predicament in his match with Lesnar. He’s supposedly defending the locker room’s honor. Just like at Wrestlemania, he’ll lose.

This will start a downfall for Cena. He’ll continually doubt himself and lose matches left and right. He’ll question whether or not he is the top dog anymore. Someone like CM Punk will start to take over, possibly vanquishing both Lesnar and The Rock in the future (wishful thinking, I know). When Punk takes his crown for top star, Cena will fight for it back. In order for this to happen, he needs to lose to Brock this Sunday.

Winner: Brock Lesnar

Chicago Street Fight for the WWE Championship
CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho


Outside of the terrible segment on last week’s Raw that seen CM Punk have to take an alcohol test, I’ve been loving this feud and am thrilled to see this match! A Wrestlemania that I want to see? Shocking, I know. Sarcastic tone aside, it’s not that I don’t want to see Wrestlemania rematches. It’s just that I feel they tarnish the spectacle of Wrestlemania. That’s a whole different article, though.

This is another match where I feel the winner is obvious (which isn’t a bad thing). CM Punk needs to win. He’s in his hometown, has been humiliated by Jericho for the past few weeks (including having booze poured on him) and is finishing his DVD documentary at the event, I believe. If that’s the case, it needs to end on a positive note.

I understand the theory on why people believe Jericho will win. They feel the two have one more match left in them at Over the Limit. Such has been the case the past two years with the WWE title. For many, they believe Chris needs to win the title to justify another bout between them. I respond with the fact that the WWE doesn’t care about that. If they want another match, they’ll make another match. Logic be damned!

Not that I see a third clash taking place. I believe Jericho is going back on tour with Fozzy this summer, so he’s mostly likely leaving again after this. If he doesn’t and sticks around, he’ll most likely feud with a midcarder on the rise. It’s where he specializes in. Punk will move on to a new foe, most likely Kane, to fill the time until he clashes with Lesnar or The Rock at Summerslam.

Winner: CM Punk

2 Out of 3 Falls for the World Heavyweight Championship
Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan


With Daniel Bryan’s recent surge in popularity (YES! YES! YES!), there’s a part of me that believes he’ll win the title back. That the WWE will see the profit in him, what with his newest shirt selling out immediately (at least, that’s what they told me, as mine is on backstock). As amazing as that sounds, I stop to think about how terrible of an idea that would be. It derails Sheamus’ recent push and actually won’t do Bryan any good.

For all we know, this could be a random occurrence. This sudden popularity for Bryan could dissipate within a month or two, putting Bryan in a bad spot. WWE wouldn’t trust ever putting the title on him again, even if he claws his way back to the top. I like to believe this won’t happen and there’s a good chance it won’t. But, it’s a risk not worth taking.

Besides, Bryan is still a heel. Let him gradually turn back face, then have him win the title back. It’ll be more triumphant that way. Let Sheamus have his time in the spotlight. He already has a ready made feud with Alberto Del Rio ready for him after this. Put Bryan in a feud with Randy Orton or, even better, Mark Henry. That way he can regain his face status. All I ask is this match doesn’t last less than two minutes.

Winner: Sheamus

Falls Count Anywhere Match
Randy Orton vs. Kane


As if their match at Wrestlemania wasn’t random and hastily put together, we get yet another clash between the Viper and the Big Red Machine. Not only that, but it’s a match I swear I just seen for free a few weeks ago on Smackdown. Wonderful booking they have for this one.

You know what? I don’t care! Randy Orton beats Kane. The world keeps on spinning. Let’s move on!

Winner: Randy Orton

Intercontinental Championship Match
Big Show vs. Cody Rhodes


Fear not, folks. There will be a gimmick attached to this match. We just won’t find out until Sunday night. It’ll most likely be a steel cage match. I can’t think of anything else that would suit them. Maybe a lumberjack match or one of those pole matches where they hang something on a pole and whoever retrieves it can use it as a weapon. What they would stick on the pole remains a mystery. Maybe it’ll be the next person in line for the Intercontinental title.

I initially thought this would be an easy match to predict. Big Show wins and both men move on to new feuds. However, the only reason Big Show won at Wrestlemania was to have his ‘Mania moment. Now that he has it, he doesn’t need the Intercontinental title. Therefore, he can return it to Rhodes.

Then again, Cody Rhodes doesn’t need the Intercontinental title anymore. He’s graduated to a semi-main eventer and could move into a World title feud. At the very least, into a top tier feud until he possibly wins Money in the Bank this year (I made that prediction last year and look where that got me). Therefore, I feel he’ll lose here, but move on to bigger and better things.

Winner: Big Show