5 Biggest Missed Opportunities From WWE Extreme Rules 2019

Things got extreme for the superstars of Raw and SmackDown as WWE hosted its 11th-annual Extreme Rules event from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch put their respective Universal and Raw Women’s Championships on the line against familiar foes Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans for the gazillionth time – only this time, they did so together, as the real-life couple defended their gold in a ‘Winners Take All’ Mixed Tag Team match.

Elsewhere, Kofi Kingston attempted to stop the rage of Samoa Joe, as he defended his WWE Championship against the submission specialist, and WWE legend The Undertaker made his first ever Extreme Rules appearance to team with Roman Reigns as the two ‘Big Dogs’ attempted to clear Shane McMahon and Drew McIntyre from their yard.

An event that is often criticised for being everything but extreme, this year’s Extreme Rules at least attempted to take things to a new level with some moments mirroring the cutting-edge style of recent episodes of Raw and SmackDown - and, for the most part, it succeeded, giving fans one of the best pay-per-views in recent memory.

Unfortunately, not even that could prevent some questionable booking, and a downright baffling conclusion from leaving a bad taste in many fans' mouths.

It’s probably unfair to fault the creative team for choosing to open Extreme Rules with the No Holds Barred Tag Team match when it was, in all honesty, a genius decision.

The Undertaker and Roman Reigns' clash with Drew McIntyre and Shane McMahon was a fantastic opener that succeeded in its mission to start the show off on a really strong note, and it ensured that the audience was paying attention to the show, because they were thrilled to see 'Taker in action. Unfortunately, this also had its drawbacks.

The crowd went absolutely mad for ‘The Phenom’, showering him with adoration as he turned in his strongest performance in years and, for a moment, this B-level pay-per-view actually felt like WrestleMania. However, they were either really spent or they just didn't care as much about anything that came after it and, as a result, every match that followed (many of which were amazing) was soured by the audience's lack of participation.

Look, we get it, it's the freakin' Undertaker - nothing compares to the atmosphere that he creates - but having him open the show put the other superstars at a disadvantage, simply because they were never going to get the same kind of reaction

Thus, on reflection, it might have made more sense to leave this match until the middle or perhaps even the end of the show. That would have built the anticipation for it, while also allowing the audience to give their all to the other performers as well.

Also, a feel-good 'Taker/Reigns victory would have been a much better way to close the show than what we actually got.