8 Match Star Ratings From WWE: The Horror Show At Extreme Rules

8. KICKOFF Match: Kevin Owens Vs. Murphy

Kevin Owens, being great, gets the Kickoff match. Happily, he also gets it.

He didn't go through the motions at a TV pace; the match burst out of the tracks immediately with two finisher teases and a hockey fight.

Murphy, who has a great physique and probably shouldn't hide it from Vince McMahon via cyclist outfit - unless it's a clever ploy to pop that thing off and remind him all over again, and he is inspired by both Kenny Omega and Dennis Reynolds - roared back from a jaw-rattler of a forearm smash by striking every part of KO's body with a warp speed barrage.

This was some pretty damn great pro wrestling, and even when the pace slowed, as it inevitably does, Owens and Murphy were so snug that they maintained interest levels. It was a match with more thought informing it than the usual Kickoff fare; it was structured in such a way that Owens' superiority was never lost, only challenged.

It was good, but it was only a Kickoff match, so...

Star Rating: ★★★¼