The Real Reason Ziggler Vs Rollins Headlined WWE Extreme Rules 2018
While the cat's away, The Game will play.
With the dust now firmly settled on Extreme Rules, the verdict seems to be that, as B PPVs go, it was pretty good. The matches delivered (mostly), we got some entertaining spots, and the running order actually made sense for once.
But it’s that last bit that maybe came as the biggest surprise. Money in the Bank just about worked, but Backlash ended with Roman Reigns and Samoa Joe contesting a largely meaningless match in front of rapidly leaving crowd.
Rumours were that, once again, the main event was going to just simply be Whatever Reigns Is Doing Tonight™ but, in a bit of twist, we got the 30 minute Iron Man match for the Intercontinental title. The first time the belt has main-evented for 17 years.
Yes, seriously. Not counting when it’s been in those ‘every-belt-on-the-line or title-for-title’ things - because even then it’s playing second fiddle - the only other time we’ve had it close a PPV was Bret Hart vs The British Bulldog at SummerSlam 1992 at Wembley Stadium.
And the decision to do this, today’s story goes, came not from Vince, but from Triple H. For no other reason than because he was in charge and thought that would make the show better. That’s it.
Vince was apparently not there on the evening and, instead, left things to his son-in-law. Where was he? Well, that's not being reported as part of this story, so it's safe to assume that it's not something out of the ordinary (like, say, getting his 800 year-old, oaken, haunted skin its annual sand-blasting, just off the top of my head).
In the grand scheme of things, 'WWE Producer Changes Show’s Running Order' might not feel like that significant of a story. But, couple it with the eternal reports that Vince is a notorious control freak, the fact that as soon as he’s out of the building Roman got shuffled into the mid-card, and that well, he didn’t storm the building, unhinge his jaw, and swallow those responsible whole, and it definitely is a big deal.
Sooner or later Trips is going to be running things, and if more cohesive PPV running orders are the very least we can expect then that’s still an improvement.