WWE Extreme Rules 2017: Ranking Fatal 5-Way Competitors Chances
Who has the easiest road to Suplex City?
Last week's Raw delivered the exciting news that Brock Lesnar's next challenger will be determined via the main event of Extreme Rules. The Universal champion has five potential contenders that are all in the mix for a title shot, so general manager Kurt Angle decided to find out as quickly and efficiently as possible by having them face off in a Fatal 5-Way to headline Raw's next pay-per-view show.
Roman Reigns, Finn Bálor, Bray Wyatt, Samoa Joe, and Seth Rollins will all step between the ropes to determine which one of them will earn the "honor" of taking a crack at Lesnar's Universal title. Outside of gimmick shows like Royal Rumble, Money in the Bank, and Elimination Chamber, we rarely get matches as stacked as this, with the right mixture of workrate and starpower to have every subset of the fanbase in a state of anticipation.
Another intriguing wrinkle to the bout is that there's no clear cut favorite to walk out of the show victorious. For a promotion often criticized for being too formulaic and lacking in surprises, WWE has the opportunity to defy both those labels with this blockbuster main event.
So who is most likely to win the Fatal 5-Way? This really is anybody's contest - though some have a better chance than others. Whose nose is just peeking ahead in the race?
5. Samoa Joe
Out of all five men featured in this match, Joe seems least likely to emerge victorious. While fans have been fantasy booking Joe as a "legitimate, realistic threat" to Brock since the moment he debuted in NXT, WWE has shown no signs that they view him on that level, at least as of right now.
Samoa Joe is a guy who has always stood out as a badass due to his shoot-style strikes and MMA-inspired maneuvers, mixed with the fact that so many of his classic matches consist of him stiffing the sh*t out of guys 100 pounds smaller than him. Upon first glance the high-impact ring style of both men seems like it would mesh well, but perhaps Joe's most significant attribute is his imposing physicality, an advantage he won't enjoy if matched with Lesnar.
While many fans may salivate at the idea of Brock squaring off against the tough Samoan brute, it puts Joe in the unfamiliar position of underdog; the bully getting bullied, so to speak. In order to make Brock matches compelling, he either has to face a near-physical equal - few of which exist on this planet - or someone who presents a unique challenge and skillset opposite to his own. Smaller, quicker technicians like Seth Rollins and AJ Styles fill that role quite well. Unfortunately for Joe he doesn't really fit into either category.
'The Destroyer' also appears to have unfinished business with Rollins, and while that could change, those two still need some final resolution.
There's also the matter of both Joe and Brock technically being "heels", although with Lesnar that all depends on the crowd and opponent. In summation, odds are Joe won't be the man to win the Extreme Rules main event and earn a shot at 'The Beast'.