Extreme Rules (2014)

Extreme Rules
Extreme Rules
	Promotional poster featuringDaniel Bryan
Promotion	WWE
Date	May 4, 2014
City	East Rutherford, New Jersey
Venue	Izod Center
Attendance	15,907
Buy rate	108,000(excludingWWE Networkviews)
WWE Networkevent chronology
←Previous; WrestleMania XXX	Next→; NXT TakeOver
Extreme Ruleschronology
←Previous; 2013	Next→; 2015

The 2014Extreme Ruleswas the sixth annualExtreme Rules professional wrestling pay-per-view(PPV) andlivestreaming eventproduced byWWE.It took place on May 4, 2014, at theIzod CenterinEast Rutherford, New Jersey,and was the first Extreme Rules event to livestream on theWWE Network,which launched in February. The concept of Extreme Rules is that the event features varioushardcore-basedmatches. It was also the first major WWE event following the death ofThe Ultimate Warrior.

Eight professional wrestling matches were contested at the event, including one on the Kickoff pre-show. Only three matches, including the pre-show match, were contested under a hardcore stipulation. In the main event,Daniel BryandefeatedKanein anExtreme Rules matchto retain theWWE World Heavyweight Championship.In another prominent match,The Shield(Dean Ambrose,Seth Rollins,andRoman Reigns) defeated the reunitedEvolution(Triple H,Randy Orton,andBatista) in asix-man tag team match.

The event received 108,000 buys (excluding WWE Network views), down from the previous year's 231,000 buys.

Production[edit]

Background[edit]

Extreme Rulesis an annualgimmick pay-per-view(PPV) produced byWWEsince 2009. The concept of the show is that the event features various matches that are contested underhardcore rulesand generally features oneExtreme Rules match.^[2]The defunctExtreme Championship Wrestlingpromotion, which WWE acquired in 2003, originally used the "extreme rules" term to describe the regulations for all of its matches; WWE adopted the term and has since used it in place of "hardcore match" or "hardcore rules". The 2014 Extreme Rules event was the sixth Extreme Rules and took place on May 4, 2014, at theIzod CenterinEast Rutherford, New Jersey.In addition to traditional PPV, it was also the first Extreme Rules to air on WWE'slivestreamingservice, theWWE Network,which launched in February.^[3]

Storylines[edit]

The event comprised eight matches, including one on the Kickoff pre-show, that resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayedvillains,heroes,orless distinguishable charactersin scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers,^[4]^[5]while storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television whips,Monday Night RawandSmackDown.

Fresh off his win at WrestleMania,John Cenacontinued to feud withBray WyattofThe Wyatt Family.Cena called Wyatt out for his inability to physically defend himself and his cryptic messages withoutLuke HarperandErick Rowanby his side. To make Wyatt prove himself, Cena challenged him to aSteel Cage match,which Wyatt accepted. On the April 28, 2014 episode ofRaw,Cena entered the steel cage to address Wyatt's evil message saying that it has begun to spread amongst the audience, only to be greeted by Wyatt and a children's choir singing "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands"with many Wyatt Family supporters singing along. As the children surrounded the ring, the lights went out before coming back on, with the children now wearing sheep masks as Wyatt laughed maniacally with a child on his lap.^[6]

OnRawthe day afterWrestleMania XXX,Triple HforcedDaniel Bryanto defend his newly wonWWE World Heavyweight Championshipagainst him. However, Triple H's former bodyguards,The Shield,turned on him and attacked him, resulting in a no contest.^[7]As a result, Triple H reformedEvolutionwithBatistaandRandy Ortonand attacked The Shield the following week onRaw.On the April 18 edition ofSmackDown,Triple H scheduled a six-man tag team match between Evolution and The Shield for Extreme Rules.^[8]On the Raw before Extreme Rules,Ric Flair,once part of Evolution, came out only to give his endorsement to the Shield, acknowledging them as the future of the WWE.

On the April 7 edition ofRaw,AJ Leewas bragging about having defended her title against 13 other divas atWrestleMania XXXwhenNXT Women's Champion Paigecame out to congratulate AJ on her title defense. AJ then slapped Paige and challenged her to a match for AJ's Divas Championship. The match itself was dominated by AJ until Paige escaped AJ's submission move, theBlack Widow,and hit one of her finishing moves, thePaige Turner,to win her firstWWE Divas Championship.On the April 15 episode ofWWE Main Event,AJ's bodyguard,Tamina Snuka,won a battle royal to become number one contender to Paige's title, allowing her to wrestle Paige for the championship at Extreme Rules.^[9]

On theRawafter WrestleMania XXX,Cesaroreplaced his managerZeb ColterwithPaul Heyman.This started a rivalry between Heyman and Colter, and by extension between Cesaro and his former tag team partner,Jack Swagger,who was still managed by Colter. Both wrestlers were entered into the tournament to determine Big E's challenger. Prior to Cesaro's semi-final match againstRob Van Dam,Van Dam badmouthed Heyman and advised Cesaro to stay away from him. Van Dam beat Cesaro via count-out after interference from Swagger and Colter. The following week onRaw,Colter approached Van Dam and suggested that he and Swagger team up to take on a common enemy in Heyman, but Van Dam declined. Van Dam later lost the tournament final to Bad News Barrett after interference from Cesaro; Swagger then appeared, attacked Cesaro and attempted to attack Van Dam before being fought off. This set up a triple-threat match between Cesaro, Swagger and Van Dam at Extreme Rules.

On the April 21 episode ofRaw,Bryan andBrie Bellawere getting ready to celebrate their marriage when Stephanie McMahon came out and scheduled Bryan to defend his WWE World Heavyweight Championship againstKaneat Extreme Rules. Kane then came out from the audience and attacked Bryan, giving him threeTombstone Piledrivers– the first on the floor, the second on the steel steps, and the third on the broadcast table, resulting in Bryan being stretchered out of the arena. One week later, during Brie Bella's match with Paige, Kane came up through a hole from underneath the ring and attempted to pull Brie down with him but she got away.^[10]

Alexander Rusevmade his main roster debut on April 7 and scored victories over various superstars, includingR-TruthandXavier Woods.He also attacked both competitors after their respective matches. This set up a2-on-1 Handicap matchwith Rusev against R-Truth and Woods at the pay-per-view.

On May 2 edition ofSmackDown,El ToritoandHornswogglesigned the contract for aWeeLC match- aTables, Ladders, and Chairs matchfeaturing midget wrestlers, with reduced size tables, ladders, and chairs than a normal such match, for the Kickoff pre-show.

Intercontinental Championship No. 1 Contender's tournament[edit]

On the April 14 edition ofRaw,a tournament was designed to determine who would challengeBig Efor theWWE Intercontinental Championshipat the event. The bracket is as listed below:

Quarterfinals
(RawApril 14th)

Semifinals
(RawApril 21st)

Finals
(RawApril 28th)

Mark Henry

Cesaro

03:18

Cesaro

Count Out

Rob Van Dam

13:13

Rob Van Dam

10:35

Alberto Del Rio

Rob Van Dam

Bad News Barrett

11:24

Sheamus

06:55

Jack Swagger

Sheamus

Bad News Barrett

10:33

Dolph Ziggler

Bad News Barrett

12:12

Event[edit]

**Other on-screen personnel**
Role:	Name:
Englishcommentators	Michael Cole
	Jerry Lawler
	John "Bradshaw" Layfield
Spanish commentators	Carlos Cabrera
	Marcelo Rodriguez
	Ricardo Rodriguez
Interviewers	Byron Saxton
Interviewers	Renee Young
Ring announcers	Lilian Garcia
Ring announcers	Justin Roberts
Referees	John Cone
	Rod Zapata
	Marc Harris
	Jason Ayers
Pre-Show panel	Josh Mathews
	Alex Riley
	Booker T
	Sheamus

Broadcasters[edit]

The English commentators wereMichael Cole,Jerry LawlerandJohn "Bradshaw" Layfieldwhile there were alsoSpanishandGermancommentators ringside.Lilian GarciaandJustin Robertswere ring announcers. The Kickoff pre-show was hosted by a panel ofBooker T,Alex Riley,Josh MathewsandSheamus.

Pre-show[edit]

During the Extreme Rules Kickoff pre-show, El Torito faced Hornswoggle in a WeeLC match, a special Little Person version of a TLC match (as 'wee' is a synonym for 'small' widely used in Scotland).The referee, ring announcer, timekeeper, and commentators were LP versions of regular personnel. Torito picked up the victory after a Springboard Seated Senton through a table.^[11]

Preliminary matches[edit]

The actual pay-per-view opened with aTriple threat elimination matchbetweenCesaro,Jack SwaggerandRob Van Dam.Van Dam pinned Swagger after a Five Star Frog Splash to eliminate Swagger. In the climax, Van Dam performed a Van Daminator into a trash can on Cesaro and attempted a Five Star Frog Splash but Cesaro avoided, causing Van Dam to crash into the trash can. Cesaro performed a Neutralizer onto the trash can on Van Dam to win the match.^[3]

After that,Alexander Rusevtook onR-TruthandXavier Woodsin a2-on-1 Handicap match.Before the match, Rusev attacked Woods, thus taking Woods out of the match. Rusev forced R-Truth to submit to the Accolade to win the match.^[3]

In the next match,Big Edefended hisWWE Intercontinental ChampionshipagainstBad News Barrett.The match ended when Barrett performed a Bull Hammer on Big E to win the title.^[3]

In the fourth match,The ShieldfacedEvolution.During the match, Triple H Pedigreed Reigns and Batista pinned Reigns for a near-fall. Orton RKO'd Reigns but Rollins broke up a pinfall by Batista at a two count. Ambrose ran across the announce tables and leapt onto Triple H and Orton. Triple H, Orton, Ambrose and Rollins fought into the arena stands, where Triple H and Orton caused Ambrose to fall down a set of stairs. Triple H and Orton attacked Ambrose until Rollins dove off a balcony onto Triple H and Orton. The ending saw Batista perform a Spinebuster on Reigns and attempt a Batista Bomb on Reigns but Reigns countered and performed a Superman Punch on Batista. Reigns performed a Spear on Batista for the win.^[3]

The fifth match was aSteel cage matchbetweenJohn CenaandBray Wyatt.During the match, Harper attacked Cena atop the cage, resulting in Harper falling into the cage. Cena performed a Super Attitude Adjustment on Wyatt but Harper broke up the pinfall. Rowan attacked Cena atop the cage but Cena pulled Rowan's beard, causing Rowan to collide with the cage. In the end, Cena performed a Diving Leg Drop Bulldog on Harper and attempted to escape through the door but the arena lights went off. When the arena lights turned on, a demonic child appeared, singing "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands". Wyatt performed Sister Abigail on Cena and escaped through the door to win the match.^[3]

In the penultimate match,Paigedefended herWWE Divas ChampionshipagainstTamina Snuka.In the end, Tamina attempted a Superkick but Paige countered and forced Tamina to submit to the PTO, retaining the title.^[3]

Main event[edit]

In the main event,Daniel Bryandefended theWWE World Heavyweight ChampionshipagainstKanein anExtreme Rules match.During the match, Bryan and Kane fought backstage, where Bryan attacked Kane with a snow shovel. Bryan placed Kane on a forklift and drove the forklift into the arena, where Bryan performed a Diving Headbutt off the forklift on Kane for a near-fall. Kane performed a Chokeslam on Bryan for a near-fall. Kane attempted a Tombstone Piledriver onto a chair on Bryan but Bryan countered into a DDT on the chair for a near-fall. Bryan applied the Yes Lock using a kendo stick but Kane escaped the hold. Bryan attempted a Suicide Dive on Kane but Kane countered and performed a Chokeslam on Bryan through an announce table. Kane retrieved a table and set the table on fire using lighter fluid but Bryan pulled the ring ropes, causing Kane to fall through the table. Bryan performed a Running Knee on Kane to retain the title.^[3]

Aftermath[edit]

At the start ofRawafter Extreme Rules, Dean Ambrose was forced to defend hisUnited States Championshipin a 20-manBattle royal.Ambrose made it to the end with Sheamus, Sheamus eliminated Ambrose to win his second United States Championship, ending Ambrose's reign at 351 days. The Shield then fought The Wyatt Family later in the night; just as things turned in The Shield's favor, Evolution came out and distracted The Shield, allowing The Wyatt Family to win the match. Evolution then assaulted The Shield, and humiliated them by performing The Shield's signature Triple Powerbomb to Roman Reigns. This led to The Shield challenging Evolution to a rematch at Payback, which they accepted. The match was made a No Holds Barred Elimination match.

Cena's feud with Wyatt continued with aLast Man Standingmatch being set up forPayback.At the pay-per-view, Cena defeated Wyatt to win the match and end their feud.^[12]

On the May 12 episode ofRaw,Daniel Bryan announced that he would undergo neck surgery, and would be absent from WWE for an unspecified amount of time. That same night,Stephanie McMahoncalled Bryan to the ring, before Kane dragged him out into the entrance before being loaded onto a stretcher by medical personnel.^[13]On May 15, Bryan underwent successful neck surgery, with a cervical foraminotomy to decompress thenerve roothaving been performed.^[14]On the May 19 edition ofRaw,Stephanie McMahon gave Bryan an ultimatum to surrender the WWE World Heavyweight Championship the following week onRaw.Bryan replied next week onRawthat he wouldn't surrender it. McMahon then retaliated saying that she would give until Payback to surrender the title. If he didn't surrender, his wife Brie Bella will be fired. At Payback, Brie would let Bryan keep the championship by quitting WWE, and finalized it by slapping McMahon across the face.

Results[edit]

No.

Results

Stipulations

Times^[11]^[3]

1^P

El Torito(withDiegoandFernando) defeatedHornswoggle(withDrew McIntyre,Heath SlaterandJinder Mahal)

WeeLC match^[15]