The early build to Extreme Rules 2018 continued with this week’s episode of SmackDown Live and the first steps toward promoting the blue brand’s contributions to the card.
Piggybacking off the Monday Night Raw breakdown, we need to shift our focus over to the SmackDown roster and the storylines going on for that show.
Some things are guaranteed at this point and others are pure speculation, so for these extended projections, we’ll be examining all of the current feuds and the possible ways they could twist and turn to set up potential matches for Extreme Rules 2018 in the best guesses we can make.
Before it’s all fully fleshed out, I invite everyone to sound off on which directions they think WWE will go so we can look back and see what we were right and wrong about in our predictions.
As far as SmackDown Live is concerned, this is what I see in my crystal ball for Extreme Rules 2018…
WWE Championship Match: AJ Styles (c) vs. Rusev
The gauntlet match to determine the new No. 1 contender ended with Rusev on top, taking out The Miz to earn the championship opportunity.
This is somewhat confusing booking, but not necessarily in a bad way.
Rusev has been cheered as a fan favorite for many months, yet there’s been a clear hesitation by WWE when it comes to solidifying him as a babyface. Every time it seems like he’s had a face turn, the following week, he’s booked in a heelish role and we start all over again.
By last defeating The Miz, Rusev came off as a babyface for sure. When AJ Styles came out afterward to shake his hand, it seemed to seal the deal. However, Aiden English followed that up by snubbing a handshake to Styles and getting knocked down for it, in what we were supposed to cheer.
Basically, it’s unclear if Rusev is going to be a heel still, if he’s a babyface and we’re just getting a face vs. face feud with English being the heel to a certain extent, or if WWE doesn’t even know what to do.
In any fashion, it’s something different and allows room for flexibility, which should be fun to watch unfold over the next few weeks.
United States Championship Match: Jeff Hardy (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
Shinsuke Nakamura came up short again in his quest for the WWE Championship at Money in the Bank, but he’s going directly into a new title feud as he is being set up for a United States Championship shot down the line.
In a backstage promo video, Jeff Hardy said that when Nakamura hit him with the Kinshasa, he opened his eyes—metaphorically speaking—and that now, he sees him.
Later, in a different backstage promo segment, Nakamura was interviewed by Renee Young about his loss against AJ Styles. Nakamura was quick to dismiss it as only happening because the referee both counted too fast and didn’t count in Japanese, before mentioning that now that Hardy’s eyes are open, if he crosses him again, he’ll close them.
Done and done. These two are feuding, and unless they take care of this on SmackDown itself because there’s not enough room on the card for them to fight, which is highly unlikely, it seems like a lock that Nakamura will get a shot at the United States title at Extreme Rules.
SmackDown Women’s Championship Match: Carmella (c) vs. ???
This is a somewhat tough call to make, as this episode didn’t fully specify what will happen in several weeks, more so than just hint at two possible options.
At the beginning of the night, Carmella cut a promo about how great she is, which led to Asuka coming out for a fight. However, since Asuka lost her undefeated streak, WWE has trapped her into looking weak—something that seems to always happen. She ended the segment on the losing end while Carmella and James Ellsworth gloated and escaped.
There’s a chance this feud continues and Asuka wins the title, but there’s even more of a chance Asuka fights with Carmella next week and then the champion moves on to someone else.
If that latter option happens, Becky Lynch is not only the best choice to be next in line, but the most obvious prediction. She scored a victory over Billie Kay this week, which helps illustrate her credibility, and she was certainly popular enough in the Money in the Bank ladder match to justify giving her a push.
Also, if I’m getting ahead of myself, putting the title on Lynch makes sense for Survivor Series in a few months, as I’m thinking Ronda Rousey wins the Raw Women’s Championship from Alexa Bliss at SummerSlam. Then, Rousey vs. Lynch would be the Champion vs. Champion affair in November, which will help build toward the inevitable Rousey vs. Charlotte Flair match at WrestleMania.
SmackDown Tag Team Championship Match: The Bludgeon Brothers (c) vs. ???
This one’s confusing. The Bludgeon Brothers put down The Good Brothers again, so we can count out Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows as being able to get another opportunity for the belts.
The Usos are clearly in a feud with SAnitY, and there hasn’t been any crossover, so it’s a stretch to imagine a Triple Threat between those two teams and The Bludgeon Brothers will take place.
More than anyone, Harper and Rowan interacted with Daniel Bryan, having an awkward stare down with him on the entrance ramp and coming back out during the gauntlet to attack him, costing him a shot at the WWE Championship.
However, where does that lead? Daniel Bryan getting a tag team title shot? Who would be his partner? My gut reaction would be a reunion of Team Hell No, but Kane is likely to be far too busy with his mayoral campaign for that to make any sense, and after glancing at the roster, I don’t see anybody that stands out.
Tye Dillinger has yet to get any real momentum, sadly, especially when it comes to any recent timeline. Randy Orton is out with an injury and there’s no precedent for him having an alliance with Bryan. Shelton Benjamin is a heel. So this is rather tough to figure out, and I honestly have no idea where they’re going.
Andrade “Cien” Almas vs. Sin Cara
Despite setting this up, these two have still yet to have their match together, nor was this even mentioned in the slightest bit tonight on SmackDown.
It’s perplexing why WWE would go out of the way to announce a match between the two with no intention of actually doing it, and then dropping it entirely, instead of at least having Almas and Zelina Vega cut a promo about how they injured Sin Cara so much that he’s unable to perform.
I have my doubts that even if they do pick this storyline back up in time, it will amount to anything that can manifest at Extreme Rules.
The Miz, Samoa Joe, The New Day…
Daniel Bryan may be tied up with The Bludgeon Brothers, or he may be doing something with The Miz. That’s unclear. Nothing else has been hinted at with The Miz, nor has anything been established regarding Samoa Joe or The New Day, meaning all of these Superstars are basically up in the air with little to no hints on what the direction is.
Your guess is as good as mine. I have no idea. It would be weird for SmackDown to have virtually nothing on the card for this event, but I don’t think we have much to go on right now.
CARD PREDICTION SUMMARY
WWE Championship Match: AJ Styles (c) vs. Rusev
United States Championship Match: Jeff Hardy (c) vs. Shinsuke Nakamura
SmackDown Women’s Championship Match: Carmella (c) vs. Asuka or Becky Lynch
Andrade “Cien” Almas vs. Sin Cara (possibly)
Something with Daniel Bryan, possibly with a partner against The Bludgeon Brothers
The Usos vs. SAnitY (if not on SmackDown television only)
+ the Monday Night Raw side of things
Those are my predictions, but what matches do YOU think will be on the card? Drop your guesses in the comments below!
