Dolph Ziggler Challenged WWE Champion Drew McIntyre to a Match at Extreme RulesZiggler going to Raw was rumored as recently as last week, but it was made official here that he and Robert Roode were traded to the red brand in return for AJ Styles going to SmackDown (which hardly feels like a fair trade to me). They acknowledged their history from a few years ago here, but that's about the only reason why Ziggler should be feuding with McIntyre at the moment. Other than that, he's done nothing to earn a title shot and isn't a compelling challenger in the slightest. McIntyre vs. Ziggler sounds like a main event on Raw, not a WWE Championship match on pay-per-view. Nia Jax and Charlotte Flair BrawledJax vowed she wouldn't leave the ring until she was granted another shot at the Raw Women's Championship after what transpired last week. For a split second, I thought she would win the 24/7 Championship from R-Truth (who interrupted her first), but that was just a red herring. The Flair and Jax brawl was fine and established that Flair would be going into her Raw Women's Championship clash with Asuka at a disadvantage with the hurt shoulder. Flair vs. Jax is likely a lock for the upcoming pay-per-view, though I'm not sure who viewers are supposed to cheer for.
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Oney Lorcan def. Chase ParkerThis marked the first time we've seen either member of Ever-Rise in singles action on WWE programming. Lorcan and Danny Burch knocked off Ever-Rise in back-to-back bouts on NXT and 205 Live a few weeks ago, so there was some background behind this bout. It was decent for the time given but too short to be anything memorable. Indus Sher showing up afterward and attacking Lorcan and Burch was where the focus was really at and it was an angle that made sense because of what went down with them last week on NXT. Jake Atlas def. Jack GallagherIn case you missed it, Gallagher was released from WWE mere minutes before SmackDown aired on FOX because of allegations that came out about him earlier in the day. That makes me think the company didn't have enough time to remove his match from the episode, especially since he isn't mentioned in WWE.com's results of the show and isn't featured in any of the photos, either. At least he lost, so there's that. For whatever it's worth, it was a pretty good match with Atlas showing real potential. I'd love to see more of him on the show going forward.
AJ Styles Held an Intercontinental Championship Coronation; Matt Riddle def. Styles (Non-Title)For whatever it's worth, Dolph Ziggler not appearing at ringside here (despite wrestling in the main event of SmackDown a week ago) gives credence to the recent report that he's Raw bound. Nonetheless, this was a solid segment with Styles preaching about how title shots should be earned, not given, and Daniel Bryan pointing out all the competition that's available for him on the blue brand. That bought out the debuting Riddle, who I didn't expect to see in this spot. Obviously, Riddle is in the midst of allegations at the moment that he has yet to be officially cleared of and this was taped beforehand, so whatever momentum he gained here could mean nothing if he's found guilty. This match, however, was great and was the perfect way to establish Riddle as a top talent on the show from the get-go. Riddle vs. Styles for the title would seem to be inevitable, though I would wait until a bigger stage like SummerSlam to deliver on that. Renee Young Hosted a Sit-Down Interview with Jeff HardySome people may be of the mindset that this feud jumped the shark last week with that ridiculous urine test segment (which is absolutely arguable), but I think it still has some legs as I enjoyed their Backlash bout and believe a rubber match at Extreme Rules is the right way to go. He didn't seem to say anything new, but Hardy was very good here and came across as genuine. Sheamus mentioned later in the show that he'll be holding a "toast" in Hardy's honor next week on SmackDown.
AEW World Tag Team Champions Kenny Omega and "Hangman" Adam Page def. The Natural NightmaresNeedless to say, the outcome for this contest was never in doubt. Rather, this was all about furthering the story with QT Marshall and Allie, which has been pretty prominent on Dark lately. The Natural Nightmares are a fine team, but they are nowhere near as being on the level of Page and Omega. The champs managed to carry them to a decent opener, but this was one of their weaker title defenses to date in my opinion. By the way, can Dustin Rhodes please stop doing the Destroyer as a transitional move? Abadon def. Anna JayWe've seen Abandon before on Dark in a match against Hikaru Shida. I thought the gimmick sucked then and I still think it sucks now. I honestly wasn't even paying attention to the match because of how distracting her zombie makeup was. And no, it's not the same thing as The Fiend, who looks cool and has matches that are booked in a certain way to highlight his strengths (even though some of those matches are boring and are oddly laid out, but that's a different discussion for another day). I was surprised that a non-signed talent would beat someone who just got the video package treatment, but it was revealed after on social media that she's been signed. I found the post-match stuff more interesting with The Dark Order offering Colt Cabana a contract in the crowd while helping Jay to the back. Dark Order could benefit from adding a female to their ranks.
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