Extreme Rules 2010

Extreme Rules 2010 was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), which took place on April 25, 2010 at the 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore, Maryland. It was sponsored by KFC. It was the second event promoted under the Extreme Rules name. There were eight matches scheduled on the event's card, all of which featured an 'extreme' stipulation, with no regular singles matches on the card. The event received 182,000 pay-per-view buys, the same as the figure achieved by Backlash 2009.
==Background==
Extreme Rules featured professional wrestling matches involving different wrestlers from pre-existing scripted feuds and storylines which were played out on World Wrestling Entertainment's (WWE) television programs and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Wrestlers portrayed either a villainous or heroic character.
The main storyline from the Raw brand featured John Cena and Batista feuding over the WWE Championship. The feud had begun several months previously and been a feature of several pay-per-views, including WrestleMania XXVI, where Cena defeated Batista to win the championship. Following WrestleMania, on the April 5 episode of Raw, Batista attacked Cena after a match, and it was announced that Batista would receive his rematch in a Last Man Standing Match at Extreme Rules.
World Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger from the SmackDown brand was scheduled to face Raw wrestler Randy Orton. Swagger won the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania, earning a contract for a guaranteed championship match at the time and place of his choosing. He utilized the contract on the April 2 episode of SmackDown, defeating Chris Jericho to win the World Heavyweight Championship. After a number one contender's match between Jericho and Edge ended in a double countout, Raw guest host David Hasselhoff announced that Swagger would face Orton, who had beaten Swagger on two occasions, in an Extreme Rules match.
Chris Jericho and Edge also had a scheduled match on the card. Edge returned from injury at the Royal Rumble, winning the Royal Rumble match, and earning a match for a championship of his choosing at WrestleMania. Edge elected to wrestle the World Heavyweight Champion Jericho, but lost. On the following episode of SmackDown, Edge attacked Jericho, allowing Jack Swagger to cash in his Money in the Bank contract and win the championship. After a number one contender's match between Jericho and Edge went to a double countout, it was announced that they would face each other in a Steel Cage match.
The secondary rivalry from the Raw brand heading into Extreme Rules was between Triple H and Sheamus. Sheamus felt that Triple H was responsible for him losing the WWE Championship at Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, and so challenged him at WrestleMania, but lost. As a result, the following night on Raw, Sheamus attacked Triple H with a lead pipe, and it was announced that the two would meet in a Street Fight at Extreme Rules.
CM Punk and Rey Mysterio had been feuding for several months prior to Extreme Rules, which included Punk tormenting Mysterio in front of his wife and children. They wrestled at WrestleMania, with Mysterio winning, and so avoiding being forced to join Punk's stable, The Straight Edge Society. When inducting members into The Straight Edge Society, Punk shaved their hair, while retaining long hair himself. As a result, Mysterio challenged him over it, and it was announced that the stipulation for their match at Extreme Rules was that if Punk lost, he would have his head shaved.
Also announced for the card was a match for the WWE Women's Championship between the champion, Michelle McCool, and Beth Phoenix. The feud began when Phoenix objected to SmackDown Consultant Vickie Guerrero, aligned with Team Lay-Cool (McCool and Layla), and refused to grant Phoenix a title match. After earning her championship match, Phoenix was attacked on the April 23 episode of SmackDown by Team Lay-Cool, who hit her with an ironing board and drew on her with lipstick to set up an Extreme Makeover match.
The final match on the card was between former tag team partners, Shad Gaspard and JTG. After Cryme Tyme lost a tag team match on the April 2 episode of SmackDown, Gaspard turned on JTG and attacked him, setting up a strap match between the two.
==Aftermath==
Since The Hart Dynasty was the winning team at Extreme Rules, they got a tag team championship match the next night on Raw and won. After the match Big Show turned face and attacked The Miz. Big Show became number one contender for the World Heavyweight championship at Over The Limit. He won the match via disqualification.
The feud between CM Punk and Rey Mysterio continued. A match was set up between the two at Over The Limit and if Mysterio lost, he would have to join the Straight Edge Society and if Punk lost, he would have to shave his head. At Over The Limit, Mysterio won the match so Punk had to shave his head.
After Extreme Rules, Randy Orton started a feud with Edge. A match was set up between the two at Over The Limit, which ended in a double countout.
Jack Swagger held on to the World Heavyweight Championship for two more months. He retained it at Over The Limit against The Big Show but lost the match when he got disqualified. And he lost it to Rey Mysterio at Fatal 4 Way.
Triple H was sidelined for the rest of the year and came back in February 2011. When he returned, he attacked Sheamus to end the feud.
Sheamus began to feud with John Cena. After Cena retained the title at Over The Limit, he was attacked by Sheamus. Cena held on to the title when he lost it to Sheamus at Fatal 4 Way.
Batista got a rematch (defeating Randy Orton and Sheamus in a #1 Contender's Match at the WWE Draft) for the WWE championship against Cena at Over The Limit but failed to win in an "I Quit" match. The next night, Raw general manager Bret Hart told Batista he had to qualify for the WWE Championship Fatal-4-Way at the eponymous pay-per-view, but he refused and lost to Randy Orton by forfeit. Batista then quit WWE.
After capturing the WWE Women's Championship, Beth Phoenix tore her ACL on the May 6 edition of WWE Superstars during a singles match against the evil Rosa Mendes, which Phoenix won with a roll-up. Phoenix eventually dropped the WWE Women's Championship to Layla in a 2-on-1 handicap match on the May 14 edition of SmackDown. After being out of action for six months, Phoenix returned at Survivor Series to save Natalya from an attack by LayCool. In December at TLC, Phoenix and Natalya defeated LayCool in a Divas Tag Team Tables match.
==Reception==
The event received mixed reviews from critics. In a mixed review, The Sun praised the quality of the matches but was disappointed in the lack of weapon use, stating that "the event failed to live up to its name". Overall they awarded the event a 6.5 out of 10.
In August 2010, WWE reported that the event had received 182,000 pay-per-view buys, down on what last year had.
==Results==
;
;
*Dark Match: Kofi Kingston defeated Dolph Ziggler
*The Hart Dynasty (David Hart Smith and Tyson Kidd) (w/ Bret Hart & Natalya) defeated ShoMiz (The Big Show and The Miz) to win a Tag Team Gauntlet Match (6:48)
:*Also in match:
::*John Morrison & R-Truth
::*Montel Vontavious Porter & Mark Henry
*CM Punk defeated Rey Mysterio (16:57)
*JTG defeated Shad Gaspard in a Strap Match (5:53)
*Jack Swagger (c) defeated Randy Orton in an Extreme Rules match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship (14:01)
*Sheamus defeated Triple H in a Street Fight (17:18)
*Beth Phoenix defeated Michelle McCool (c) in an Extreme Makeover match to win the WWE Women's Championship (6:32)
*Edge defeated Chris Jericho in a Steel Cage match (21:58)
*John Cena (c) defeated Batista in a Last Man Standing Match to retain the WWE Championship (26:02)
==Other on-screen talent==
;Commentators
*Michael Cole
*Jerry Lawler
*Matt Striker
;Interviewers
*Josh Mathews	
;Ring announcer
*Justin Roberts
*Tony Chimel
;Referees
*Mike Chioda
*Charles Robinson
*Jack Doan
==See also==
*List of WWE pay-per-view events
*WWE Extreme Rules
==DVD release==
* Extreme Rules 2010
==External links==
* Official Extreme Rules Website
* Extreme Rules 2010 at CAGEMATCH.COM
* Extreme Rules 2010 at Online World of Wrestling
* on WWE Network
Category:World Wrestling Entertainment pay-per-view events
Category:Extreme Rules
Category:2010 pay-per-view events
Category:Events with Gauntlet matches
Category:Events with Last Man Standing matches
Category:Events with Street Fights
Category:Events with Steel Cage matches
Category:Events with Strap matches