WWE Extreme Rules 2009 Flashback:: Edge vs. Jeff Hardy in a ladder match for the World Hvt. Championship, Randy Orton vs. Batista in a cage match for the WWE Title, C.M. Punk vs. Umaga in a strap match

The following is Jason Powell's review of the June 7, 2009 WWE Extreme Rules pay-per-view. Check back tonight for Jason Powell and Chris Shore's live coverage reviews of 2013 WWE Extreme Rules event. Dot Net Members can look forward to an exclusive audio review with Jason and Chris after the show. Join us on the ad-free version of the website by signing up now via the Prowrestling.net/amember/signup.php.

Aired live on pay-per-view
New Orleans, La.

The show opened with a video for the event... Michael Cole introduced the show and they went right to the ring for the opening match...

1. Kofi Kingston defeated Matt Hardy, William Regal, and MVP in a Fatal Four Way to retain the U.S. Title in 6:45. Kofi has lights on the heels of his boots. Here's hoping he doesn't have the little kid wheels. Cole and Jerry Lawler on commentary for the match.

Regal caught Kingston on the ropes and positioned him for a suplex. MVP snuck underneath Regal, but he wasn't in position for whatever they were setting up when Regal suplexed Kofi off the ropes. They landed awkwardly, but everyone appears to be okay.

Later, Kofi went for Trouble in Paradise on Regal, who caught him and awkwardly suplexed him. Looks like their timing is off so far. Late in the match, Regal tried to toss Kofi out of the ring, but he bounced off the ropes and caught Regal with the Trouble in Paradise kick and picked up the win...

Powell's POV: Sloppy in spots. The live crowd didn't seem to mind. They liked Kofi and were all over Regal with a "Regal sucks" chant.

Cole and Lawler set up footage taped earlier in the day of Josh Matthews approaching Big Show's wannabe Madden Cruiser. Show came out dressed in his ring gear. Matthews asked him his strategy. Show said Matthews should ask Cena his strategy since he's already proven he be locked in the STF...

Jim Ross and Todd Grisham checked in from ringside and narrated footage of the Rey Mysterio vs. Chris Jericho match...

Powell's POV: I can't be the only person surprised they're having this match already.

Jericho's entrance music played, but he didn't come out. His voice could be heard saying, "Stop the music." He said he was "up here." The camera showed Jericho standing in front of a merchandise stand that was filled with Mysterio items. Jericho cut a promo about being amongst the hypocrites and thieves when he ambushed Mysterio.

Jericho walked through the crowd toward the ring and continued his rant. "Don't touch me," he told three different fans. Funny. He said he was going to make the masks the fans by worthless by ripping the mask off Rey's face and exposing his identity. He said he'd go on to win the IC Title...

Powell's POV: Great stuff. I loved the glare he gave fans after telling them not to touch him.

2. Chris Jericho pinned Rey Mysterio in a no holds barred match to win the Intercontinental Title in 14:45. The bell rang and Rey tackled Jericho and took the fight to him. They rolled to ringside and Rey grabbed the top of the Raw announcers' table and threw it at Jericho. They did the same spot from Friday's Smackdown with Jericho throwing Rey toward the steps, only to have Rey flip over the steps and kick them into Jericho's knees.

Back in the ring, Rey went for his usual dropkick off the ropes, but Jericho caught him and went for the Walls of Jericho. Rey rolled him up for a nice near fall. Ross and Grisham built up how much the mask means to Rey throughout the match.

At 9:00, Jericho made his first play for the mask. He pulled it off of Rey's face momentarily and the camera was right there to show a clear shot of Rey's face for a moment. That would have been a big deal if he hadn't lost the match in WCW. At 11:00, Jericho hit the spinning Torture Rack into a backbreaker for a good near fall.

At 11:30, Rey hit the 619 to the back of jericho's head. He tried to follow up with the springboard splash, but Jericho hit him with the Codebreaker on his way down for another near fall. Jericho headed to ringside and grabbed a chair. He brought inside the ring with him, only to have Rey dropkick it into his face for another near fall at 13:00.

At 14:00, Rey ran and then leapt off the chair and dove at Jericho, who caught him and applied the Walls of Jericho. Rey grabbed the chair, twisted, and smacked Jericho with the chair. Rey went for the 619, but Jericho reached up and pulled Rey's mask off. Mysterio covered his face while Jericho covered him and scored the 1-2-3 to become the IC Champion for the ninth time. Jericho held up the mask and the belt as he celebrated afterward...

Powell's POV: A really fun match. I felt like we've seen some of those spots a few times before because they've been working together quite a bit, but it was still a really fun match with a clever finish. Rey covered his face, so I don't expect him to wrestle without the mask now.

Backstage, Matthews called in Batista and had him watch a video that recapped the Randy Orton vs. Ric Flair fight from Monday's Raw. Back live, Matthews asked Batista for his reaction. Batista said that it was one thing when Orton kicked him and put him out for months, but when he takes a cheap shot at "a man I love and respect, Ric Flair, it's another story." Batista vowed to take away the WWE Championship and Orton's pride, dignity, and health. "I'm not going to stop until I completely wipe out your entire Legacy"...

3. C.M. Punk beat Umaga in a Samoan strap match in 9:00. There was a new graphic that displayed the names of both wrestlers and featured a ring so that viewers could keep track of how many turnbuckles the wrestlers touched. The crowd was really dead early. The crowd finally woke up around 5:00 in by chanting Punk's name briefly, but they definitely weren't as involved in this match as the two previous matches.

After a match filled with the usual strap match spots, Punk touched three corners. Umaga pulled the strap toward him, but Punk pulled him in and hit the GTS at the last second and touched the fourth corner to win the match. The announcers put it over as a big upset...

Powell's POV: This match had the unenviable assignment of following up the IC Title match. It failed. There was nothing innovative about the match and there was zero intensity. The live crowd cheered the finish, but they were flat throughout.

Josh Matthews and Matt "Beer Can" Striker checked in from ringside and sent it backstage to Hurricane Helms, who interviewed Christian. Christian acted conflicted about possibly retiring Tommy Dreamer. Christian smiled and said he sure is going to miss Dreamer. He said he'll miss how his body looks like a melted candle with his shirt off. Dreamer entered the picture and said Christian looks like the wick of the candle. Jack Swagger walked in and started to run his mouth, but Christian and Dreamer ignored him and walked away...

Powell's POV: Cute segment. Swagger got a nice heel reaction when he entered the picture.

4. Tommy Dreamer defeated Christian and Jack Swagger in a Triple Threat match o win the ECW Title in 9:40. Matthews and Beer Can on commentary. They put over that Dreamer will walk away from ECW if he doesn't win the title in this match. In-ring introductions for the championship match. Dreamer went to ringside early and pulled out a trash can with weapons. Dreamer used a kendo stick while Christian used a trash can lid on Swagger.

At 3:00, Dreamer put the trash can behind his head and did a flip onto both of his opponents at ringside. Nice spot. Dreamer tied up Swagger in the Tree of Woe and placed the trash can in front of his head. He did the "ECW" chant in the corner, but Christian reached in and tripped up Dreamer. Christian entered the ring and did the "ECW" chant and followed up with Dreamer's baseball slide into the trash can that was positioned in front of Swagger's head.

At 8:15, Swagger caught Dreamer on the ropes. Christian snuck underneath them both for the tower of doom spot. Dreamer landed on a trash can. The live crowd didn't give a damn. Later, Swagger set up for his finisher on Christian, but Dreamer hit him in the ribs with a crutch. Dreamer took out Christian and then DDT'd Swagger for the win. He celebrated in the crowd afterward...

Powell's POV: Dreamer got a nice little pop for winning the match. He had a vocal group of fans in the front row that he celebrated with afterward. However, the crowd was flat again. This match was more entertaining than the strap match.

Backstage, Chavo wore a fake pig's nose and instructed Vickie Guerrero as she shadow boxed. He started making pig noises and she punched him. No one laughed. Scratch that, they cut to Michael Cole, who was laughing his ass off at ringside. Tool. He hyped The Bash for June 28 in Sacramento...

5. Santina defeated Vickie Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero in a handicap hog pen match in 2:45. Before the introductions, Jerry Lawler stood inside the pen. It was slop on one side and a group of piglets on the small side. "Without further adieu, or doo-doo, let's get this match underway," Lawler said. Sigh. No laughs from the crowd.

Lawler interviewed Vickie, who announced that she was making it a handicap match. Lawler left the pen. Vickie ordered Chavo to enter. He was wearing street clothes and had to wrestle in his socks. He made faces as he stepped in the slop. Santina threw slop at Chavo, who got pissed and punched him/her repeatedly. Woman beater.

After Chavo roughed up Santina, Vickie tagged in for the first time a couple minutes into the match. Santina recovered immediately. Chavo picked up a slop button and threw it at Santina, who ducked, causing it to hit Vickie. Santina put the bucket over Chavo's head and punched him out. Santina rolled up Vickie in the slop for the win. Vickie and Chavo bickered afterward and rolled around in the slop. Chavo apologized several times while Santina laughed at them...

Powell's POV: The live crowd didn't give a damn about the comedy. They popped a couple times for the slop, but that was about all. No reaction for the finish. I'm sure certain people backstage are laughing much harder than the fans are.

An ad for SummerSlam, which takes place on Aug. 23... At ringside, Cole joked around about how much Lawler stank from standing in the hog pen. They set up a video to hype Randy Orton vs. Batista...

Backstage, Chavo continued to apologize to Vickie, who was pissed because she lost her Miss WrestleMania crown. They walked by several divas and a bunch of wrestlers who aren't on the show. They ran into Goldust and Hornswoggle. Goldust said they smelled like "shit...ake mushrooms" and Hornswoggle laughed.

Vickie and Chavo finally made their way into her office only to find Edge sitting on the couch. He said look at what she became after only two months away from him. She told him that he finally had to face Jeff Hardy without her help. Edge said he made her. He suggested she get a good divorce attorney. "Tonight it all ends," Edge said. "First, Jeff Hardy and then this sham of a marriage." Vickie sat down and cried as Edge left the room...

6. Batista pinned Randy Orton in a cage match to win the WWE Title in 7:05. The bell rang and Orton immediately tried to climb out of the cage. Batista caught him and they fought on the top rope for a minute or so. At 6:30, Orton went for the punt kick, but missed. Actually, it looked very similar to the one he supposedly caught Ric Flair with on Monday.

Batista stood up and stopped Orton, who was attempting to get out of the cage. Batista caught Orton in position for the Batista Bomb, but Randy fought out of it. Orton went for the RKO, but Batista shoved him off. Batista hit the Batista Bomb and scored the clean pin to win the belt.

Afterward, Cole recapped Batista's promo in which he stated that he wasn't going to stop until he wiped out Orton's legacy. Of course, Batista was leaving the ring at this point even though Orton was just fine. Batista kissed the belt and said it was for Ric Flair...

Powell's POV: Wow, I didn't see that one coming. A short cage match. The live crowd was happy with the title change, though...

A video hyped John Cena...

7. John Cena beat Big Show in a submission match in 19:00. Roughly one minute in, Cena went for the STF, but couldn't lock it in. Big Show took control of the offense. At 6:00, Cena hopped on Show's back and applied what appeared to be a chin lock. Cole flipped out and said he had a sleeper locked in. Lawler said it wasn't a "classic sleeper." Nevertheless, Show sold it like a sleeper by dropping to his knees even though Cena's arm was in front of his face the entire time.

At 9:45, Show caught Cena's head between the ropes and pulled the ropes together. Cena powered out. Show cut him off and went for the Vader Bomb, but Cena moved. Cena went for a bodyslam, but Show fell on top of him. A few boring minutes later, Show locked in the abdominal stretch and then applied the claw to Cena's side momentarily.

Superman Cena powered out of the abdominal stretch. Show went for a chokeslam, but Cena slipped out and DDT'd Show. He went for the STF. Show kicked him aside. You can hear crickets chirping whenever Show is on offense.

Cena looked to the crowd as he went into his comeback and got some cheers, but not a mega reaction. Show reached out for a chokeslam, but Cena hit the Attitude Adjustment. Cena went for the STF again (because it's the only freaking finishing move ever invented), but Show elbowed him off.

Show punched Cena and knocked him to ringside. Cole said the match would be over if Cena didn't answer the count. Um, what? Show went out after Cena and picked him up on his shoulders. Cena slid off and rammed Show into the ring post. The live crowd was very quiet, but they woke up when Cena recovered and hit a leg drop off the top rope on to Show back in the ring.

Cena placed Show's leg between the first and middle ropes and then applied the STF. Show's foot came out immediately, but he still tapped out a few seconds later to end the match. "John Cena persevered!" Cole said in delight. Lawler said it was a "fantastic extreme match." What? He said Cena did the nearly impossible and got a little luck from lady luck...

Powell's POV: If a guy defies the odds every month, don't the odds change at some point? Wow, that was dull. It's not all their fault. They tried hard, but no one cares about Show's offense unless he's destroying someone, and the crowd has been flat for most of the show. Did we really need 19 minutes from those two? I wonder how different the crowd would be if they had saved the high energy Jericho vs. Rey match for later in the show.

A video hyped the Edge vs. Jeff Hardy match...

Powell's POV: They need a great main event to save the show. Something tells me the show will be saved given it's Edge vs. Hardy.

8. Jeff Hardy defeated Edge in a ladder match to win the World Hvt. Championship in 20:15. Ladders were set up everywhere. Ross said it was a fantasy land for Bob Villa. Hilarious. The announcers agreed that Edge and Hardy are the two best ladder match performers in the game. Grisham said Shawn Michaels vs. Razor Ramon is the litmus test for all other ladder matches.

At 7:00, Edge locked Hardy in a Sharpshooter while Hardy was lying inside a ladder in the ring. Hardy tapped out and the announcers quickly pointed out that he can't lose via submission. A short time later, Edge made an attempt to grab the belt, but Jeff missile dropkicked the ladder out from under him.

At 10:30, Hardy stood on a giant ladder in the corner and leaned forward. The ladder tipped over and Jeff grabbed the hook that was holding the belt and hung from it. Edge pulled him down and Hardy hit his head on the ladder on the way down. Cool spot.

Later, Edge set up a ladder over the ring apron and the guard rail at ringside. He and Hardy fought at ringside and left the ladder in place. Later, Hardy placed Edge on the ladder that was between the ring and rail. Hardy climbed up another ladder. Edge recovered and joined him at the top of the ladder. They fought and tipped over the ladder they were standing on and crashed onto the other ladder. Jeff came up holding his shoulder. Wow!

They eventually made it back inside the ring and traded punches. Jeff knocked down Edge and made a play for the belt. However, Edge recovered and climbed the giant ladder in the corner. Edge went tried to spear Hardy, who turned around in time to hit him with the Twist of Fate in mid-air. Great spot.

At 19:45, both wrestlers fought at the top of a ladder in the middle of the ring. Edge knocked Hardy off the ladder. Edge reached for the belt. Hardy reached underneath the ladder and pulled Edge between the rungs. With Edge hanging between the rungs, Jeff climbed the ladder and grabbed the belt to win the match.

Powell's POV: Very good match with a creative finish. It wasn't the typical big bump at the end finish, but they took plenty of crowd-pleasing bumps during the match. The New Orleans crowd was lively throughout the match.

After the match, Jim Ross got inside the ring to interview Hardy. However, C.M. Punk's music played and he came out with the briefcase to cash in. The live crowd booed...

9. C.M. Punk beat Jeff Hardy to win World Hvt. Championship in 1:03. Punk hit the GTS just a few seconds in, but Hardy kicked out. Hardy came back and got a near fall on Punk. However, Punk hit the GTS for a second time and scored the pin. Punk celebrated after the match...

Powell's POV: The ladder match and Punk cashing in definitely saved the show. It will be interesting to see whether they turn Punk or leave him babyface. The obvious move would be to turn him heel since he beat Hardy, but they could also have Jeff endorse the move if they wanted to. Overall, a newsworthy show with several title changes.