What we learned from WWE Extreme Rules 2016

On Sunday night, WWE rolled into the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., to present the eighth installment of their Extreme Rules pay-per-view. Although the event was a mixed bag and only one out of the five defended titles changed hands, the highs were certainly enough to make it a memorable evening.

Let’s recap everything that happened at Extreme Rules on Sunday night and what it all means for WWE storylines and performers going forward.

(Please note: although Big Cass appeared on the Kickoff Show to run off the Dudley Boyz and hit his catch phrase, there was no match that actually took place. But I may as well mention it before we move on to the actual results.)

Ziggler gave it his best shot, but at the end of the day he couldn’t overcome a blatant nut shot, followed by a huge End of Days. That was enough for Corbin to get the pinfall on the Extreme Rules pre-show.

What we learned: Corbin would seem to have definitively won this feud, although there’s a possibility Ziggler will take exception to Corbin not being able to win fair and square (although the low blow was perfectly legal in this situation and would be a pretty petty argument, even for Ziggler).

Both men would be best served moving onto something else. With Money in the Bank coming up in a few weeks, I certainly wouldn’t be surprised to see both of these men involved in that all-important ladder match.

The Club’s first official match on a WWE pay-per-view was a brutal affair, as expected. All four men were legal the entire time under the Tornado rules. The Usos put up a valiant fight, but the Magic Killer finishing move was too much to overcome.

What we learned: Both teams would show up again later in the evening, interfering in the main event on behalf of their respective combatants. As for this match, The Club has pretty definitively won this feud against the Usos and now they can set their sights on a bigger prize. The tag team titles, perhaps?

Once again, the underdog babyface gave tremendous effort, but the revitalized Rusev was just too much to overcome. Rusev wore down Kalisto’s back throughout the match and finished Kalisto off with the most brutal Accolade the WWE has ever seen.

What we learned: Rusev has finally reclaimed the United States title that made him such a force to be reckoned with in 2014 and 2015.

However, Rusev’s old nemesis, John Cena, is waiting in the wings to challenge him for the U.S. Championship. The same championship that allowed Cena to redeem himself in the eyes of fans everywhere last year. Cena returns next week and woe be to Rusev if that’s the opponent he chooses to target.

The rare pairing of Xavier Woods and Big E defended their titles against the No. 1 contenders on Sunday and perhaps a bit surprisingly, Woods was able to score the pinfall following a Shining Wizard.

What we learned: Since this is WWE, we can never rule out that the Vaudevillains won’t win the titles on Monday night’s episode of RAW if they can manage to finagle a rematch.

Otherwise, the New Day will focus on trying to set the WWE tag title longevity record as they take on the next challengers ... which could be the Club, or Big Cass and Enzo Amore, or who knows who else might step up.

In the first of two Match of the Year contenders on Sunday, these four men pulled out all the stops as they tried to steal the show and proved that the Intercontinental Championship is still a prize worth fighting for.

After nothing but nonstop action, Cesaro eventually ate finishers from all three of his opponents. As Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens brawled outside the ring, The Miz took advantage of their lapse in focus and pinned Cesaro to retain his title.

What we learned: Slimebag Miz continues to keep his title by the skin of his teeth and with no small amount of help from his wife, Maryse.

Zayn and Owens continue to have nothing but animosity toward each other and it would be a pretty safe bet to assume they will both have spots in the Money in the Bank ladder match next month.

As for Cesaro, it took everyone’s finisher to put him down for the count, plus he has now made Miz tap out twice without the referee seeing it. He has a legitimate claim to a one-on-one rematch for the Intercontinental belt and I think the third time will be the charm for him.

This was a goofy match that a lot of people seemed to hate a whole lot, but the important thing is that Dean Ambrose finally managed to avenge the death of his beloved plant, Mitch.

Wait, let me check my notes ... no, that’s really what this feud was all about. Okay, just making sure.

In an intense finish to a ridiculous match, Ambrose managed to send Jericho into thumbtacks and hit the Dirty Deeds to get the big victory.

What we learned: Ambrose has now won two straight PPV matches against Jericho, which would seem to be a clear indicator that this feud is at an end. It’s good for Ambrose to regain some momentum heading into Money in the Bank.

I suppose these are two more men who wouldn’t be out of place in the MITB ladder match, although there are probably better uses for Chris Jericho at the moment.

Ric Flair was banned from ringside for this match and if he appeared, Charlotte would have forfeited her title. When Natalya had Charlotte on the ropes (literally), Flair’s music hit and a white-haired figure in a “Nature Boy” robe appeared at the top of the ramp.

Natalya demanded that her hand be raised in victory and awarded the title, but it was all a ruse. The robed figure was actually Dana Brooke, who allied herself with Charlotte and allowed the women’s champion to lock on the Figure Eight to get Natalya to tap out.

What we learned: Never underestimate Charlotte, because she will find ways to cheat that don’t involve her father. Charlotte has really come into her own as a confident, dirtbag heel and I’m certainly in favor of her gathering more lackeys.

This is also a great move for Dana, as she would have been slightly rudderless with her cohort Emma currently on the shelf due to back surgery.

This could possibly -- possibly -- be the first step in Charlotte assembling a stable -- perhaps named the Four Horsewomen? But it could also just be a clever way to transition Natalya out of her title feud with Charlotte (which she has now definitively lost) and into a feud with Dana.

After having an instant classic at Payback three weeks ago, Reigns and Styles put together a match that might have been every bit as good (if not better) on Sunday night.

They started with a traditional match before spilling out into the crowd and brawling all over the arena. Then they started trading finishers and going through tables. Then the Club and the Usos got involved, but were dispatched soon enough. Styles came just millimeters from winning the world title several times, but Reigns escaped. Styles went for a springboard forearm, but was caught with one of the biggest spears Reigns has ever hit and that was finally enough for the champ to retain.

After the match, Reigns attempted to celebrate with his championship, but he was jumped by the returning Seth Rollins, with a new shirt and new gear. Rollins hit Reigns with a Pedigree and then posed with the world title belt as Extreme Rules went off the air.

What we learned: AJ Styles gave it his best shot, but he’s had his two title matches and has been thwarted, so he’s on to other things. There was no dissent between the Club on Sunday night, so most likely they’ll move on as a unit.

For Reigns, meanwhile, his next challenger is perfectly clear: it’s Seth Rollins, who was always going to return to stake his claim to the championship that he never actually lost.

It’s thrilling to have Rollins back, especially following another classic Reigns vs. Styles match. With Rollins back on WWE television and Cena set to return next week, the immediate future is looking bright indeed for pro wrestling fans.