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The History of Extreme Rules

By , About.com Guide

Extreme Rules 2009 Poster

© 2009 World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
The original Extreme Championship Wrestling went out of business in 2001 and was purchased in bankruptcy court by Vince McMahon. Even though the company was out of business, fans still chanted "ECW" when a spectacular move happened during a match. Due to this fan sentiment, a DVD entitled The Rise & Fall of ECW was released in 2004. The DVD was so popular that the WWE decided to hold a one night reunion of the brand in 2005. The event was so successful that the WWE decided to bring the brand back in 2006 and the 2006 edition of the show was the rebirth of the company.

By the time the 2007 edition of the show happened, the brand split on PPV had ended. Starting with the 2007 edition of the show, it included all three WWE brands (RAW, SmackDown, and ECW). Thus, the name ECW has been dropped from the beginning of the title of the event. To keep the tradition of ECW alive, the show now consists of only matches held under different types of "Extreme" rules. In 2008, the show given the sub-heading Extreme Rules. In 2009, that subheading became the new name of the event.

Title Changes
2006 - WWE Championship: Rob Van Dam beat John Cena
2007 - ECW Championship: Lashley beat Vince McMahon in a Street Fight
2008 - World Heavyweight Championship: Edge beat The Undertaker in a TLC Match
2009 - Intercontinental Championship: Chris Jericho beat Rey Mysterio in an No Holds Barred Match
2009 - ECW Championship: Tommy Dreamer beat Champion Christian and Jack Swagger in a Hardcore Match
2009 - WWE Championship: Batista beat Randy Orton in a Steel Cage Match
2009 - World Heavyweight Championship: Jeff Hardy beat Edge in a Ladder Match
2009 - World Heavyweight Championship: CM Punk beat Jeff Hardy


ECW One Night Stand 2005 - Hammerstein Ballroom; New York, NY 6/12/05
- Lance Storm beat Chris Jericho
- Elimination Match: Super Crazy beat Little Guido and Tajiri
- Rey Mysterio beat Psychosis
- Sabu beat Rhyno
- Chris Benoit beat Eddie Guerrero
- Mike Awesome beat Masato Tanaka
- The Dudley Boyz beat Tommy Dreamer & The Sandman

ECW One Night Stand 2006 - Hammerstein Ballroom; New York, NY 6/11/06
- Tazz beat Jerry Lawler
- Kurt Angle beat Randy Orton
- The FBI beat Tajiri and Super Crazy
- World Heavyweight Championship: Champion Rey Mysterio and Sabu fought to a no-contest
- Lita, Edge, & Mick Foley beat Terry Funk, Tommy Dreamer, & Beulah
- Balls Mahoney beat Masato Tanaka
- WWE Title: Rob Van Dam beat John Cena to become the ECW/WWE World Champion

One Night Stand 2007 - Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena; Jacksonville, FL 6/3/07
- Stretcher Match: Rob Van Dam beat Randy Orton
- Tables Match: CM Punk, Sandman, & Tommy Dreamer beat Marcus Cor Von, Elijah Burke, & Matt Striker
- Ladder Match for the World Tag Team Championship: Champions The Hardys beat Charlie Haas & Shelton Benjamin
- Lumberjack Match: Mark Henry beat Kane
- Street Fight for the ECW Title: Lashley beat Vince McMahon to win the title
- Non-title Pudding Match: Candice Michelle beat Women’s Champion Melina
- Steel Cage Match for the World Heavyweight Championship: Champion Edge beat Batista
- Fall Count Anywhere for the WWE Championship: Champion John Cena beat the Great Khali

One Night Stand: Extreme Rules 2008 - San Diego Sports Arena; San Diego, CA 6/1/08
- Falls Count Anywhere: Jeff Hardy beat Umaga
- Singapore Cane Match: The Big Show beat CM Punk, Tommy Dreamer, John Morrison, and Chavo Guerrero
- First Blood Match: John Cena beat JBL
- I Quit Match: Beth Phoenix beat Melina
- Stretcher Match: Batista beat Shawn Michaels
- Last Man Standing for the WWE Championship: Champion Triple H beat Randy Orton
- TLC Match for the Vacant World Heavyweight Championship: Edge beat The Undertaker

Extreme Rules 2009 - New Orleans Arena; New Orleans, LA 6/7/09
- US Championship: Champion Kofi Kingston beat MVP, Matt Hardy, and William Regal
- No Holds Barred for the Intercontinental Championship: Chris Jericho beat Rey Mysterio to win the title
- Samoan Strap Match: CM Punk beat Umaga
- Hardcore Match for the ECW Title: Tommy Dreamer beat Champion Christian and Jack Swagger to win the title
- Hog Pen Handicap Match: Santina Marella beat Vickie Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero to regain the title of Miss WrestleMania
- Steel Cage Match for the WWE Championship: Batista beat Randy Orton to win the title
- Submission Match: John Cena beat Big Show
- Ladder Match for the World Heavyweight Championship: Jeff Hardy beat Edge to win the title
- World Heavyweight Championship: CM Punk beat Jeff Hardy to win the title

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