WWE Extreme Rules 2014: Daniel Bryan beats Kane, retains title

Sunday night's WWE world heavyweight title match between Daniel Bryan and Kane at Extreme Rules brought the pair full-circle.

After playing a largely comedic tag-team in the past that used a faux therapist and countless hugs to try to find togetherness, the two used kendo sticks and steel chairs at the Izod Center in East Rutherford to try to take the other apart.

For Kane it was a back-to-the-future moment, his big-match return to his "Big Red Machine" persona after sporting a suit and tie to serve as director of operations.

But it was Bryan displaying the skills of a resourceful leader after the fight spilled into the back. Kane backflipped Bryan onto a car hood and and tried to impale him with what looked to be a scuba tank.

Bryan finally got away long enough to fumble through a car trunk and pull out a tire iron, which he planted into Kane's skull.

That presented a unique dilemma. It was an extreme rules match, but not falls count anywhere, and Bryan couldn't drag the massive Kane back to the ring. So he dragged Kane onto a forklift, nailed him in the back with the tire iron and drove him to the ring.

After dropping Kane into the ring, Bryan climbed onto the pallet the fork lift carried and delivered a flying head butt to get a two-count.

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Bryan then tried to finish off Kane with the high knee, but Kane caught Bryan for a chokeslam and a two-count.

Kane then tried to finish Bryan with a tombstone piledriver onto a chair, but Bryan countered with a tornado DDT onto said chair. After hitting Kane several times with the chair, Bryan applied his "Yes Lock" submission maneuver. Kane eventually escaped by crawling out of the ring, and when Bryan flew through the ropes to continue the attack, Kane caught him and chokeslammed him onto the announce table.

At that point it looked like Kane could get the pin, but as announcer Jerry Lawler said, "He wants to destroy Daniel Bryan."

Lawler was right. Kane poured gasoline onto a table and set it ablaze, hoping to plant Bryan into the flames. But Bryan countered from the apron and sent Kane into the fire.

Kane made it back into the ring, but only to take a high knee from Bryan for the pin.