It’s been a busy month for the WWE from Wrestlemania through tonight’s Backlash. When you look at the impact of Mania, post-Mania NXT callups and debuts, and the Superstar Shakeup that followed we should be looking at a very different landscape. However, extensive international travel, including the Greatest Royal Rumble event just last week has meant that we still haven’t really settled into those roster changes. Tonight’s event should settle most of the unfinished business so that we can finally move forward.
Preshow:
Renee Young, Booker T, David Otunga, and Peter Rosenberg have their usual banter to break down the card for the night. Apparently they aren’t counting the Greatest Royal Rumble as an official PPV as they keep referring to this as the “first PPV since Wrestlemania.” The Miztourage (Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel) have a locker room scene with former leader The Miz in which he tries to get them to back him up during his match against Rollins, but they say no. Locker room scene between former friends, current frenemies Bayley and Sasha Banks is just more of the same slow build to their eventual rivalry. The panel asks fan questions of GMs Kurt Angle and Paige. We now go ringside to Corey Graves, Michael Cole and Jonathan Coachman for the preshow match of the night.
Bayley vs Ruby Riott w/Riott Squad
Some fairly even back and forth action to kick things off. Banks is shown watching on a monitor backstage. Some mild distraction from the Squad puts Riott in control leading into a break, and she remains confidently in charge when we come back to the match. Bayley tries to mount a couple of comebacks, eventually delivering an elbow from the top rope on her opponent. It’s only enough for a 2 count though, and further distractions from Morgan and Logan allow Riott to steal a victory.
Winner: Ruby Riott
These are 2 extremely talented women who could do great things if given the opportunity, however this match was more about the ongoing Bayley/Sasha story than anything going on in the actual ring.
Main Card:
Intercontinental Championship Match: Seth Rollins© vs The Miz
They start some quick transitions between various tie ups until Miz hugs the rope to reset things. Miz gets a little aggressive but Rollins takes control with a dropkick. Now on the outside Miz bounces Seth’s head off of the announce table before throwing him back in the ring where he maintains control of the match. Rollins goes for a kick but Miz counters into a DDT for a nearfall. Rollins in control now and he hits a Slingblade on Miz, knocks him out of the ring, and then goes flying with a suicide dive. Miz now trying for a Figure Four but Rollins won’t let him lock it in. A creative series of counters sets Miz up for a Frog Splash but it’s only good enough for another nearfall. Rollins now tuning up for a Stomp, but Miz rolls out of the ring to avoid it. The champ tries to follow him with another Suicide Dive, but gets caught with an elbow instead. They’re now trading hands on the apron until Miz moves out of the way causing Seth to run his knee into the ring post. Back in the ring Miz now locks in a Figure Four on the injured knee but somehow the champ manages to reverse the pressure. Miz reverses control of the submission again but the champ breaks it up with a rope grab. Back and forth blows being trade in the middle of the ring lead to a Skull Crushing Finale but Seth kicks out of the pin. Rollins hits a Superplex on his challenger but his injured knee once again allows Miz to hit a 2nd Skull Crushing Finale and once again it only earns him a nearfall. Miz tries for a 3rd SCF, this time from the top rope, but Rollins avoids it leading to a series of rollups and reversals. Finally, injured knee and all, the champ manages to hit the Curb Stomp on his challenger to retain the title.
Winner and still IC Champion: Seth Rollins
Two of the best performers on the roster kick off the show with a worthy battle over the prestigious Intercontinental title. Miz will surely get a future opportunity to get his 7th reign with the title, but for now his Raw business has been settled and he can move on to new feuds on Smackdown. Rollins has no shortage of great oponents with which he can feud on Raw, and with the Universal title still mostly off TV in the possession of Lesnar it’s that much more important to have the IC belt helping to fill that void.
Raw Womens Championship: Nia Jax© vs Alexa Bliss
The much smaller Bliss attempts to use her speed to take the legs out from under the champ, but she’s no match for the power of Jax. The challenger regroups on the outside before resuming her strategy of taking Nia off of her feet. Now in control, Bliss is trash talking and smacking Jax across the face but the champ uses her power to once again halt Alexa’s momentum briefly. Jax catches her challenger and carries her to the corner to had a little more power to her Samoan drop attempt but Bliss counters into an attempted choke hold. Jax climbs the ropes with Bliss prone on the mat but the challenger recovers enough to toss the champ outside where she proceeds to use the ring steps as a weapon. Alexa now desperately trying to get Jax in the ring where she can actually win the title instead of just getting a countout victory. Bliss tries for Twisted Bliss but gets caught midair. Nia finally hits a Samoan Drop on her opponent for the victory.
Winner and still champion: Nia Jax
The much smaller challenger got a surprising amount of offense on the powerful champion. These real life best friends needed to have this feud but given all the new faces now on the Raw brand, it will be nice to see both of them move on to new rivals now.
Jax is interviewed in ring to put over the company’s anti-bullying initiative.
From one Samoan to another, Samoa Joe is now being interviewed backstage to promote his match against Roman Reigns later in the evening. Now Tom Phillips and Byron Saxton join Graves to call the 1st exclusively Smackdown match of the night.
United States Championship: Jeff Hardy© vs Randy Orton
The announcers make a big deal about how these 2 veteran, grand slam champions haven’t faced each other in 10 years (due to Hardy’s time away from WWE of course). Orton escapes an early attempt at a Twist of fate and sends Hardy crashing into the corner for a few stomps. Randy is firmly in control until Hardy slips out of the ring to regroup. When Orton tries to follow he’s met with a sneak attack from the champ. Jeff then hits orton’s face on the steps and tries to take things back into the ring. However a beautiful standing dropkick from the challenger keeps Hardy on the outside where Orton soon repays some of the champs offense. Back in the ring now, Orton maintains control with his usual, methodical pace. Jeff mounts a short comeback just long enough to reset things somewhat, but it doesn’t last. Orton setting up for an RKO but the champ reverses into a Twist of fate which he quickly follows with a Swanton for the victory.
Winner and still champion: Jeff Hardy
Reliable veterans put on a dependable match that tended to favor the slow, methodical style of the challenger more than the more exciting style of the champion. The crowd seemed to get a little bored and start a Rusev Day chant somewhere around the 2/3 point in the match, but the competitors picked up the pace slightly and quieted them. Hopefully more exciting things lie ahead for Hardy and the US title as it’s been mired in a somewhat mediocre patch lately.
Elias is in the ring for his usual schtick. He’s interrupted by New Day and all of their usual schtick. Woods has Fracesca 347, E has a bass drum and Kofi has a pair of cymbles but Elias declines their offer to perform together. Out next is Aiden English to celebrate Rusev Day. Are we getting an impromptu 6 man tag match? Maybe not since Rusev just called Elias “bootleg Bob Dylan”. Another interruption! We’re now joined by No Way Jose (w/conga line) AND Breezango, AND Titus Worldwide. An Angry Elias tries to resume his concert but instead gets hit with a Glorious DDT from Bobby Roode. We wrap up this filler segment with all of the faces dancing out to Jose’s music.
Aside from continuing the Roode/Elias feud and getting a bunch of popular guys without matches onto the card I’m not really sure there was much point in this segment. Sadly, now that ALL PPVs are to be cobranded, I fear this is the type of representation members of the roster not actively involved in title feuds can expect for the forseeable future.
Daniel Bryan vs Big Cass
Bryan starts with kicks to the big man’s previously injured leg but Cass catches him with some big strikes to counter. Cass over the top rope and Bryan hits him with a knee from the apron. Back inside now Cass takes a series of Yes Kicks before using his power to regain control and hit some massive chops across the Daniel’s chest. Bryan now has the big man in the corner for some of his signature attacks until Cass catches him, presses him overhead and drops him to the mat. Big Cass shows off both his power and his hubris which opens the door for bryan to get a Yes Lock on his opponent and make him tap.
Winner: Daniel Bryan
Big Cass interrupts post-match celebration to further beat up and bully the man who just beat him. The crowd responds with “you tapped out” chants but that only angers the big man further. Bryan is left selling the attack in the ring while Cass strolls out to a chorus of “a-hole” chants form the live audience.
Obviously, we’d all prefer to see Bryan facing dream opponents that are on his level when it comes to technical skills, but for now he’s being a team player in helping to establish the solo heel version of Cass.
Smackdown Womens Championship: Carmella© vs Charlotte Flair
The champ starts the match with her version of a strut, but catches a big boot from Flair who then shows her how the Flair strut is done. Carmella tries to take her title and run but gets caught by the challenger and thrown back into the ring. The champ slips out of the ring yet again and when Flair tries to go after her gets caught instead with a kick to the face. This allows Carmella to take control of things back inside the ring. The loud-mouthed heel champion is giving her voice as much of a workout as her body. Charlotte uses her superior strength for a burst of offense until Carmella uses the ropes to regain control of the match and do a bit more screaming. Flair shuts her up with a spear but then finds herself locked in the champions submission hold. Flairs power allows her to escape but when she tweaks her knee during a missed moonsault Carmella rolls her up into a pin.
Winner and still champion: Carmella
I enjoy Carmella for who she is, but she’s clearly not on the same level as Charlotte. There’s nothing wrong with a cocky, sneaky heel having success, but they didn’t do enough to establish Mella in a way that her success against Flair doesn’t just feel odd. I’m not opposed to Charlotte taking a break from the title picture, but there are much more qualified women on the roster to carry the title in her stead.
WWE Championship: AJ Styles© vs Shinsuke Nakamura *No Disqualifications
The brilliance of the reworked version of Nakamura’s entrance is that they kept the recognizable music so that you instantly know who is about to come out, BUT the addition of Japanese lyrics prevents the live crowd from singing along to the violins as they have during his face run. It’s a great way to keep him as a true heel instead of risking that he be a “cool heel.”
Shinsuke taunting the champion with mindgames to start the match and the angry Styles answers by throwing his opponent around the outside. Styles continues to maintain control inside the ring but with some flourishes of offense from his opponent. Back outside again Styles is throwing Shinsuke into the ringside barriers until the challenger is able to duck out of the way causing AJ to crash into the barrier and surrender control of the match to his challenger. Multiple knee strikes to the head from Nakamura. Styles tries to mount a comeback, but the challenger is having none of it. Nakamura hits another big knee that sends AJ to the outside. Styles again tries to mount a comeback but is once again thwarted. Shinsuke now has a Dragon Sleeper locked in but Styles escapes. The champ tries for a Phenomenal Forearm but instead gets caught and set on top of the corner for a knee to the abdomen. Unable to score the victory, Nakamura goes outside and finds a chair to bring back to the fight. The champ stops his nemesis from using the chair at first but then catches an exploder suplex on top of the chair. Nakamura sets up for a Kinshase but Styles throws the chair at him. This does stop Nakamura’s momentum, but also leaves Styles with a bloody face. Styles locks in a Calf Crusher, Shinsuke reverses it into a Triangle Choke, Styles reverses again into a set up for a Styles Clash, but Nakamura slips out of it. Pele Kick from Styles, low blow from Nakamura, Styles answers with a low blow of his own. Both men now writhing on the mat selling the low blows. Both men back on their feet and trading blows until they simultaneously kick each other below the belt and return to writhing in pain on the mat. Neither man can get up to answer the referees 10 count.
Result: No Contest, Both men counted out, Styles retains the title
These two will always be good when you put them in a ring together, but these non-finishes are going to get old fast. I was wondering why this match didn’t go on last since the remaining matches don’t have titles on the line, but the finish explains its placement on the card. Hopefully we get one more big gimmick match next month to settle this once and for all.
The Raw announcers are back for the last 2 matches of the night…
Braun Strowman and Bobby Lashley vs Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn
They should consider either a heel refresh of Zayn’s music or only using Owens music for the pair for the same reasons I mentioned regarding Nakamura’s updated music.
Lashley vs Zayn to start the match. The weaselly Zayn is playing with the powerhouse at first but once Lashley gets his hands on the heel there’s a quick tag to Owens. KO gets in a bit of offense before bringing his partner back in to resume playing heel games with their opponent. It appears that Strowman’s GRR Trophy is at ringside for some reason. I predict it being used as a weapon at some point. The heel team is in control with constant tags until Lashley finally makes the hot tag to Braun who proceeds to steamroll Owens. KO moves out of the way of a surging Strowman who then runs into the ring post. Rather than be tagged back in though, Zayn tries to run. Sami and Kevin now arguing with each other which leaves Owens at the mercy of the monsterous face team.
Winners: Strowman and Lashley
After the match Strowman gives Owens a bit more punishment while Sami looks on from outside. Zayn seems to think he’s in the clear but he eventually gets caught by Braun for a power slam of his own.
That felt more like a TV match than a PPV match, but it gave 4 big stars something to do and seemingly furthered growing tensions between Zayn and Owens.
Roman Reigns vs Samoa Joe
The 2 Samoan powerhouses trading big blows outside the ring before the match even starts. Reigns put through the Spanish announce table and then thrown over another one of the ringside announce tables. Now Joe tosses Roman into the ring, but the bell has still not officially rung. Reigns struggles to his feet and gives the ref the ok to start the match. Joe immediately continues his dominance. Roman finally starts fighting back but it doesn’t last long. “This is boring” chants from the crowd. Super Roman begins mounting his comeback but Joe once again puts a stop to his momentum. Joe almost locks in a Coquina Clutch but Reigns uses the ropes to help break the hold. Roman tries for a Drive By but gets caught in a modified version of the Coquina Clutch. Roman hits a Superman Punch but it’s only good for a 2 count. He then tries for spear and gets caught with a kick from Joe. Reigns finally succeeds at hitting a spear but Joe gets his foot on the rope to stop the count. Another Coquina Clutch but somehow Roman gets Joe’s shoulders on the mat so that he has to let go to avoid the pin. Joe has yet another Coquina Clutch locked in and Roman is almost out but somehow makes it to the rope. Samoa Joe is trying to set up a Muscle Buster but Reigns punches his way out of it, hits another spear and gets the win.
Winner: Roman Reigns
Once again a superior performer with a much better crowd reaction is sacrificed to Super Roman. Hopefully Joe can get his heat back working with the guys on Smackdown where his talents will be better utilized.
Final Thoughts:
This should have ended after the Styles/Nakamura match. Not only was it the top title match on the show, but everything after felt more like a regular weekly TV show than a PPV. A lot has happened over the course of the last month between roster changes and international tours. This show took care of some title rematches and feuds that were started before superstars moved to different shows, so now we can finally move on and see how the new rosters and new feuds work going into the summer.
