The second WWE pay-per-view since WrestleMania, Backlash, is now behind us. With what looked like a weak undercard and perhaps the most brazenly titled main event in history – “The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever” – my expectations were pretty low going in.
WWE C-show PPVs at this time of year are rarely anything to get too excited about, but WWE certainly tried their best to counter those negative expectations with the greatest match ever claim. And, to an extent, who can blame them, the show certainly needed something to get excited about. Ultimately, after watching it, you’d be wrong to say this wasn’t a good call by WWE. Out of six matches on the main card all but two were average at best. They clearly knew the show needed something to get fans interested.
So, was Edge vs. Randy Orton really the best match ever? We didn’t think it would be… And it wasn’t. But it was fantastic. Probably one of the best main roster WWE matches in years. While it was taped a week ahead of time and had the luxury of reshoots and some unusual presentation quirks (such as piped in crowd noise) which undoubtedly gave it an edge, you can’t question that these two men were out to prove they still had it and largely succeeded.
Before I get too carried away in talking about what was essentially the only match here that anyone cared about, let’s start from the top and look at the highs and lows of Backlash.
N.B. As always, I didn’t watch the pre-show. Feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments.
Sasha Banks and Bayley (c) defeated Alexa Bliss & Nikki Cross and The Iiconics to retain the WWE Women’s Tag Team Championships
Pre-match, robotic WWE announcer #1485 (AKA Kayla) asked Sasha and Bayley what would happen to their friendship if they lost the titles. Clearly, we’re being set up for a feud later down the line which has felt like the storyline for these two since forever. As Sasha enters, Bayley explains she knows what Kayla is trying to do.
As I don’t watch Raw or Smackdown regularly, this is the first time I’m seeing a WWE show with a crowd since the pandemic began. Thank god they decided to follow AEW on this one, it really makes the matches so much better.
Overall, the match was a struggle. Right from the start, it felt sloppy. The timing and placement of the women was all off. Eventually, Alexa, Sasha and Peyton locked up which helped to restore a bit of order but then it was followed by a ‘look how good we can wrestle’ series of pinfall attempts. Only problem was, they were sloppy, too. Luckily, there was some solid tag team offense in the middle of the match that helped to salvage it from total disaster. Sasha and Bayley won the match when Alexa hit a Twisted Bliss on Peyton only for Sasha to roll her up for the pin.
While I understand that Sasha and Bayley is the long term programme, no doubt leading to a showdown for the Smackdown Women’s Title (which the announcers kept reminding us Sasha has never held), I would’ve liked the Iiconics to win here. Out of the three teams, they’re the most entertaining. I’m not entirely sure if she does it on purpose, but Billie Kay’s mannerisms are hilarious. She’s instantly likeable. As for Nikki and Alexa, I still don’t feel like they’re anything more than a team that were put together for a lack of anything else to do.
Next, Braun Strowman shows up in his classic car. The announcers go over the rules for the 2-on-1 handicap match later. Whoever pins Strowman first wins the title.
Extreme Rules is back on July 29th with a new logo and colour scheme for probably the first time in 10 years. It’s actually crazy to think that the PPV that was spawned from the original ECW One Night Stand in 2005 has now been running longer than the actual company that original event was held to commemorate. What a show One Night Stand was…
Sheamus defeated Jeff Hardy
Michael Cole kindly stressed to the whole world that Jeff Hardy is an alcoholic. Might as well have said drug addict while you were at it, Cole. That said, it’s not like the whole world doesn’t already know of Jeff’s past issues, especially since they started running this angle. Even so, it’s tasteless, especially when it’s combined with the standard ‘Vinny Mac’ toilet humour we saw in the video package when Jeff threw his piss in Sheamus’ face.
The two had a solid match. Went a bit too long for what it was and didn’t really feel like anything more than a lengthy TV match, but it was far from the worst thing on the show. There were some lengthy selling spells, but the offense was all around good and hard hitting. Jeff looked believably exhausted by the mid-point. The match came to an end when Jeff ran across and jumped off the barricade only to be caught with a Brogue Kick by Sheamus. The Celtic Warrior then threw him in the ring and nailed him with a second Brogue for the win.
Corey Graves kindly emphasised that Jeff has again let everyone down. Are we now supposed to think Jeff might be getting back on the gear? If Victory Road 2011 is anything to go by, I hope not.
We then got an interview with Miz and Morrison who were informed of the new rules for their handicap match. Whoever pinned Strowman would become the sole champion – not co-champions as they expected. From here, it was obvious that one was going to ‘screw’ the other out of the win. I was just disappointed it wasn’t Strowman vs. Morrison. Then again, WWE have never pushed him as a top contender, so why would they now? Otis turned up with Mandy and threatened to cash in on the winner. This went nowhere.
Asuka (c) defeated Nia Jax to retain the Raw Women’s Championship
I can’t say I had any appetite for a Nia Jax match at this juncture in the show. Not that I ever do, to be fair. I find her incredibly annoying. Whenever she’s on the mic, she sounds like she can’t be bothered. Whenever she’s in the ring, her moves look lazy and choreographed. I get she’s supposed to be an obnoxious heel, but sometimes it seems like she legitimately doesn’t want to be there.
As expected, this match sucked. Asuka tried her best but it was just your typical Nia match – smaller babyface struggles to overcome stronger and more powerful heel. For a match that only went 8 minutes, it felt a lot longer. Nia did have one decent spot, where she hit a Jackhammer variant that Samoa Joe called the ‘Jaxhammer’. Ultimately, though, the match ended on a count-out to prevent Asuka from losing and to keep Nia strong.
A bad match that was 8 minutes of my life I won’t get back.
Lana and MVP were shown backstage. As an irregular Raw viewer, I was surprised to discover that Lana has dropped her Russian accent. She actually sounds weird without it now. They were clearly teasing some issues between Lana and Lashley, as they have been for weeks.
Braun Strowman (c) defeated The Miz and John Morrison to retain the WWE Universal Championship
Immediately, this match felt like one of those title matches you get on these C-show PPVs to fill the gap between the next big show. This couldn’t have been more obvious than when they showed the video package and it was full of pranks that Miz and Morrison had pulled on Braun. Not exactly the most original or interesting. I did think that if Strowman were to lose here, his career would’ve been done.
Miz and Morrison came out first and played an 80’s style music video. Clearly supposed to be comedy, but it wasn’t funny.
Other than the handicap stipulation and the fact it was better wrestled, this was the exact same match as Asuka and Nia Jax just had, but with the heel/babyface dynamic switched. Luckily for these guys, this was the better match, although that isn’t saying anything at all. Overall, it was a boring filler match, as expected. Predictably, Morrison nearly scored the pin on Strowman only for Miz to break it up. Strowman then gave Miz a chokeslam and Morrison a powerslam for the win.
The announcers did a recap of Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles for the Intercontinental Championship from Smackdown and called it an instant classic. It was at this point I thought how funny it would be if a match from two days prior were to be better than the one billed as the “Greatest Ever”.
AJ was with Kayla backstage and said he would be having a championship celebration on Smackdown. For god sake WWE, you have about 70 writers, can’t you come up with something new? Championship celebrations (along with contract signings) are done to death. No wonder the ratings are tanking.
Drew McIntyre (c) defeated Bobby Lashley to retain the WWE Championship
It occurred to me just before this match how odd it was that in 2020 Bobby Lashley still hasn’t been a world champion in WWE (excluding the ECW title, marks). Even though he spent a large amount of time away from the company, he got the monster push back in the day and hasn’t really done a whole lot since returning. With his recent MMA training, he could’ve been a good opponent for Lesnar if booked correctly. MVP is great, though. He really has helped to elevate Lashley.
Both guys look like credible world champions – two massive jacked up dudes. As cool as it would’ve been to see Lashley win here, it was too soon, and it would’ve been a shame for Drew to lose the belt without ever having defended it in front of a crowd.
Lashley started off by jumping McIntyre from behind and locking in the Full Nelson. All I can think when he does that move is how he was the first one to break Chris Masters’ Masterlock Full Nelson all those years ago.
Once McIntyre confirmed he could go on despite the pre-match attack, the two had a great match. Easily the second best on the show. The offense these two gave each other was a site to behold given the size of them. Flat out power moves from bell to bell.
Unfortunately, they showed Lana watching from the back early on. For me, I immediately knew the finish would be her coming out and ruining it for Lashley. As expected, the finish did indeed come when that very thing happened and Lashley ate a Claymore kick from Drew. The fuck finish was a disappointment after such a good match.
After the match, Lashley and MVP exited up the ramp and left Lana at ringside. With her real husband fired, her storyline husband deserting her, and precisely zero wrestling ability, I’m not sure there’s a whole lot left for Lana in WWE.
Next, we got trailers for the WWE Network. Amongst them was one for the propaganda series otherwise known as WWE Ruthless Aggression. I wonder if one day we’ll get one about how the PG Era killed all mainstream interest in the product?
The announcers started to talk about the upcoming Raw Tag Team Championship match between the Street Profits and Viking Raiders. Suddenly, cameras were called to the back where the two teams were brawling.
Street Profits vs. Viking Raiders in an unsanctioned Backstage Brawl
Outside of a couple of funny daydreams from Ivar after he took big bumps, there really wasn’t anything good here.
As much as I think there’s a place for these cinematic style matches in the current climate, having one on every PPV really devalues them. The other problem is that we’ve already had the two best we’re likely to get – Undertaker vs. AJ Styles at ‘Mania and Stadium Stampede at Double or Nothing. Most of the comedy here didn’t work, especially having Akira Tozawa show up with a bunch of ninjas. Racial stereotypes anyone? If you miss Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers from 1994, this may’ve been for you. It also went way too long.
Randy Orton defeated Edge in The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever
Before the match, the announcers explained that it wouldn’t be fair if this match wasn’t performed in front of thousands of people. So, WWE had decided to enhance the experience using different production techniques including “amplified audio and new camera angles.” There was, however, no mention of the fact the match was pre-recorded and there had been reshoots.
The ring introductions were pretty great, I thought. Once the guys had come down to the ring, a microphone bearing an “MSG” sign was lowered and the late, great Howard Finkel’s voice boomed out the introductions. A nice tribute to the all-time greatest announcer. A shame Vince didn’t recognise that more when he was alive. During the introductions, the lights were dimmed, and the show’s theme music played. Charles Robinson, the ref, was wearing a traditional blue WWF referee shirt and bow tie, and audibly ran down the rules before the match. All of this added to the big fight feel.
Overall, it was a genuinely great match. Two guys going out there for 45 minutes is a rarity in WWE these days but giving these two the time really paid off and the match never felt like it dragged. Orton won with a vicious Punt Kick after a low blow. The ring work here was top notch, as was the psychology on display. Edge started the match looking unsure of himself but soon transformed into the Master Manipulator – it was an awesome transition. Orton was in full killer mode – as proven by him uttering the words “I’m going to fucking kill you motherfucker” into Edge’s ear. It was a real sinister moment and showed why Randy is still one of the best heels in the business.
As great as it was, it still wasn’t the greatest ever. It was never going to be. But for these two to go out there and deliver what was arguably a 5-star match at this point in their careers was awesome. That said, the enhancements given to the match certainly gave it an unfair advantage when compared to the Daniel Bryan/AJ match from Smackdown.
I suspect, however, that because WWE have said so, many will be calling this the greatest match ever. One thing’s for sure, though, it certainly saved this show.
Overall Show Rating: 6/10
The next WWE PPV is Extreme Rules on July 29th. Before then, let us know what you thought of Backlash in the comments below.
Featured Image Credit: WWE (fair use)
