John Cena is still Undisputed WWE Champion after escaping Backlash with a victory over his longtime rival Randy Orton.
At Saturday night’s PLE, Cena and Orton faced off one last time as part of Cena’s retirement tour. This final meeting had a different dynamic than all of their previous matches with Orton — the beloved babyface in his hometown of St. Louis — challenging Cena for gold. But a low blow and a belt shot secured the win for Cena to remain Undisputed WWE Champion.
The match lasted nearly 30 minutes and was full of finishing moves and ref bumps. Whenever Orton had the title won, the referee was knocked out and unable to count the pin in time. Orton let his frustration out at one point by RKOing SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis and other officials as they were checking on a referee. He then went to punt Cena in the head, but R-Truth — who claims Cena is his “childhood hero” — ran out to plead with Orton.
Orton dropped Truth with an RKO, but that gave Cena time to low blow Orton and strike him with the Undisputed WWE Championship belt. The referee woke up and counted the pin for Cena.
After the match, Cena got on the microphone for a quick promo:
“Cut the damn music. I don’t need music, what I need is competition. And I sure as hell don’t need you,” he said to the fans. “Drink it in, St. Louis — because this is what the Last Real Champion looks like.”
This was the first title defense of Cena’s 17th WWE Championship reign. He is set to retire as an in-ring competitor in December of this year.
Former NJPW star Jeff Cobb has officially arrived in WWE — and he’ll be playing a part in the next chapter of The Bloodline’s story.
Cobb made his WWE debut by helping Jacob Fatu retain the United States Championship at Backlash on Saturday night. Though Fatu got help from Solo Sikoa and Cobb, it did not appear that he wanted any assistance. The angle saw Fatu look confused at what was going on as the debuting Cobb obliterated LA Knight.
The title match was a fatal four-way with Fatu defending against Knight, Drew McIntyre, and Damian Priest. The latter two were taken out of the equation during the match when, after fighting in the crowd, Priest gave McIntyre a South of Heaven chokeslam through tables set up in a production area.
Knight then had Fatu in position for a diving elbow through the announce table, but Sikoa moved Fatu out of the way before Knight could jump. Knight tried to go after Sikoa but was laid out by Cobb, who blindsided him with a clothesline. With no disqualifications in a fatal four-way, Cobb beat down Knight and sent him back into the ring so Fatu could score the pin. Despite looking uncertain about Cobb’s involvement, Fatu hit a double-jump moonsault and pinned Knight to retain the U.S. title.
“That’s one of the biggest free agents on the planet,” Michael Cole said on commentary. “That’s Jeff Cobb.”
News first broke in March that the 42-year-old Cobb was expected to join WWE. His final match for NJPW took place on April 19. Cobb, who represented Guam as an amateur wrestler in the 2004 Olympics, is a former IWGP Tag Team Champion and NJPW World Television Champion. Heâs also competed for Lucha Underground, ROH, and PWG in the past.
Fatu won the United States Championship from Knight at WrestleMania 41, and tonight was his first title defense.
Randy Orton is front and center on WWE’s promotional material for Backlash 2025.
Backlash will take place at the Enterprise Center in Orton’s hometown of St. Louis on Saturday, May 10. Paul “Triple H” Levesque revealed the official poster for the PLE on social media today, with Orton in the featured spot.
It remains to be seen who Orton will be facing at Backlash — and his plans for WrestleMania 41 this weekend are still unannounced after his scheduled opponent, Kevin Owens, had to be pulled from the card due to a neck injury. Orton is still expected to have a match at night two of WrestleMania.
Orton and John Cena are the first two wrestlers advertised for Backlash. With Cena set to retire from in-ring competition in December, this will be his last Backlash. He could be defending the Undisputed WWE Championship at the show if he wins the title from Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania.
Retirement isn’t something that’s on Orton’s mind at the moment. The 45 year old signed a new five-year WWE contract in 2024 and recently told Complex that he would love to sign another five-year deal after that.
The start time for Backlash is listed as 7 p.m. Eastern. It will stream live on Peacock in the United States and Netflix globally.
JoJo Offerman got emotional watching Jey Uso’s “Fireflies” entrance at WWE Backlash.
At the May 4 event in Lyon, France, the crowd created a new special entrance for Uso by holding up the lights on their phones and motioning along with him. It was reminiscent of the way fans would use their phones to create “Fireflies” for Bray Wyatt’s entrance.
Offerman and Wyatt (Windham Rotunda) were engaged to be married and had two children together prior to Wyatt’s tragic passing in August 2023. Uso told the Battleground Podcast that he received a text message from Offerman after she saw clips of his Backlash entrance. Her emotional reaction solidified that Uso wants to keep using the entrance:
His wife, JoJo, Bray Wyattâs wife had text me and just said how much she was emotional watching. She saw clips of it on YouTube, and that let me know right there, alright, I’m going to keep it. I hope it sticks with me, man. I never asked for it. They did it and I just want to keep it with me now.Â
Offerman is a former WWE ring announcer.
Backlash was the first-ever WWE PPV/PLE to take place from France. Uso lost to World Heavyweight Champion Damian Priest at the event. On the Battleground Podcast, Uso said the crowd made it probably his favorite experience in wrestling ever.
Since Backlash, Uso has been competing in WWE’s King of the Ring tournament. He’s facing Gunther in the semifinals on Raw this coming Monday.
WWE’s first-ever PPV/PLE from France was a financially successful night for the company.
During the event, it was announced that Backlash broke the record for the largest arena gate in WWE history (excluding stadium shows). Backlash took place from LDLC Arena in Lyon on Saturday. The venue also hosted Friday’s SmackDown, with that being the highest-grossing SmackDown of all time.
“This is the largest gate of any arena show in WWE history,” Michael Cole announced. “Thank you, Lyon. Thank you, France. Thanks everybody watching at home.”
The previous record for WWE’s largest arena gate was Money in the Bank 2023, which was held at The O2 Arena in London and drew a gate of $3.3 million.
Both SmackDown and Backlash had red-hot crowds in Lyon. WWE’s new strategy is for non-big five PLEs to be held in locations outside of the United States/Canada. The company’s upcoming events include King & Queen of the Ring in Saudi Arabia (May 25), Clash at the Castle in Scotland (June 15), and Bash in Berlin in Germany (August 31).
In just their fourth time teaming together on television, Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill captured tag team gold.
The new duo defeated Damage CTRL’s Asuka & Kairi Sane at Backlash to win the WWE Women’s Tag Team titles. This is Cargill’s first title reign in WWE, and it’s the first time Belair has been a tag team champion in her career.
Asuka & Sane looked to have the match won after an InSane Elbow on Belair, but Cargill broke up the pin. Cargill laid out Sane with Jaded, then Belair dropped Asuka onto Sane with a KOD. Belair pinned Asuka to win the titles.
This was Cargill’s sixth televised match for WWE. After departing AEW last September, Cargill signed with WWE. She then made her WWE in-ring debut this January. WWE started to pair Belair & Cargill together as a team prior to WrestleMania 40.
Belair & Cargill were both drafted to SmackDown in the 2024 WWE Draft. As the Women’s Tag Team Champions, they can appear on every brand. Asuka & Sane can now only appear on Raw.
Asuka & Sane had been champions since winning the Women’s Tag Team titles from Kayden Carter & Katana Chance on the January 26 episode of SmackDown.
The Bloodline got an unexpected new addition at Backlash.
At Saturday’s event in France, Tanga Loa made his WWE debut by helping the new-look Bloodline (Solo Sikoa & Tama Tonga) defeat Kevin Owens & Randy Orton in a street fight. Loa is Tonga’s brother. They were seven-time tag team champions together as the Guerrillas of Destiny in NJPW.
The 40-year-old Loa’s last match for NJPW took place on March 31. There wasn’t any speculation going into Backlash that he would be able to join WWE.
Prior to his eight-year run in NJPW, Loa wrestled in NXT as Camacho.
Owens was about to pin Tonga at Backlash before Loa got involved. Owens gave Tonga a brainbuster off the top rope onto a pile of chairs. He went for the cover, but Loa pulled the referee out of the ring. Loa struck both Owens and Orton with the steel steps, leading to Sikoa & Tonga getting the victory with Sikoa pinning Owens.
Since WrestleMania, The Bloodline’s story has seen Sikoa seemingly put himself in charge of the faction with Roman Reigns not around. He’s added both Tonga and Loa to The Bloodline while kicking Jimmy Uso out of it.
Paul Heyman, who has been worried about the changes to The Bloodline, said on SmackDown that he hasn’t talked to Reigns since WrestleMania. Heyman said he made the decision to pull Reigns out of the WWE Draft on his own because he couldn’t subject Reigns to the chaos that’s going on within The Bloodline right now.
Backlash was Tonga’s first televised match for WWE. It wasn’t originally announced as a street fight, but SmackDown general manager Nick Aldis added the stipulation after the teams got into a wild brawl before the bell rang.
Tonga & Loa are sons of pro wrestling legend Haku.
Paul Levesque, Cody Rhodes, AJ Styles, Damian Priest, Jey Uso, Tiffany Stratton, Bianca Belair and Jade Cargill were shown arriving to the arena at various times.
Jackie Redmond, Big E and CM Punk hosted the pre-show panel from their studio (not in France). Punk wished he was in France for the show.
They plugged Rhodes vs. Styles and Bayley vs. Naomi vs. Tiffany Stratton.
There was an Andre The Giant tribute video.
Byron Saxton interviewed Jey Uso. Jey had goosebumps. He called tonight a career-defining moment. Damian Priest was a beast but Jey had to prove he could stand on his own as World Heavyweight Champion.
Big E, somewhat oddly, spoke about Jeyâs comments from a few days ago where Jey said he was disappointed with his match against Jimmy Uso at WrestleMania. (Odd thing to bring up given that he won that match.) Big E said Jey would be extra motivated tonight, not only to win the title but to have a match people will remember.
There was a video of Kayla Braxton and Kevin Owens hanging out around France.
Saxton interviewed Belair and Cargill. Belair was tired of talking about Damage CTRL and proceeded to talk about them. Belair wanted to take their titles so Damage CTRL could disappear back to Raw. Cargill said they didnât have time for this and they left.
They cut to a live shot of the live crowd chanting for Punk. He appreciated it and promised to be there with his boots on the next time they were in France.
Saxton walked down the aisle to take in the red-hot live crowd.
Randy Orton and Kevin Owens were shown arriving. Owens snuck into Rhodesâ locker room to steal a banana.
Big E mentioned that Tama Tonga was in Guerrillas of Destiny with Tanga Loa in New Japan and Punk was taken aback that he mentioned any of those things. Punk admitted he still wasnât sure where the line was regarding what they could mention and what they couldnât. Big E didnât care if he got in trouble.
There was a pre-taped interview with Styles. He told Braxton that his new attitude was due to his renewed focus. He was tired of being complacent. Styles didnât want to hurt Rhodes, but he did need to beat him. While discussing the match, Punk took a not-so-subtle shot at Drew McIntyre (without mentioning his name).
They cut to Michael Cole and Corey Graves who spoke about how insanely loud the crowd was. Cole said he got a noise level warning on his smartwatch.
********
BACKLASH FRANCE
They aired the same clips from the pre-show of Cody Rhodes, AJ Styles, Jade Cargill, Bianca Belair, Damage CTRL, Damian Priest and Jey Uso arriving earlier today.
There was a Backlash intro video. There were no fireworks but the noise of the live crowd more than made up for that.
Street Fight: Solo Sikoa & Tama Tonga (w/Paul Heyman) defeated Kevin Owens & Randy Orton (19:34)
Owens entered first to a huge reaction. He stood in the aisle for a long time soaking in the reaction as his music played. (It went so long I thought it mightâve been a mistake but they wanted to let the crowd reaction continue.) Orton entered next and the fans loudly sang his song.
Cole and Graves noted that they may not need to speak at all today because of how loud it was. The Bloodline was booed and we got âWe want Romanâ chants.
Before the match began, Owens started brawling with Tonga so Orton followed suit with Sikoa. The fight spilled to the outside where a bunch of officials and security ran in to separate them. Owens handed out stunners to two security guards.
Nick Aldis entered to make this a street fight. The crowd, of course, popped big.
There was a wild brawl that went through the crowd until the Bloodline was finally sent back to ringside. Owens gave Tonga a splash off the barricade. Orton stood on the barricade as if he would do one too but he simply stepped down and posed for the crowd. They chanted for Orton as he gave Tonga a back suplex onto the announce table. Owens gave Sikoa a DDT on the steps.
Orton whacked Tonga right in the head with a trash can lid. Owens did the same to Sikoa. There were chants of âECW.â Owens and Orton used a kendo stick before grabbing a table, delighting the crowd. Owens put Tonga through a table with a frog splash off the apron.
Almost eight minutes into the match, the Bloodline finally got some offence when Sikoa cut off Orton and put him through a table with a Samoan drop. Owens tried going after Sikoa but he dropped Owens with a clothesline. Tonga hit Owens with a kendo stick as the crowd called him an asshole.
The Bloodline ganged up on Owens until he tackled Tonga but Sikoa hit him with a trash can. Heyman looked on with an apparent look of concern as Bloodline beat up Owens. The Bloodline grabbed a table but Owens fought back and drove Sikoa through the table. Tonga knocked him down with a clothesline.
Orton got back in before Tonga could hit Owens with a chair. Orton ducked a chair shot and hit clotheslines, a powerslam, a draping DDT and RKO but Sikoa broke up the cover.
Sikoa cleared the announce table and the crowd actually booed because it was a bad guy doing it. They chanted âSolo sucksâ as he placed Orton on the table. Orton blocked a Samoan Spike and gave Sikoa an RKO on the table (which didnât break).
Owens hit Tonga in the back with four different chairs. He set up the chairs on their legs and placed Tonga over the tables but Tonga got up. They battled on the ropes until Owens put Tonga through the chairs with an avalanche fishermanâs buster, which was insane.
Owens had it won but the cover was broken up when Tanga Loa yanked the referee out of the ring. Tanga Loa hit Orton and Owens in the face with the steel steps.
Sikoa gave Owens a uranage onto a chair before hitting the Samoan Spike for the pinfall win.
â After the match, Heyman kneeled by Owensâ fallen body and asked the Bloodline to stop there.
Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga and Tango Loa stood tall and did the Bloodline pose. Heyman joined them.
This was quite the spectacle.
********
Triple Threat Match: Bayley defeated Naomi and Tiffany Stratton to retain the WWE Womenâs Championship (13:34)
Naomi and Bayley seemed particularly pumped up by the fansâ reactions to their entrances. The crowd sang the Bayley song. There were some âTiffy timeâ chants too. The crowd chanted something in French and Bayley clapped along while mouthing, âI donât know what youâre saying.â
They traded some three-way spots which led to Stratton taking control. Bayley tried fighting back but Stratton hit an Alabama Slam. Naomi was supposed to break up the cover but she was late so Bayley kicked out anyway.
Naomi speared Stratton through the ropes. Stratton fought back and hit a handspring back elbow to Naomi into the barricade. Stratton was distracted by the crowd so Bayley hit a suicide dive. Naomi came off the barricade with a blockbuster on Bayley. Naomi gave Stratton a split-legged moonsault but Bayley broke up the cover.
Naomi gave Stratton a sit-out powerbomb for two. Naomi applied Feel the Glow but Bayley broke it up with a flying elbow drop for two. Bayley gave Stratton a Bayley-to-belly for two. (The crowd chanted âSimplement deuxâ after every two count.)
Stratton gave Naomi an Alabama Slam onto the edge of the announce table and did the same to Bayley. Stratton tried PME on both women but they both moved and gave her a 3D. The crowd chanted âThis is awesome.â
Bayley and Naomi exchange blows. Naomi tried a cradle but Bayley countered into one of her own for the pinfall win. Bayley retains.
There were some rough spots at the beginning but this wound up being pretty good. Obviously, the crowd helped.
â Naomi hugged Bayley after the match and raised her hand. The crowd applauded.
********
Jey Uso warmed up in the back when he was approached by the Bloodline. There was a brief staredown before Bloodline walked off. Heyman approached Jey with a look of concern. Heyman shook his head and walked away.
Damian Priest defeated Jey Uso to retain the World Heavyweight Championship (15:46)
Jey entered through the crowd and his entrance looked terrific. Priest had new music.
Jey used his Yeet pose to control the crowd the way Daniel Bryan did in that cage match angle with Bray Wyatt years ago. As the match started, he did the pose to each side of the arena. He was going to ignore the stage side as wrestlers often do, but because there were way more fans there than usual, they called for him to do it for their side and he did.
Priest took control early after driving Jey into the barricade. Jey fought back with strikes, a thrust kick, an uppercut, an enziguri, and a flying cross body.
As the referee checked on Priest, JD McDonagh showed up and used the middle rope to crotch Jey Uso (which didnât look great). Priest followed with a spear for two.
Priest argued with McDonagh so Jey knocked them both down with superkicks. Jey followed with an Uso Splash for two. They exchanged strikes as the crowd chanted, âYeetâ and âNo Yeet.â The crowd really got loud after both guys went down. They got up and Priest hit a Razorâs Edge for two.
Jey blocked a chokeslam and hit a spear for a nearfall.
Jey went to the top but Finn BĂĄlor entered through the crowd. Jey superkicked him off the apron but Priest dropped Jey with a clothesline. Priest followed with the South of Heaven chokeslam for a nearfall. The crowd exploded for the kick-out. (This match is just ok but this crowd is making it feel way better.)
Priest hit a couple of kicks to the head as the crowd booed. The fans Yeeted and Jey responded with superkicks and a leaping superkick in the corner. Jey hit a spear and hit another Uso Splash, seemingly for the win, but McDonagh placed Priestâs foot on the bottom rope to break up the cover. The crowd called JD an asshole.
Jey wiped out McDonagh with a suicide dive and speared BĂĄlor. Jey went back to the top but Priest knocked him down and hit a chokeslam off the ropes for the pinfall win.
â BĂĄlor and McDonagh put the boots to Jey after the match but Priest shoved them off. Priest got in BĂĄlorâs face but McDonagh got between them. Priest told them to stand there and pose with him, so they did.
(The story was that McDonagh and BĂĄlor came down on their own to help.)
Bianca Belair & Jade Cargill defeated Kairi Sane & Asuka to win the Womenâs Tag Team Championships (17:21)
The champs entered first. Asuka and Sane danced at ringside to Belairâs music as they waited.
Belair and Cargill had the early edge and worked over Sane. Belair missed a dive and Asuka kicked her as Sane distracted the referee. Sane hit a wild flying crossbody on Belair to the outside.
Asuka and Sane worked over Belair after that. Sane hit a flying forearm for two. She was annoyed at the referee for taking too long to count. Asuka set up for a vertical suplex but Belair hit one instead. Belair tried for the hot tag but Sane leapt off of Belairâs back and knocked Cargill off the apron.
Asuka applied a Disarmer but Belair got to her feet while hoisting Asuka on her shoulders. Sane tagged in and saved her partner. Belair fought them off and made the hot tag to Cargill.
Cargill hit a springboard crossbody to both women and dropped Asuka with a pump kick. Cargill handed out Stinger splashes (and Cole referred to it as such) and gave Sane a spinebuster but Asuka broke up the cover.
This was followed with a messy sequence. Asuka and Sane took turns hitting Cargill with strikes and Sane hit a reverse DDT. Sane tried to make a cover but the ref told her that she wasnât legal. Cargill and Sane kept wrestling even though Sane was apparently not legal. Asuka got on the apron and tagged in and the ref acknowledged the tag, even though Asuka was supposedly legal. Sane tagged back in so they could go back to whatever they wanted to do before.
Sane and Asuka each applied armbars to Cargill and Belair but Cargill and Belair hoisted them up and hit one-armed powerbombs. (This was the spot they were building to.)
This was followed by a cool double-team sequence by Belair and Cargill. They teamed up to spike Sane before Cargill hit a suplex for two.
Sane hit Belair with the Insane Elbow but Cargill broke up the cover. Cargill caught Sane off the top and effortlessly transitioned into Jaded. (That spot was awesome and probably should have been the finish.)
Belair gave Asuka a KOD onto Sane and pinned Sane for the pinfall win. Belair and Cargill win the titles.
This was an entertaining match outside of that one sequence they messed up earlier.
********
They announced first round Raw matches on Monday for the Queen of the Ring and King of the Ring. (Smackdown matches will be announced later.)
Zoey Stark vs. Ivy Nile
Shayna Baszler vs. Zelina Vega
Lyra Valkyria vs. Asuka
Iyo Sky vs. Natalya
Drew McIntyre vs. Finn BĂĄlor
Kofi Kingston vs. Rey Mysterio
Ricochet vs. Ilja Dragunov
Gunther vs. Sheamus
The announcement of Gunther vs. Sheamus got a big reaction.
********
The crowd loudly sang Rhodesâ song. This might have been the loudest a crowd has sung his song. They also had a âPhenomenalâ song/chant for AJ Styles.
Jessika Carr was the referee. Cole said she was the first woman to referee a WWE Championship match in the main event of a PLE.
Cody Rhodes defeated AJ Styles to retain the Undisputed WWE Championship (27:17)
They were having a mostly even match until Styles drove Rhodesâ shoulder into the turnbuckle. Styles targeted his shoulder and the announcers mentioned the potential shoulder injury Rhodes may have sustained in his match against Carmelo Hayes.
Styles cleared the French announce table and the crowd booed, again, because it was a bad guy doing it. Rhodes fought him off and they battled on the ropes. Rhodes tried a delayed superplex but Styles slipped out. Iâm not sure what the planned spot was but Rhodes fell back into the ring. Rhodes sold his back and Styles hit an electric chair drop.
Styles tried a Lionsault but Rhodes got his knees up. Rhodes hit a powerslam and Disaster Kick for two. The crowd serenaded Styles and Rhodes as they traded counters until Styles hit a firemanâs carry neckbreaker for two. Styles dropped him onto the apron with a suplex moments later.
Styles tried a PK but Rhodes caught him and powerbombed him through the announce table. Both men simultaneously slipped back in the ring at a nine count. They exchanged strikes before knocking each other down with kicks.
They both fired up and traded strikes until Rhodes hit jabs and a Bionic elbow for two. Rhodes went for a Cody Cutter but Styles caught him. They traded reversals until Styles suplexed him right into the turnbuckles. Styles followed with a springboard 450 for two.
Styles hit a burning hammer but Rhodes kicked out at one, fired up and hit a Cody Cutter for a nearfall. The crowd chanted âFight forever,â perhaps because they didnât want this show to end.
Two former Bullet Club members are set to clash for the first time ever.
At Backlash, new Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes will make his first title defense against AJ Styles. That was made official with Styles defeating LA Knight in a number one contender’s match on SmackDown tonight.
Styles vs. Knight was a rematch from WrestleMania 40. They both won triple threat matches last week to advance to tonight. After losing at WrestleMania, Styles won this meeting after hitting a Phenomenal Forearm. The story of the match involved Styles cheating to win when he poked Knight in the eye.
The last time Styles held a World title was his second WWE Championship reign that lasted from November 2017 to November 2018.
Rhodes won the Undisputed WWE Universal title from Roman Reigns at WrestleMania, ending Reigns’ 1,316-day run as champion.
LDLC Arena in Lyon is hosting Backlash on Saturday, May 4. It’s the first time that France has ever hosted a WWE premium live event. The show will stream live on Peacock starting at 1 p.m. Eastern time in the United States.
Two matches have now been confirmed for Backlash:
Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes defends against AJ Styles
World Heavyweight Champion Damian Priest defends against Jey Uso.
The new Undisputed WWE Universal Champion is spotlighted on WWE’s poster for Backlash 2024.
With WrestleMania 40 now over, the attention turns to WWE’s next premium live event. Backlash is taking place from Lyon, France on Saturday, May 4. Streaming live on Peacock, it has a special start time of 1 p.m. Eastern in the United States.
Paul “Triple H” Levesque revealed the poster for the event on social media today. It features new champion Cody Rhodes with his title belt:
Rhodes won the title from Roman Reigns in the main event of WrestleMania 40 night two, ending Reigns’ 1,316-day run as champion.
Backlash is being held at LDLC Arena in Lyon. It’s the first time France has ever hosted a WWE PPV/PLE.
No matches have been made official for the show yet, but it looks like Damian Priest will be defending his World Heavyweight Championship against Jey Uso. The main event of the post-WrestleMania episode of Raw saw Uso win a fatal four-way match to become the number one contender to Priest’s title.
In 2023, Backlash took place from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
At Backlash in Puerto Rico, Savio Vega got to take part in a special moment as he returned to WWE.
Vega and Carlito both made cameo appearances during Bad Bunny and Damian Priest’s San Juan street fight at last Saturday’s pay-per-view. While being interviewed by Cultaholic, Vega credited Bad Bunny and Priest for wanting him involved with their match.
“[WWE] got in contact with me because this is the mastermind of Damian Priest and Bad Bunny,” Vega said. “They’re both fans of me and I discovered that when I went to the farewell of The Undertaker. I saw Damian Priest there and I went to him, ‘Hey man, how you doing? I want to take a picture with you.’ He said, ‘No, I want to take a picture with you.’ So I talked to him a little bit there. We don’t talk too much but we keep in touch by phone. This idea was them, more Damian Priest.”
The 58-year-old Vega told Cultaholic that he was “in shock” at the massive reaction he received from the audience when he appeared during a backstage segment at Backlash.
Vega, Carlito, and the LWO fended off interference by the Judgment Day in the Bad Bunny vs. Priest match. That allowed Bad Bunny to get the victory after hitting a Bunny Destroyer.
Vega wrestled for WWE from 1993-1999. He made an appearance for the company in 2020 during The Undertaker’s retirement ceremony at Survivor Series.
Wrestling in his home of Puerto Rico was a dream for Bad Bunny.
Two days removed from defeating Damian Priest at Backlash, Bad Bunny made a post on his Instagram Stories looking back at the moment. Bad Bunny wrote that he’s still processing it, but there are no words to describe what he felt. Bad Bunny wrote that it was “a dream” for him.
Bad Bunny also thanked the red-hot crowd in San Juan, calling them the best wrestling fans in the world. Bad Bunny said the Puerto Rican fans were the stars of the show at Backlash and at SmackDown last Friday.
He wrote (translated from Spanish):
I’m still processing this. There are no words to describe what I felt that day… wow! it was a dream
Thank you PUERTO RICO!!! You were the stars these two nights! There is no energy like the one you provided!! people now know who the best wrestling fans in the world are!!
P FKN R!!!
Backlash was Bad Bunny’s third time ever competing in a WWE ring. His San Juan street fight against Priest included cameos by Carlito and Savio Vega, who helped the LWO fend off interference by the Judgment Day.
Backlash was the first time a WWE pay-per-view has been held in Puerto Rico since 2005.
Bad Bunny’s match at Backlash took place less than a month after he became the first Latino artist to headline the Coachella music festival.
WWE is touting that Backlash 2023 was a record-breaking night for the company.
In a press release issued on Monday, WWE announced that this year’s Backlash was the highest-grossing and most-viewed Backlash event in history. The pay-per-view took place in San Juan, Puerto Rico this past Saturday.
“Viewership of Backlash saw a 28 percent increase versus the record set in 2022,” WWE wrote. “The event, which featured Bad Bunny, the most-streamed music artist in the world, marked the largest gate ever for any WWE event held in Puerto Rico and the largest gate in the history of Backlash.”
This was the first WWE PPV to take place in Puerto Rico since New Year’s Revolution 2005.
WWE added that Saturday’s PPV also broke merchandise and sponsorship records for Backlash. With a focus on increasing sponsorship revenue, that category was up 98 percent from last year.
It also marked the most social Backlash of all-time, led by over 40 million views of the San Juan Street Fight featuring Bad Bunny vs. [Damian] Priest. The hashtag #WWEBacklash, accompanied by a custom Bad Bunny emoji, trended No. 1 across the entire evening of sports.
In addition, Backlash broke merchandise and sponsorship records. As the first-ever WWE event under the expanded partnership with Fanatics overseeing the on-site event retail experience, top-selling items included the WWE Backlash and LWO Puerto Rico t-shirts. Sponsorship revenue surpassed any Backlash event in history, breaking last yearâs record with a 98 percent year-on-year increase through partnerships with Netflixâs FUBAR, Mikeâs Harder Lemonade and Xfinity.
Saturday’s PPV was headlined by Cody Rhodes defeating Brock Lesnar.
With the help of a pair of Puerto Rican wrestling legends, Bad Bunny was victorious at Backlash.
Carlito and Savio Vega both made appearances during Bad Bunny’s street fight against Damian Priest at Saturday night’s pay-per-view in San Juan. Carlito, Vega, and the LWO helped fend off interference by Judgment Day’s Finn Balor and Dominik Mysterio.
As Balor and Dominik were beating down Bad Bunny, Rey Mysterio ran out to make the save. Balor and Dominik were able to fight off Rey, but Carlito’s music then hit. Carlito made his way out to a huge pop from the crowd and then worked with Rey to take out Balor and Dominik.
The roof just blew off for the return of CARLITO in Puerto Rico at #WWEBacklash!!!
Balor and Dominik tried to retreat but were stopped by Vega, who also appeared in a backstage segment earlier in the show. Santos Escobar, Joaquin Wilde, and Cruz Del Toro joined Vega in taking Balor and Dominik out of the equation.
That allowed Bad Bunny to defeat Priest, winning the match with a Bunny Destroyer. There were spots where Bad Bunny used a Figure Four and hit a Sliced Bread #2 leading into the finish.
After his victory, Bad Bunny celebrated in the ring with Carlito, Vega, and the LWO.
What a win for Bad Bunny in the San Juan Street Fight at #WWEBacklash!
This was Bad Bunny’s third time competing for WWE. One of the hottest recording artists in the world, he made his in-ring debut by teaming with Priest against The Miz & John Morrison at WrestleMania 37 in 2021. Bad Bunny’s second match was as a surprise entrant in the 2022 men’s Royal Rumble match.
Date: May 6, 2023 Location: Coliseo de Puerto Rico in San Juan, PR
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Show Recap —
KICKOFF SHOW —
The pre-show hosts Jackie Redmond, Peter Rosenberg and Matt Camp arenât hosting live in Puerto Rico but rather in-studio.
They aired various video packages and called the Bad Bunny/Damian Priest match the co-main event.
I admittedly watched most of this on mute but I turned the sound on in time to hear Rosenberg gleefully celebrate the internet being wrong about the World Title tournament inevitably coming down to Seth Rollins against Cody Rhodes which canât happen now that itâs been announced that the finals will come down to Raw vs. Smackdown.
Wade Barrett was shown drinking at the beach.
This was quite literally the most pointless preshow ever. Even the usual pointless preshow has a few new interviews and appearances. This had none of that.
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BACKLASH 2023 —
Michael Cole announced a sold-out crowd of 17,944. Cole and Corey Graves are on English commentary, while Marcelo Rodriguez and Jerry Soto handle Spanish commentary.
Bianca Belair defeated IYO SKY to retain the Raw Womenâs Championship (18:00)
SKY was the crowd favourite. Belair got a big reaction on the way out but the crowd booed her offense like she was John Cena and wildly cheered SKYâs offence.
SKY was in control until Belair came back with a backbreaker, dropkicks, and delayed vertical suplex. Belair held SKY up with a one-arm press slam and dropped her but they mistimed it and SKY landed on her face. Belair followed with a moonsault for two. SKY missed a charge and Belair went into the buckle with her previously hurt arm. SKY followed with a springboard dropkick.
Belair shoved SKY off the top but SKY got her knees up on Belairâs 450 splash attempt. SKY applied a crossface but Belair countered out of it. Belair tried a powerbomb but SKY countered into a facebuster for two. SKY followed with double knees in the corner and they traded counters until SKY blocked a second KOD attempt and chucked Belair out of the ring.
SKY hit Belair with a moonsault off the top to the outside which drew a two count in the ring. SKY tried a hurricanrana off the top but Belair held on and hit an avalanche powerbomb for a nearfall.
Bayley and Dakota Kai marched out to distract Belair and SKY grabbed her by the braid. Belair used SKYâs body to knock Kai off the apron and SKY rolled her up for a very close nearfall. (The way the ref countered made it look like it was three but it wasnât. The crowd was going nuts.)
Bayley got in the way so Belair tossed her aside. As the ref checked on Bayley, Kai kicked Belair in the head. SKY went to the top for the moonsault as Bayley held Belair down by the braid. The ref caught Bayley and a slight hesitation from SKY allowed Belair to avoid the moonsault.
Belair followed with KOD for the pinfall win.
This was great and the crowd made it even better. They should turn SKY babyface as soon as possible.
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Rey Mysterio approached Bad Bunny as he got ready in the back. Savio Vega popped in and the crowd went nuts. He presented Bad Bunny with a Puerto Rico flag kendo stick.
Seth Rollins defeated Omos (w/MVP) (10:31)
Before the match started, Omos dropped Rollins with a boot as Rollins basked in the crowd singing his song. The ref checked on Rollins before starting the match and Omos immediately dropped him with a shoulder tackle when it began.
Rollins posted Omos and hit a suicide dive but Omos barely budged. Rollins tried another but Omos caught him and slammed him on the apron.
Rollins came back with a flying knee, kicks to the leg, and a dropkick to the leg, bringing Omos to one knee. Rollins hit a thrust kick but Omos countered a Pedigree with a back body drop. Rollins managed to hit Omos with a tornado DDT and he followed with a frog splash but only got a one count.
Rollins followed with strikes but he couldnât hit a curb stomp because Omos no-sold it by not budging (like Bobby Lashley has done previously). Omos followed with a chokeslam for two.
Rollins hit a stomp as MVP distracted the ref so Rollins superkicked MVP off the apron. Rollins stomped Omos again for a nearfall. Rollins acted shocked as the crowd sang his song.
Rollins climbed the ropes and hit a stomp off the top for the pinfall win. The crowd was very happy.
(This match was fine and Rollins did well but they could have cut a few minutes out of it.)
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Triple Threat Match: Austin Theory defeated Bronson Reed and Bobby Lashley to retain the United States Championship (6:51)
An AI studied every heel win in a WWE triple threat and generated this match.
Lashley was working over Theory until Theory and Reed worked together to take down Lashley. That unit didnât last long because Reed dropped Theory with a body block. Lashley held Theory in the Hurt Lock until Theory was able to use the ropes to escape. With Lashley down, Reed hit Tsunami but Theory broke up the cover.
Theory gave Reed a rolling blockbuster and got the big man on his shoulders but Reed slipped out before he could hit A-Town down. Reed hit a powerslam and tried a moonsault but Theory moved and Lashley speared Reed. Theory chucked Lashley from the ring and rolled up Reed for the pinfall win.
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Rhea Ripley defeated Zelina Vega to retain the SmackDown Womenâs Championship (7:10)
Vega received a huge ovation during her in-ring introduction and she was practically in tears. Vega wore Puerto Rican flag-themed gear with a huge flag cape. Ripley wore white with purple lining.
Vegaâs mother Monique gave her a chancla and she chucked it at Ripley. It didnât matter because Ripley took control anyway. Vega fought back with forearms as the crowd cheered her on but Ripley cut her off with a headbutt. Ripley tried Rip-tide but Vega spiked her with a DDT.
Vega followed with a 619 and Meteora for two. Ripley kicked Vega in the head and hit a Rip-tide for the decisive pinfall win.
â The crowd gave Vega a big ovation post-match.
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Damian Priest wore the same vest he wore when he teamed with Bad Bunny two years ago at WrestleMania. Like Ripley earlier tonight, Priest also wore white. Corey Graves said it was because Priest considers himself the good guy in this story.
Bad Bunny received a massive reaction.
San Juan Street Fight: Bad Bunny defeated Damian Priest (25:04)
This was a genuinely great WWE street fight.
Priest tried toying with him early but Bad Bunny responded with a damn Michinoku Driver a minute into the match for a two count. Bad Bunny grabbed a kendo stick but Priest cut him off, ripped the stick in half and slammed him.
Bad Bunny tried fighting back a few times but Priest worked him over easily and hit his South of Heaven finisher. Priest pinned him had it won less than five minutes in but he pulled Bad Bunny up at two.
Priest wasted too much time before trying a dive and Bad Bunny chucked a chair at his face. Bad Bunny followed with kendo stick shots and a tornado DDT. Bad Bunny went to the top and hit a flying crossbody to the outside. Bad Bunny smacked Priest with trash can lids and hit a falcon arrow for two.
Priest realized he was bleeding as Bad Bunny invited him back into the ring. Priest acted like he would leave but as Bad Bunny came after him with a trash can, Priest turned around and booted it into his face. Priest hit Bad Bunny with the kendo stick that Savio Vega gave him as the crowd chanted âBenitoâ (his name).
They fought into the crowd which led to Priest giving Bad Bunny a falcon arrow off some high equipment boxes through tables. Adam Pearce and other officials ran out to check on Bad Bunny but Priest brushed them off and carried him back to ringside.
Priest tried a roundhouse kick but Bad Bunny ducked and Priest kicked the ring post. Bad Bunny attacked Priestâs injured leg with the kendo stick and drove it into the post. Priest pleaded with the ref as Bad Bunny smacked his knee against the post with a steel chair.
Bad Bunny was about to finish the job with one final chair shot but Priest begged him off. Bad Bunny hesitated so Priest kicked him in the face. Priest grabbed the chair so Bad Bunny gave him a low blow.
Dominik Mysterio and Finn BĂĄlor ran out to ambush Bad Bunny. (Dom wore white, BĂĄlor was still in black. BĂĄlor did have on a white bandana.) Rey Mysterio ran out to make the save but they knocked him down.
Carlito ran out to his music and the place went absolutely nuts. He assisted Rey and gave BĂĄlor a backstabber. Carlito took a bite out of an apple but Dom tried attacking from behind. Rey gave Dom a 619 and Carlito spat the apple in Domâs face.
Dom and BĂĄlor backed away up the ramp when they were cut off by Savio Vega who also got an insane reaction. Vega brought out LWO who went to town on BĂĄlor and Dom. Actually, they put the boots to Dom as BĂĄlor left but Vega beat up BĂĄlor and dropped him with a roundhouse kick. Vega also decked Dom. Dom and BĂĄlor ran for their lives and were chased to the back.
Back in the ring, Bad Bunny put Priest in a figure four. Priest grabbed him by the throat and tried a chokeslam but Bad Bunny countered into a cradle for two. Priest tried a charge but crashed into a steel chair and Bad Bunny followed with a sliced bread #2 for two.
Bad Bunny beat the crap out of Priest with a steel chair and hit a Canadian Destroyer for the pinfall win. Crowd exploded.
Rey, LWO, Vega and Carlito came out to celebrate with Bad Bunny.
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Six-man tag team match: Solo Sikoa, Jimmy Uso & Jey Uso defeated Matt Riddle & Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn (22:05)
(This was a good match but the main thing coming out of this was Sikoa almost going for the Samoan Spike on Jey Uso.)
The babyfaces worked over the Usos until Sikoa tagged himself in to get the better of Zayn and the Bloodline took over from there. There was a brief âwe want Romanâ chant and Jimmy Uso told them, âheâs not here.â Zayn fought back but his partners were taken out.
Zayn dropped Sikoa with a tornado DDT and made the tag to Riddle who went to town on the Usos before wiping out the Bloodline with a dive. Jimmy nailed him with a superkick back in the ring for two. Riddle suplexed Jimmy off the top and Owens followed with a senton bomb for two.
Owens avoided a superkick which resulted in Jimmy superkicking Jey by accident. Owens took out Sikoa and hit Jey with a pop-up powerbomb for two. (Graves noted that we almost never see miscommunication like that from the Usos.) Owens tried a senton but Jey got his knees up. Owens and Jey traded superkicks until Owens dropped him with a clothesline.
They tagged out and Zayn gave Jimmy a Blue Thunder Bomb for two. Zayn fought off both Usos but they caught him mid-air with superkicks for two.
Jey yelled at Zayn for trying to destroy their family. Jey set up for a running hip attack but Sikoa tagged himself in. Before Sikoa could do the move, Jey tagged himself in by smacking Sikoa in the chest (which got a reaction from the crowd).
Zayn gave Sikoa a Helluva Kick after Jey ducked. Zayn caught Jey with a Helluva Kick anyway but Sikoa broke up the cover.
The crowd buzzed as Sikoa seemed to turn his attention to Jey but Riddle cut him off with a knee strike. Jimmy chucked Riddle from the ring, Owens superkicked Jimmy, and Sikoa turned Owens inside out with a Samoan spike.
Sikoa felt someone touch him and he grabbed them to set up for the Samoan Spike. It was Jey Uso. Jey didnât fight out but instead asked Sikoa if he would hit him. This was broken up by Zayn.
Riddle tagged in and gave Jey the Bro Derek. Sikoa had tagged himself in and he gave Riddle a Samoan Spike for the pinfall win.
â Jimmy was all smiles after the match because of the win, perhaps not realizing what happened with his brothers. Jey and Sikoa gave each other looks as they individually celebrated the win.
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Cody Rhodes defeated Brock Lesnar (9:41)
Rhodes attacked Lesnar during his entrance and hit him with the steel steps and a steel chair.
The ref started the match and Rhodes hit a Disaster Kick but Lesnar caught a Cody Cutter and hit a big German suplex. Rhodes tried fighting back but Lesnar hit a fallaway slam. Lesnar easily hit Rhodes with suplex after suplex after suplex.
As Lesnar hit another German suplex, Rhodes accidentally ripped off a turnbuckle cover. There were chants of âSuplex cityâ and âletâs go Cody.â
Rhodes dodged a charged and Lesnar went face-first into the exposed buckle. Lesnar immediately came up bleeding and his entire face was quickly covered in blood. Rhodes hit a cutter and Disaster Kick.
Rhodes hammered away at Lesnar, whose blood was all over Rhodesâ midsection. Rhodes followed with a Cody Cutter and consecutive Cross Rhodes for a nearfall.
Lesnar blocked another Cross Rhodes and hit an F5 for a nearfall. The ref had a handful of towels but perhaps someone in his ear told him to put them away because he kicked them aside before using them.
A bloody Lesnar put Rhodes in a Kimura Lock but Rhodes countered into a cradle for the pinfall win.
(They went off the air pretty quickly after this ended at about 11:05 pm ET.)
