Backlash-WrestleMania 39 fallout, making of match cards, bad blood, and more

WWE Backlash 2023 to take place in Puerto Rico

By Ed Emeanua

WrestleMania 39 may have come and gone, but its fallouts needs to be evened, reconciled or avenged for all parties to move on.

The World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is taking sports entertainment on a roller-coaster trip to the Land of the Boricuas-Puerto Rico-on Saturday, for its WWE Backlash on May 6, with one of the Island’s most famous sons, Bad Bunny, also set to event. The events and schedules in San Juan are notable fallouts from WrestleMania, or confrontations among WWE Gladiators that needed to be addressed.

The previous two years, the show was called WrestleMania Backlash, but has now gone back to “Backlash” for this episode. WWE made the the event public on March 8, 2023, and rolled out tickets on sale on March 24, 2023. By March 28, the event was already sold out.

The choice of Puerto Rico for this weekend’ Backlash should not be lost to history. More than a decade ago, the Company consolidated its association with Puerto Rico when it staged New Year’s Revolution on the Island. “In 2005 when I was a kid, I wasn’t able to attend New Year’s Revolution at el Coliseo,” Bunny stated in a WWE company press release last week.

“Finally, 18 years later, WWE returns to the island with a massive event and this time I won’t miss it.”

In the same communique, WWE executive, Paul Levesque also tried to hype up the event: “We’re excited to bring Backlash to San Juan as the demand for WWE premium live events outside of the continental United States continues to grow,” said WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque.

“Bad Bunny is one of the world’s most-popular entertainers and nowhere is that more evident than in his native Puerto Rico.”

Backlash will go on air live from the Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The music icon Bunny, a Grammy award winner on two occasions, will showcase his hosting talent on the night. This weekend’s event establishes the very first WWE high quality live event in Puerto Rico since January 2005.

The WWE Backlash is a unique combat sports content that demonstrates the spirit of resilience as well as the sport’s remarkably reactionary attitude that is its distinctive element. The event’s intent is for a targeted participation in a landmark panorama of the demonstration of the comeback phenomenon by an all inclusive WWE Universe and a selected segment of the company’s star election.

Now in it’s 18th edition, Backlash has with each coming year, been fueled by the whiff of vengeance from fallouts from past events that stubbornly clings to the ominous sports entertainment air, or the foreboding feeling for a necessity to even a score.

The event is therefore a stage for the Brand’s Superstars to either try to reclaim lost grounds, or consolidate on gains from a recent pay-per-view event in which the challenged was a victor and the challenger, the vanquished.

The more complicated or trivial the manner and nature of the loss is, the better. Sometimes, the prelude to a WWE Backlash confrontation may not carryover from the pay-per-view gone by. For instance, the antecedent of the Brock Lesner matchup against Cody Rhodes on the grand platform of the weekend’s Backlash event in Puerto Rico, is of particular noteworthiness.

Lesnar’s brutal beating beating of Rhodes few weeks earlier served as the prelude for making the fight at Backlash. The confrontation on live TV has now set the stage for their impending faceoff at this weekend’s backlash. Both the events leading to the making of the fight and actual announcement for it happening served as preparatory jimmying to rev up fans’ excitation before the gladiators go to war.

The Event Cards

Bad Bunny vs Damian Priest – Street Fight

For daring to continue to protect Rey Mysterio from the imminent harm of The Judgment Day’s vicious punitive onslaughts against the Masked Mexican pint-sized battle ship, Bad Bunny landed himself in the judgment book of the pernicious punishers. He must now face Damian Priest in a street fight at Backlash this weekend.

The Bad Bunny versus Damian President clash at Backland 2023 is the direct fallout from WrestleMania when the Music Star rescued Rey Mysterio from outside encroachment during his fight with his son Dominik Mysterio at WrestleMania 39. Next day following WrestleMania on RAW, Bad Bunny was again on hand to deliver Rey Mysterio, this time from an attack from son, Dominik, and Damian Priest.

Enraged, Priest, slammed Bad Bunny into the announcers’ table. But Bad Bunny was undaunted again coming back to rescue Rey Mysterio from Damian Priest on RAW of April 24, 2023 when he hit him his Backlash foe with a kendo stick. Bunny then announced his match with Priest in a street fight at Backlash.

Bianca Belair(c) vs Iyo Sky – WWE RAW Women’s Championship

Iyo Sky vanquished Mia Yim and Piper Niven in a triple threat bout to snatch the number one contender ownership for the RAW Women’s title. The match was later announced to take place at Backlash 2023. Thereafter, the bad blood for the main encounter began to stew and boil over.

Bianca teamed up with Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez to eke out a win over Damage Control (CTRL) on the RAW Episode of April 24, 2023. Iyo and Bianca also got into a  backstage argument on May 1 edition of RAW.

Austin Theory(c) vs Bobby Lashley vs Bronson Reed – Triple Threat Match for WWE United States Championship

https://youtu.be/3MJ5DdolS7g

The prelude to this matchup began with Bronson Reed and Bobby Lashley fighting out to a double count-out on RAW episode of April 10. Reed then went on to interfere in Austin Theory vs Bobby Lashley singles match for Austin’s United States championship on the RAW episode of April 17. Later, WWE announced a triple-threat match between them for United States Championship.

Rhea Ripley(c) vs Zelina Vega – WWE SmackDown Women’s Championship

Judgment Day and Latino World Order (LWO) have been at war even before WrestleMania side-by-side with the Rey and Dominik Mysterio (father and son) conflict. During the occasional faceoff involving the agitators, LWO’s Zelina Vega also came clashed against Rhea Ripley several times. It came to the end of the cliff when on the April 21 episode of SmackDown, Zelina demanded that Adam Pearce should match a match against Ripley for the SmackDown Women’s title happen.

Zelina invoked her status as the only woman from Puerto Rican descent in the women’s division and her resolve to prove all doubters of her abilities wrong. The match was later made official. Rhea and Zelina were involved in the mixed tag team match between Judgment Day and LWO on RAW event on May 1, where Judgment Day triumphed but Zelina stole the show by flattening Rhea out with a Meteora on the floor.

Seth Rollins vs Omos

The Architech and Monday Night Messiah Seth Freakin’ Rollins going against the Nigerian giant Omos is a conflict in which the combatants are vying for supremacy. Their battle is a singles match that was included to the card as a must see match.

Brock Lesnar vs Cody Rhodes

Brock answered Cody’s call for a partner for a tag team bill against Roman Reigns and Solo Sikoa on RAW following WrestleMania on April 3, 2023. However, Brock assailed Cody even before the start of the match. In the next episode of RAW,  Cody challenged Brock to a match at Backlash.

Then, on the episode of RAW of April 17, 2023, Cody called out Brock to the middle of the ring, but Adam Pearce emerged and agreed to book the proposed match to calm down Cody as Brock was walking down to the ring. All the same, Cody assaulted the security staffers that were trying to keep him separated from Brock. On May 1, Brock was on site during RAW and Cody was now able to carryout a sneak attack from behind him; kicking Brock in the face, and sending his hat flying. Brock then exited ringside with a bloodied face.

Matt Riddle and Undisputed WWE Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn vs. The Bloodline

Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, and Matt Riddle Vs The Bloodline Set For WWE Backlash

In December of 2022, Solo Sikoa single handedly placed Matt Riddle on the injury roster. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn ended the historic tag team championship reign of The Usos at WrestleMania 39 soon after. Riddle then made an unannounced return to rescue Sami from an attack on SmackDown of April 7 to reignite his enmity with The Bloodline. Kevin subsequently to a Solo defeat during RAW event on April 10, 2023, compelling Sami and Matt to dash out to the ringside to rescue Kevin from a Bloodline mauling. Matt had a match with Solo at SmackDown on April 14, which lost to the Samoan enforcer. Despite winning, Solo still attacked Matt after their official engagement in the ring and completely left him for dead after burying him under the announce table.

The WWE announced on April 17 that Sami, Kevin and Matt will take on The Usos and Solo in a triple tag team match at Backlash. Solo went on to defeated Riddle in No Disqualication conflict on April 21 during SmackDown event. Sami and Kevin went on to retain their tag team championship over The Usos on SmackDown of April 28 following Matt’s deterring of Solo from interfering in the encounter. Matt also got a win over Jimmy Uso in their singles battle on the RAW episode of May 1 episode.