WrestleMania Backlash (2022)

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WrestleMania Backlash
WrestleMania Backlash 2022 Poster Peacock.jpg
Promotional poster featuring Edge
PromotionWWE
Brand(s)Raw
SmackDown
DateMay 8, 2022
CityProvidence, Rhode Island
VenueDunkin' Donuts Center
Attendance8,050[1]
WWE Network event chronology
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WrestleMania 38
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NXT In Your House
Backlash chronology
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2021
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The 2022 WrestleMania Backlash was the 17th Backlash professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event took place on May 8, 2022, at the Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island; this was the third Backlash held at Dunkin' Donuts Center after the 1999 and 2009 editions. It was also the second Backlash held under this name after the previous year's event, thus officially renaming the event series as WrestleMania Backlash. The concept of the event was based around the backlash from WrestleMania 38.

Six matches were contested at the event. In the main event, The Bloodline (Roman Reigns and The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso)) defeated Drew McIntyre and RK-Bro (Randy Orton and Riddle) in a six-man tag team match. In other prominent matches, Ronda Rousey defeated Charlotte Flair in an "I Quit" match to win the SmackDown Women's Championship, Edge defeated AJ Styles by technical submission, and in the opening bout, Cody Rhodes defeated Seth "Freakin" Rollins. This was the first PPV to not feature a WWE Championship or Universal Championship match on the card since Elimination Chamber in March 2020.

Production[]

Background[]

Backlash is a recurring event that was established by WWE in 1999.[2] It was held annually from 1999 to 2009. Backlash was discontinued after 2009 but reinstated in 2016 and has been held every year since, except in 2019. The original concept of the event was based around the backlash from WWE's flagship event, WrestleMania. The events from 2016 to 2018 and in 2020 did not carry this theme; however, the 2021 event returned to this original concept and was named "WrestleMania Backlash".[3] The 2022 event was also confirmed to be held under this name, thus renaming the event series to WrestleMania Backlash. It was the 17th event in the Backlash chronology and featured the backlash from WrestleMania 38. It was scheduled to take place on May 8, 2022, at the Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island and featured wrestlers from the Raw and SmackDown brands. It aired on pay-per-view (PPV) worldwide and the streaming services Peacock in the United States and the WWE Network in international markets.[4]

Storylines[]

The event included matches that resulted from scripted storylines, where wrestlers portrayed heroes, villains, or less distinguishable characters in scripted events that built tension and culminated in a wrestling match or series of matches. Results were predetermined by WWE's writers on the Raw and SmackDown brands,[5][6] while storylines were produced on WWE's weekly television shows, Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown.[7]

At WrestleMania 38, Charlotte Flair defeated Ronda Rousey to retain the SmackDown Women's Championship. During the match, Flair had tapped out to Rousey's armbar; however, the referee was incapacitated and Flair was able to get a cheap win after the referee came to his senses.[8] On the following episode of SmackDown, Rousey, who wanted a rematch with a clear winner, challenged Flair to an "I Quit" match. Flair refused and told Rousey to fall back in line.[9] Despite this, the championship rematch was subsequently granted and scheduled for WrestleMania Backlash.[10]

At WrestleMania 38, former All Elite Wrestling wrestler and Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes made his return to WWE after six years as Seth "Freakin" Rollins' surprise opponent, where Rhodes was victorious.[8] On the April 11 episode of Raw, Rollins claimed that he was at an unfair disadvantage since he did not know who he was facing beforehand. Rollins further claimed that on an even playing field, he would defeat Rhodes and challenged him to a rematch, which Rhodes accepted and thus was scheduled for WrestleMania Backlash.[11]

At WrestleMania 38, SmackDown's Universal Champion Roman Reigns defeated Raw's WWE Champion Brock Lesnar in a Winner Takes All match to claim both titles, thus becoming recognized as the "Undisputed WWE Universal Champion".[12] On the following episode of SmackDown, Reigns stated that he had nothing left to prove; however, he wanted his cousins, the SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso), to replicate his feat by winning the Raw Tag Team Championship to bring more gold to The Bloodline.[9] The Usos appeared on Raw the following week to issue a challenge to the Raw Tag Team Champions, RK-Bro (Randy Orton and Riddle),[11] who accepted and the match was made official as a Winners Take All championship unification match at WrestleMania Backlash.[13] However, on the April 29 episode of SmackDown, the contract signing for the match ended with Reigns assisting The Usos in attacking RK-Bro and tearing up the contract in the process. Drew McIntyre then came out and joined forces with RK-Bro in driving off The Bloodline from the ring. Because of what had transpired, Reigns' special counsel, Paul Heyman, then met with WWE official Adam Pearce backstage where Heyman requested that the resulting tag team championship unification match be called off and instead, a six-man tag team match featuring The Bloodline against RK-Bro and McIntyre be made for WrestleMania Backlash.[14]

At WrestleMania 38, Edge defeated AJ Styles thanks to a distraction from Damian Priest.[12] Edge and Priest then formed an alliance where Edge claimed to wipe out anyone who did not fit in their "Mountain of Omnipotence". On the April 18 episode of Raw, Edge stated that he needed to finish what he started with Styles and then challenged Styles to a rematch at WrestleMania Backlash, with Styles later accepting.[15] On the May 2 episode of Raw, Styles defeated Priest, thus banning Priest from ringside during the match.[16]

During Happy Corbin's match at WrestleMania 38, he was accidentally distracted by his tag partner, Madcap Moss, which resulted in a loss for Corbin.[8] Following this, dissension arose between Corbin and Moss, with Corbin blaming Moss for his loss at WrestleMania. Tension continued to grow between the two and a match was scheduled for WrestleMania Backlash.[17]

At WrestleMania 38, Bobby Lashley defeated Omos; oddly, Lashley's manager MVP did not accompany him for the match.[12] MVP returned the next night on Raw and turned on Lashley. Over the next few weeks, MVP lambasted Lashley for celebrating his WrestleMania moment without him and thus, MVP aligned himself with Omos. Lashley and Omos then competed in an arm wrestling match on the April 25 episode, which ended in Lashley's favor. Omos then attacked Lashley after the contest and later challenged him to a WrestleMania rematch at WrestleMania Backlash which Lashley accepted.[18]

Event[]

Other on-screen personnel
Role: Name:
English commentators Michael Cole (SmackDown/Main event)
Pat McAfee (SmackDown/Main event)
Jimmy Smith (Raw)
Corey Graves (Raw/Main event)
Byron Saxton (Raw)
Spanish commentators Marcelo Rodriguez
Jerry Soto
Ring announcers Mike Rome (Raw)
Samantha Irvin (SmackDown)
Referees Danilo Anfibio
Jason Ayers
Jessika Carr
Dan Engler
Eddie Orengo
Chad Patton
Interviewer Sarah Schreiber
Pre-show panel Kayla Braxton
Kevin Patrick
John "Bradshaw" Layfield
Peter Rosenberg
Booker T

Preliminary matches[]

The pay-per-view opened with Cody Rhodes facing Seth "Freakin" Rollins. During the match, Rollins attempted a Suicide Dive, but Rhodes avoided it and performed a Cody Cutter on Rollins for a nearfall. Rollins attempted a Phoenix Splash, but Rhodes avoided it. Rollins landed on his feet and Rhodes performed a Superkick on Rollins. Rhodes went up to the top rope and was cut off by Rollins, who superplexed him. Rollins rolled through to go for a Falcon Arrow, but Rhodes countered into a Cross Rhodes. Rhodes pinned Rollins, but Rollins' foot ended up on the bottom rope, thus breaking the pin. Rhodes attempted a Vertebreaker; however, Rollins reversed into a roll-up while attempting to hold Rhodes' tights, but Rhodes reversed into his own roll-up while holding Rollins' tights to win the match.[19]

Next, Bobby Lashley faced Omos (accompanied by MVP). Throughout the match, Lashley managed to apply the Hurt Lock on Omos momentarily, but Omos was able break out of the maneuver. Lashley attempted a Vertical Suplex on Omos, who ran the ropes and performed a Spinebuster on Lashley. In the climax, Lashley attempted a Spear; but Omos caught him with his knees and sent Lashley to the ring post. While the referee was distracted, MVP struck Lashley in the face with his cane, allowing Omos to perform the Choke Bomb on Lashley to win the match.[19]

The third match was between AJ Styles and Edge, with Damian Priest barred from ringside. At the start of the match, Styles went after Edge aggressively with punches. Styles dropkicked Edge to the floor, and performed an Asai Moonsault on Edge. Back in the ring, as Styles attempted a Phenomenal Forearm, Edge cut him off with a boot to Styles' injured shoulder. A short time later after Edge targeted Styles' injured shoulder, Styles performed a Pele Kick on Edge. Styles ran the ropes, leading to both men hitting a cross body block to each other at the same time. Styles charged at Edge, who performed a Spear for a nearfall. As Styles went up the rope, Damian Priest walked out and stood in the aisle. Priest claimed he was technically only at the aisle and not the ringside. Finn Bálor then ran out and brawled with Priest, taking him out of the arena. In the closing moments, a masked person shoved Styles off the top rope. Edge applied a Crossface on Styles, who passed out, thus winning the match. Post-match, the masked person joined Edge in the ring. The latter dropped to one knee in front of him, with Edge motioning for the person to stand up. The masked person revealed herself to be Rhea Ripley, thus being added to Edge's stable, The Judgment Day. Edge and Ripley held up their arms and celebrated the victory.[19]

After that, Charlotte Flair defended the SmackDown Women's Championship against Ronda Rousey in an "I Quit" match. Early in the match, Flair performed a German Suplex on Rousey. At ringside, Flair pulled a kendo stick underneath the ring. Rousey took the weapon from her and chased Flair, who ran up to the stage and went to the back. Flair returned with two kendo sticks and hit Rousey with the sticks. Flair grabbed a camera and threw it towards Rousey, who then hopped the barricade and fought with Flair in the crowd. Back in the ring, Flair performed the Natural Selection on Rousey onto the chair. Flair applied the Figure Eight Leglock, but Rousey used the chair to break free. Rousey reached up and hooked Flair in an armbar through the chair. Flair declined to quit, causing Rousey to twist the arm of Flair and making Flair say "I Quit", thus Rousey won the SmackDown Women's Championship. It was soon after revealed that Flair had (kayfabe) broken her radial bone in her forearm and would be out of action indefinitely.[19]

In the penultimate match, Happy Corbin faced Madcap Moss. During the match, Corbin performed a Senton Bomb on Moss for a nearfall. Corbin stuffed a shoulder block by hitting Moss with a knee to the head. Moss performed a Fallaway Slam on Corbin for a nearfall. In the end, Moss ran the ropes and performed a Sunset Flip to win the match.[19]

Main event[]

In the main event, Drew McIntyre and RK-Bro (Randy Orton and Riddle) faced The Bloodline (Roman Reigns and The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso)) (accompanied by Paul Heyman) in a six-man tag team match. During the match, Reigns and McIntyre brawled in the ring. As Reigns knocked Riddle off the apron, McIntyre performed a Claymore Kick on Reigns. Riddle performed a Floating Bro on Jey for a nearfall. Jey performed an Elevated neckbreaker on Riddle, but Orton broke up the pin. At ringside, Reigns leapt off the ring steps and performed a Superman Punch on Orton. McIntyre attempted a Powerbomb on Reigns through the announce table, but Jimmy saved Reigns and took a Glasgow Kiss from McIntyre. Reigns took advantage and performed an Uranage Slam on McIntyre. Back in the ring, Riddle performed an RKO on Jey from the top rope. Reigns had made a quick tag before Riddle performed the RKO, thus after Riddle stood up, Reigns hit him with a Spear to win the match.[19]

Aftermath[]

Raw[]

On the following episode of Raw, Cody Rhodes was given a United States Championship match against Theory. During the match, Seth "Freakin" Rollins interfered, costing Rhodes the match by disqualification.[20] Rhodes then challenged Rollins to another match, but this time as a Hell in a Cell match at Hell in a Cell, which Rollins accepted.[21]

Rhea Ripley explained that she joined Judgment Day to become better. She then defeated Liv Morgan. Damian Priest then faced Finn Bálor which ended by disqualification when Edge attacked Bálor. AJ Styles then attacked Edge, but Judgment Day gained the upper hand.[20]

MVP hosted a segment of the VIP Lounge, praising Omos for his victory over Bobby Lashley. Lashley interrupted, but was attacked by Cedric Alexander, who wanted to rejoin MVP and reform The Hurt Business. Omos and MVP retreated while Lashley applied the Hurt Lock on Alexander. Later, Lashley said the only reason he did not defeat Omos at WrestleMania Backlash was due to MVP's interference and a rematch between Omos and Lashley was scheduled for the following week as a Steel Cage match,[20] which Lashley won.[21]

SmackDown[]

Raw Tag Team Champions RK-Bro (Randy Orton and Riddle) appeared on the following SmackDown to challenge the SmackDown Tag Team Champions, The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso), to the title unification match that was originally going to happen at WrestleMania Backlash. The Usos accepted and the match was scheduled for the following week.[22]

Madcap Moss was interviewed about his match against Happy Corbin, who then attacked him with a chair, put the chair around Moss' neck, and slammed Moss' André the Giant Memorial Trophy down on top of the chair on him.[22] The next day on Talking Smack, it was reported that Moss suffered a (kayfabe) cervical contusion.[23]

Results[]

No. Results Stipulations Times[19]
1 Cody Rhodes defeated Seth "Freakin" Rollins by pinfall Singles match[24] 20:45
2 Omos (with MVP) defeated Bobby Lashley by pinfall Singles match[25] 8:50
3 Edge defeated AJ Styles by technical submission Singles match[26]
Damian Priest was barred from ringside.
16:25
4 Ronda Rousey defeated Charlotte Flair (c) "I Quit" match for the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship[27] 16:35
5 Madcap Moss defeated Happy Corbin by pinfall Singles match[28] 8:40
6 The Bloodline (Roman Reigns and The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso)) (with Paul Heyman) defeated Drew McIntyre and RK-Bro (Randy Orton and Riddle) by pinfall Six-man tag team match[29] 22:20
  • (c) – refers to the champion(s) heading into the match

References[]

  1. ^ "WWE Hell In A Cell [FINAL COUNT] Sun • Jun 05 • 6:30 PM Allstate Arena, Rosemont, IL Tickets Distributed => 12,834 Totally SOLD OUT". Twitter. @WrestleTix. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
  2. ^ "WWE Backlash". The History of WWE. Retrieved August 23, 2009.
  3. ^ Lambert, Jeremy (April 11, 2021). "WWE Announces WrestleMania Backlash For May". Fightful. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  4. ^ Lambert, Jeremy (February 11, 2022). "WWE WrestleMania Backlash Details Announced". Fightful. Retrieved February 11, 2022.
  5. ^ Grabianowski, Ed (January 13, 2006). "How Pro Wrestling Works". HowStuffWorks. Discovery Communications. Archived from the original on November 29, 2013. Retrieved March 5, 2012.
  6. ^ "Live & Televised Entertainment". WWE. Archived from the original on February 18, 2009. Retrieved March 21, 2012.
  7. ^ Steinberg, Brian (May 25, 2016). "WWE's 'Smackdown' Will Move To Live Broadcast On USA (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on May 26, 2016. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
  8. ^ Jump up to: a b c Powell, Jason (April 2, 2022). "WrestleMania 38 results: Powell's live review of night one with Steve Austin on The KO Show, Charlotte Flair vs. Ronda Rousey for the Smackdown Women's Title, Becky Lynch vs. Bianca Belair for the Raw Women's Title, Seth Rollins vs. an opponent of Vince McMahon's choosing". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b Powell, Jason (April 8, 2022). "4/8 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Powell's review of the WrestleMania 38 fallout edition with Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns, Happy Corbin hosts Happy Talk". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
  10. ^ Guzzo, Gisberto (April 9, 2022). "I Quit Match For SmackDown Women's Championship Made Official For WWE WrestleMania Backlash". Fightful. Retrieved April 9, 2022.
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b Powell, Jason (April 11, 2022). "4/11 WWE Raw results: Powell's live review Cody Rhodes vs. The Miz, Smackdown Tag Team Champions The Usos vs. The Street Profits in a non-title match, Raw Women's Champion Bianca Belair vs. Queen Zelina in a non-title match, AJ Styles vs. Damian Priest, Dominik Mysterio vs. Veer Mahaan". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b c Powell, Jason (April 3, 2022). "WrestleMania 38 results: Powell's live review of night two with Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar for the Unified WWE Championship, RK-Bro vs. The Street Profits vs. Alpha Academy for the Raw Tag Titles, Edge vs. AJ Styles, Johnny Knoxville vs. Sami Zayn in an Anything Goes match, Pat McAfee vs. Austin Theory, Bobby Lashley vs. Omos". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  13. ^ Barnett, Jake (April 15, 2022). "4/15 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Barnett's review of Ricochet vs. Jinder Mahal for the Intercontinental Championship, Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn, Raw Tag Team Champions Randy Orton and Riddle appear". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 16, 2022.
  14. ^ Powell, Jason (April 29, 2022). "4/29 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Barnett's review of Drew McIntyre vs. Sami Zayn in a steel cage match, Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey compete in Beat The Clock submission challenges, Ricochet vs. Shanky for the Intercontinental Title, Usos vs. RK-Bro contract signing for WrestleMania Backlash". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  15. ^ Powell, Jason (April 18, 2022). "4/18 WWE Raw results: Powell's live review of Cody Rhodes vs. an opponent of Seth Rollins' choosing, Finn Balor vs. Theory for the U.S. Title, Sasha Banks and Naomi vs. Rhea Ripley and Liv Morgan for the WWE Women's Tag Titles, RK-Bro vs. The Street Profits in a non-title match, commitment ceremonies, lie detector test". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved April 25, 2022.
  16. ^ Powell, Jason (May 2, 2022). "5/2 WWE Raw results: Powell's live review of The Bloodline's appearance on the brand's go-home show for WrestleMania Backlash, AJ Styles vs. Damian Priest, The Street Profits and Ezekiel vs. Alpha Academy and Kevin Owens, Miz TV with guest Mustafa Ali". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
  17. ^ "411MANIA". Happy Corbin vs. Madcap Moss Announced for WWE WrestleMania Backlash 2022. Retrieved April 26, 2022.
  18. ^ Powell, Jason (April 25, 2022). "4/25 WWE Raw results: Powell's live review of Bianca Belair vs. Sonya Deville for the Raw Women's Championship, Randy Orton's 20th anniversary in WWE celebration, Becky Lynch returns, Bobby Lashley vs. Omos in an arm wrestling challenge". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
  19. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g Powell, Jason (May 8, 2022). "WWE WrestleMania Backlash results: Powell's live review of Roman Reigns and The Usos vs. Drew McIntyre and RK-Bro, Charlotte Flair vs. Ronda Rousey in an I Quit match for the Smackdown Women's Title, Cody Rhodes vs. Seth Rollins, Edge vs. AJ Styles, Bobby Lashley vs. Omos, Happy Corbin vs. Madcap Moss". Pro Wreslting Dot Net. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  20. ^ Jump up to: a b c Powell, Jason (May 9, 2022). "5/9 WWE Raw results: Powell's live review of Theory vs. Cody Rhodes for the U.S. Championship, "RK-Bro" Randy Orton and Riddle vs. The Street Profits for the Raw Tag Titles, Omos on the VIP Lounge, the fallout from WrestleMania Backlash". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved May 13, 2022.
  21. ^ Jump up to: a b Powell, Jason (May 16, 2022). "5/16 WWE Raw results: Powell's live review of Becky Lynch vs. Asuka for a future shot at the Raw Women's Championship, Bobby Lashley vs. Omos in a steel cage match, Riddle vs. Jimmy Uso, Cody Rhodes addresses Seth Rollins, Mustafa Ali vs. Veer Mahaan with The Miz as special referee". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  22. ^ Jump up to: a b Powell, Jason (May 13, 2022). "5/13 WWE Friday Night Smackdown results: Powell's review of Sasha Banks and Naomi vs. Shayna Baszler and Natalya for the WWE Women's Tag Team Titles, Kofi Kingston vs. Butch, Raw Tag Champs "RK-Bro" Randy Orton and Riddle seek a tag title unification match with Smackdown Tag Champs Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso". Pro Wrestling Dot Net. Retrieved May 14, 2022.
  23. ^ WWE [@WWE] (May 14, 2022). "As first reported on #TalkingSmack, @BaronCorbinWWE's attack has left @MadcapMoss with a cervical contusion" (Tweet). Retrieved May 14, 2022 – via Twitter.
  24. ^ Bryant, Nathan (May 8, 2022). "Cody Rhodes def. Seth "Freakin" Rollins". WWE. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  25. ^ Bryant, Nathan (May 8, 2022). "Omos def. Bobby Lashley". WWE. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  26. ^ Bryant, Nathan (May 8, 2022). "Edge def. AJ Styles". WWE. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  27. ^ Bryant, Nathan (May 8, 2022). "Ronda Rousey makes Charlotte Flair say "I Quit" to win the SmackDown Women's Championship". WWE. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  28. ^ Bryant, Nathan (May 8, 2022). "Madcap Moss def. Happy Corbin". WWE. Retrieved May 9, 2022.
  29. ^ Bryant, Nathan (May 8, 2022). "Roman Reigns & The Usos def. Drew McIntyre & RK-Bro". WWE. Retrieved May 9, 2022.

External links[]

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