WWE is heading to Puerto Rico this weekend for Backlash, and Triple H and company are bringing a really exciting card with them. Barring any last minute changes, we’ll see seven matches on the slate, and not a single one is a repeat from WrestleMania. Even without Roman Reigns, the lineup of superstars is impressive too, as we’ll get appearances from Cody Rhodes, Brock Lesnar, Rhea Ripley, Bianca Belair, Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, The Usos, Seth Rollins and more. Throw in host/ competitor Bad Bunny, and suddenly, this premium live event feels way more important than Backlash often does.
On a personal level, I’m also excited to get back on the prediction train. My WrestleMania 39 predictions were barely over .500, and I expect a whole lot more from myself. I need to put some wins on the board so I don't lose confidence and end up like Baron Corbin (at least before all of France cheered him like a prime Stone Cold). You can check out my record on predictions for some of the bigger and more recent premium live events, as well as my overall results below...
The takeaway there is you can kinda sorta trust my judgment. I'm right a lot more often than I'm wrong, but I'm still wrong a lot. So, if WWE ever convinces politicians to allow gambling, you probably shouldn't wager your mail-away Hulk Hogan Hasbro on any of my theories.
Fortunately, this card seems a whole lot easier to predict than 'Mania. We don't have any last minute four tag team showcase matches, and some of the offerings here have (in my opinion) pretty obvious results. I like Zelina Vega, for example, but it would be insane for WWE to take the title off Rhea Ripley right now as she's rapidly ascending in popularity. Several other matches have the same sort of vibe. I explain that all and more in my takes below...
Matt Riddle, Kevin Owens And Sami Zayn vs Jimmy Uso, Jey Uso And Solo Sikoa
Six man tag matches are notoriously hard to predict because the storyline coming out of the match is ultimately more important than the result. So, for example, I think the storyline we’re going to see emerge here is Jimmy and Jey being a continued disappointment to Roman Reigns, furthering the friction in The Bloodline. So, that means either one of them will get pinned or they’ll get saved in a particularly obvious way by Solo Sikoa, thus furthering the narrative that Solo is Roman’s preferred relative and The Usos are black sheep. Ultimately, I think WWE will go a bit more pronounced and we’ll see The Usos straight up lose, probably after a dominating performance by Solo.
The only variable I’ll throw in here is that WWE has been rather overtly teasing tension between Kevin Owens and Riddle. I think that will come into play long-term and possibly lead to Owens and Zayn losing their tag titles, but I don’t think it’ll factor into the outcome here. Maybe we’ll get a tease or two during the match itself, but that'll probably be a plotline explored more fully in upcoming TV episodes.
Predicted Winner: Matt Riddle, Kevin Owens And Sami Zayn
Rhea Ripley (Champion) Vs Zelina Vega For The Smackdown Women’s Championship
I like Zelina Vega. She’s extremely athletic. She can talk. She puts a ton of attention into her fun outfits, and I think she’s worked out really well with the L.W.O. I’d like to see more of her. That being said, come’on. She should get run over here at Backlash. I’m sure she’ll get a hope spot or two during the match, but if this isn’t a dominating victory for Rhea Ripley, that’s a mistake on WWE’s part.
The Judgment Day star is quickly ascending in popularity, and Ripley should be at the start of a long and spectacular reign after winning the title at WrestleMania. The only question for me is whether her brothers in The Judgment Day are beside her during that run. The crowd loves Rhea. She’s getting a ton of support while her main squeeze Dominik Mysterio is getting booed like he’s got a whole bag of candy is refusing to share. A grandma at a live event even told me recently she'd beat his ass herself. I think there are some fun ways the writers can creatively use that, but there’s also a distinct possibility they might just decide to split them up. It wasn’t lost on me that Zelina was grouped with The L.W.O. in the draft while Rhea was picked separately from everyone else in Judgment Day.
Predicted Winner: Rhea Ripley
Seth Freakin’ Rollins Vs Omos
I still believe in Omos long-term. He’s got a tremendous look, and there are some things he does very well in the ring for a man of his size, particularly kicking people in the face. But Seth Rollins is having a moment right now that only seems to be building. He’s in prime position to win the newly announced WWE World Heavyweight Championship, and Omos, well, Omos hasn’t won a match at a premium live event since Backlash 2022. That’s a year. He’s gone a whole ass year without winning on PPV.
To me, the real question here is whether this is going to be a squash. Omos very notably was not drafted and instead made a free agent. My guess is that means we’re going to see him take some time off and then return to wherever he’s most needed down the road. I’d love to see him join a tag team again, where he really excelled, but we’ll just have to wait and see. In the short-term, it’s gonna be nothing but sadness and heartbreak again as Rollins should go over quickly and cleanly.
Predicted Winner: Seth Freakin’ Rollins
Austin Theory (Champion) Vs Bobby Lashley For Bronson Reed For The United States Championship
I think this is one of the toughest matches on the card to predict. Triple H brought Austin Theory down in pretty embarrassing fashion when he first took over, but he used the opportunity to relaunch the character as a more serious and less gimmicky heel. In the time since, his booking has been strong, but in my opinion, his crowd reactions have only been pretty good. He’s generating heat and interest in what he’s doing. That’s all you ask of someone on the mid-card, but once you get closer to the top, how much heat and interest you’re drawing is the real question. Some level is expected, and for Theory, I don’t think his current level quite strong enough, which is why I think he’s vulnerable.
I could see this match going in any of the three possible directions. Bobby Lashley was screwed out of a match at WrestleMania and is certainly very well-liked by fans. I could see WWE throwing him a makegood here and letting him pick up a big premium live event win and another title run. Then again, I could also see Bronson Reed having a moment. Over the last several months, he’s gone from zero crowd interest to some notable buzz online to generating some real excitement in live crowds when he heads for the top ropes. I think he could be built into a really scary monster-heel if WWE would let him stack wins for a few months. Or they could just stick with Austin Theory, which is what I suspect they’ll do.
Predicted Winner: Austin Theory
Bianca Belair (Champion) Vs Iyo Sky For The Raw Women’s Championship
I think Bianca is probably going to lose her championship sooner rather than later. Her crowd reactions have been only somewhat positive at times and were straight up bad at WrestleMania 39. She hasn’t had any real character development in a long time. She needs an injection of something fresh and different, but I don’t think it’s going to be during this match at Backlash. There just hasn’t been enough of a real build.
Iyo Sky is a tremendous wrestler, and there have been a lot of hints about Damage CTRL’s future being uncertain. I think most fans expect them to break up at some point, but if WWE was going to do something big here, with maybe a break-up and Bianca Belair losing the title, you would think they would have been given real time to build this match. Instead, we got one interview segment during the third hour the week of the PPV. That’s just not enough, and frankly, the women's division needs a whole lot more.
Predicted Winner: Bianca Belair
Bad Bunny Vs Damian Priest
I have a hard time believing Bad Bunny is going to lose a San Juan Street Fight at a premium live event he’s also hosting in Puerto Rico. Unless he’s committing to another premium live event in the very near future (SummerSlam?) where we’ll get a rematch, I think he’s definitely going to win, but I suspect WWE added the San Juan Street Fight stipulation to protect Damian Priest. I think we’ll get interference or some kind of unusual weapon that will explain away how the Judgment Day star could lose to a professional singer.
That being said, as celebrities go, Bad Bunny is tremendous in the ring, and I can’t wait to see more of him this weekend. He’s extremely athletic and has a great appreciation for the business. I expect we’ll see at least one really sophisticated move and some really fluid and well-practiced in-ring work. I also think Damian Priest’s overall profile will ultimately be elevated by being in such a prime PPV spot with one of the world’s most popular singers. It’ll be a great way for him to show off what he can do, which is fantastic since I love Damian Priest and will rise to buy all the long-term stock. I think he’s capable of, at minimum, being a mid-card champion again and potentially even capable of being a more top tier guy.
Predicted Winner: Bad Bunny
Cody Rhodes Vs Brock Lesnar
I suspect Bad Bunny and Damian Priest will close the show, but in spirit and in spite of this not being for a championship, this is the main event of Backlash. I think we’ll see this match go off first, and I have to think this’ll end with a big victory for Cody Rhodes. It’s one thing to lose to Roman Reigns after interference at ‘Mania. It’s quite another to lose at two consecutive premium live events to the champion and then the perennial number one contender. You have to win matches to stay on top, and Cody needs to stay on top, unless Triple H, Bruce Prichard and everyone else in creative is planning to play a really long game with Cody.
Plus, Brock Lesnar doesn’t need this. He beat up Omos at WrestleMania, and I suspect there’s a chance he steps away for awhile after this match. We were told during the draft that he has the right to appear on either brand moving forward, and WWE will likely use that flexibility to plug him in down the line wherever he makes the most sense whenever he returns.
Predicted Winner: Cody Rhodes
