From the Coliseo de Puerto Rico Jose Miguel Agrelot in San Juan, Puerto Rico, WWE Backlash 2023 had an energy unlike any other company event.
From the opening to the main event, the superstars got a huge response from the crowd.
The fans chose to build on some new talent with exciting responses to Zelina Vega and Io Skye, but no one stood out from the crowd more than Bad Bunny.
Omos had his best match yet in his streak against Seth Rollins. The seer made him look like a beast.
Bloodline featured in perhaps the least memorable match of the night.
Cody Rhodes and Brock Lesnar felt out of place in the main event of this show and failed to sell this as the most important match of the night.
Overall, Backlash was unique, and certain names took advantage to emerge victorious on the night. Others, however, left San Juan in less spectacular fashion.
In her match against Bianca Bellaire, few expected IO Sky to take the win.
WWE EST is set to become the Raw Women’s Champion with the longest reign in company history, and The Genius of the Sky has yet to win a single match.
With all this, the crowd went to heaven even before the bell. It was clear that the fans in San Juan wanted a surprise title change.
Feeding off that reaction, The Genius of the Sky put on her best match in WWE to date. It pushed Bellaire to stay in WrestleMania mode for another epic Raw Women’s Title match.
Although the dream did not come true, the end sold how close Heaven was to victory. Damage CTRL, especially Bayley, couldn’t get on the same page with her, and it cost her a stunning victory.
WWE has a star that can work with Skye. If she’s part of the role model, WWE should consider giving her a rematch with Belair and giving her the win this time.
The second match of the evening also showed a professional performance.
Omos found his perfect opponent as Seth Rollins overpowered him and made him a monster heel.
This is the competition the Nigerian giants need. Although he lost, he pushed the next WWE World Heavyweight Champion to his limits. He makes Rollins reach into his bag of tricks to pull off a super finish.
Maybe The Visionary can have a good match with anyone, but it always takes two to tango. Omos needs more competition where the opponent plays to his strengths.
Nigerian giant The Visionary can bounce back from this loss quickly considering how long it took him to win. This may be a match to revisit one day…with gold on the line.
Still, it wasn’t the game-winner who got the big time. Zelina Vega was up against Rhea Ripley, who was performing at the absolute peak of her career.
Whether or not the destroyer retained was never in question, but she had the entire crowd behind her as her opponent struggled from the bottom.
Her return under the dog, which ended with a 619 and second-string Meteora, made an impressive impression. However, nothing was more different than the ovation Vega received after the match.
The Latino world system is a stable one that is beginning to generate momentum. If the blue brand is fully committed to the team in 2023, Vega could find herself in another SmackDown Women’s Championship match in the future.
If she pulls off the big win in that second chance, it all comes back to this moment. Vega has never been more of a star than this night.
As the first of what WWE called a “double main event”, Bad Rabbit and Damian Priest had the ultimate crowd-pleasing match for the ages in San Juan.
It was an outstanding performance from the most famous man in WWE history. Bad Rabbit was the biggest star in the world on that stage Saturday night. His entrance alone was an impromptu concert.
When he should have won, he did everything to make the priest special. He put his opponent down better than anyone in the WWE.
It was only because he often decided to inflict more punishment than victory that he never won a clear and dominant victory.
The overbooking frenzy, including the LWO, Carlito and Savio Vega, never took over the full match between these two Puerto Rican stars as the match received so much time and attention. Hopefully, Priest can take this to a massive 2023.
Meanwhile, Bad Rabbit doesn’t need to fight again, but is welcome back anytime.
For the first time in years, The Usos weren’t in the top angle of a WWE PPV.
This was arguably the lowest point in Bloodline history since a six-man tag team match was frozen between two main events at a premium live event.
Roman rule was sorely missed on this show. The crowd made that clear with an incredible “We want Roman” chant from the slow moments of this match.
While the crowd was on fire for Sami Zayn, the rest of the talent had to work hard to engage the fans. It was a shocking change for what has long been WWE’s hottest angle.
This storyline will heat up when Reigns returns, but this was the first solid showing that The Bloodline may not be the biggest storyline in WWE for a long time.
On paper, Cody Rhodes vs. Brock Lesnar was the biggest match at Backlash, but no one was able to sell it as worthy of the attention it deserved as a “double main event” next to Bad Bunny vs. Damian Priest.
It was a fast-paced basic brawl that used a dramatic blood spot in an attempt to accentuate the action. Instead, he diverted his attention from what should have been a triumphant return to form the American fantasy.
Rhodes really ended up with the crowd, it was a cheap end to the fun show. Lesnar didn’t even get a chance to celebrate as he looked shocked at the end of the night.
This was one of the weakest matches Rhodes has had on the main roster, especially on PPV. He worked as a heel when he should have been a struggling babyface to get the win.
It was a good middle-of-the-show match to set up a future rematch, but at certain moments the night seemed out of place as the main event.
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