Sunday will feature five big championship matches for the Backlash pay-per-view. Thus far, seven matches are set for the card. As always, these are just my predictions with no insider knowledge. Let’s get started with the first match:
WWE Championship match: Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Bobby Lashley
Unfortunately, we’re currently in the “new champion” phase, meaning that there’s no way Drew McIntyre is losing the belt anytime soon. Bobby Lashley is a talented individual; however, his recent dominance is only due to WWE wanting fans to think that the WWE Champion has taken down a strong challenger.
As for Drew, the 35-year-old has carried himself well as champion thus far and I suspect that Lesnar vs. McIntyre II will happen at Summerslam, thus the company will need to get thru one more pay-per-view until Lesnar makes his return. Randy Orton vs. Drew McIntyre is also possible for the biggest party of the summer, though I'm not too confident on that one.
Kevin Owens or Aleister Black could step up and challenge McIntyre for the belt next month, which would be really fun. However, I believe that Lashley will be McIntyre’s focus until Summerslam arrives, thus the match-up will mostly end in…
Winner: Bobby Lashley via Disqualification
WWE RAW Women's Championship match: Asuka (c) vs. Nia Jax
Asuka is also in the “new champion” phase and with the company having Charlotte Flair beat the RAW Women’s Champion on Monday, I can see a Triple Threat bout next month with both competitors and Asuka, though Flair will most likely get the win there.
Other than the fact that WWE is rushing for Flair to become a 17-time Champion (why, I don’t know), officials are most likely trying to tell the story that Asuka can’t beat “The Queen”. Forget the fact that creative ruined that storyline by having Asuka beat Flair on a random episode of RAW on November 25, 2019. Nevertheless, I have Flair vs. Asuka penciled in for Summerslam, so unfortunately for Nia Jax, the woman who will walk out of Backlash as the WWE RAW Women’s Champion is…
Winner: Asuka will retain the WWE RAW Women’s Championship
Handicap match for the WWE Universal Championship: Braun Strowman (c) vs. The Miz and John Morrison
Here’s the problem, ever since John Morrison’s return to the WWE, creative has constantly told us that both him and The Miz aren't anything other than midcard wrestlers. Both were quickly eliminated in the Royal Rumble and the duo didn’t get a chance to do much with the WWE Smackdown Tag Team titles.
The only question about this match is whether this will be a squash win for Braun Strowman or not. I suspect that this will be a ten-minute match with Morrison and Miz dominating until the Universal Champion comes back and scores the pinfall.
Of course, I could be wrong; however, Morrison and Miz are not credible threats to the big man, so I feel it would actually do some damage to Strowman if that’s the formula that they go with. Strowman vs. “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt will happen at Summerslam. The Fiend has been built up as an indestructible monster (well, except against Goldberg), so a strong win over the former WWE Tag Team Champions should be the only option here.
I don’t see this feud being carried over to the next pay-per-view, though I don’t know who will step up and challenge Strowman for the belt. Maybe Otis will officially cash-in at the next event? Or AJ Styles vs. Braun Strowman will take place. We’ll see.
Winner: Braun Strowman retains the WWE Universal Championship
U.S. Championship match: Apollo Crews (c) vs. Andrade
While it’s possible that Andrade regains the belt through nefarious means, I do think that the company is currently serious about Crews' push. I can see Angel Garza being the next man to step up and challenge the newly crowned champion next month. As for Andrade, I don’t feel that his partnership with Garza will last long. The former NXT Cruiserweight Champion has a strong chance of winning against Crews, if the match does happen. Garza vs. Andrade seems like the direction, though I’m not too confident on this one.
Winner: Apollo Crews retains the U.S. Championship
Triple Threat match for the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles: Sasha Banks and Bayley (c) vs. Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross vs. “The IIconics” Peyton Royce and Billie Kay
In order to begin the likely build for Banks vs. Bayley at Summerslam, the duo will surely drop the belts between now and early August. My gut is telling me that Banks and Bayley won’t drop the belts this fast, though I wouldn’t be surprised if they did.
Winner: Sasha Banks and Bayley retain the WWE Women’s Tag Team Titles
Edge vs. Randy Orton
Orton and Edge are great performers in their own right, but I can’t see these two living up to the “Greatest Match Ever” title, especially in the no fans era of professional wrestling. The audience also plays a strong part as their reaction to the story being told inside the ring can either boost a good match to great or in vice versa. The two veterans continue to be tremendous when it comes to building up their matches; however, the lack of fans to feed off of their battles makes it hard for any match to truly be fantastic, and that goes for matches in any promotion.
I will eat my words if these two pull out an instant classic at Backlash (which is possible), but the stipulation is most likely there so Orton can be a dastardly heel and ruin it. Don't be surprised if the John Cena/Randy Orton No Way Out 2008 finish is used here, which would be Orton slapping the referee for a disqualification. The finish would paint Orton as ruining "The Greatest Match" ever, and protects Edge from taking his first pinfall loss since returning. Yes, this would be a bad finish so being wrong here would be great. Another stipulation match between the two veterans next month will put an official end to this feud. So…
Winner: Edge via disqualification
Jeff Hardy vs. Sheamus
Another match that will most likely be stretched out for the next month before the build to Summerslam begins. Hardy got the first win over Sheamus, so it’s likely that the “Celtic Warrior” will get the win thanks to some heel antics. I can see Hardy vs. AJ Styles for the Intercontinental Title at Summerslam, thus he'll most likely go over in the end.
Winner: Sheamus
That’s it! Thanks for reading and feel free to put your predictions in the comment section.