Damian Priest Receiving Backstage Praise For Recent Work Culminating At WWE Backlash

With WWE returning to the island with a premium live event for the first time since 2005, Puerto Rico went wild for almost every moment of Backlash this past weekend. Regardless if they won or lost their match, the incredibly electric crowd erupted for each star that walked down that aisle. And that may have benefitted Damian Priest more than most. Though the "Punisher of The Judgment Day" suffered a loss against international sensation and multi-time Grammy winner Bad Bunny in a San Juan Street Fight, his stock has certainly risen in the promotion thanks to this match and the build-up prior to it. 

According to PWInsider, Priest is now "seen as one of the top-level players in the company going forward." Trusted with the task to keep one of the biggest stars in all of the entertainment world safe during their battle, he also made his opponent look like a million bucks in a match that celebrated Puerto Rico's rich history in WWE by featuring cameos from legends like Savio Vega and Carlito.

This new perception of the "Archer of Infamy" following his latest run-in with Bad Bunny likely led to his involvement in the World Heavyweight Championship Tournament, which kicks off on tonight's "Raw." If he wants to make it to Night of Champions to compete for the recently revived title, Priest needs to defeat Seth Rollins and Shinsuke Nakamura in a triple threat match, then the winner of another three-way between Finn Balor, The Miz, and Cody Rhodes in the main event of the evening to advance to the finals in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on May 27.