WWE Backlash 2026: 3 Things We Hated & 3 Things We Loved

Welcome to Wrestling Inc.'s review of WWE Backlash 2026, a show that opened with a big win for Bron Breakker and closed with Jacob Fatu choking out Roman Reigns after just barely failing to win the World Heavyweight Championship. We'll hit both those matches and (almost) everything in between here in the column, from Danhausen's mystery partner to IYO SKY vs Asuka to John Cena's big announcement.

If you missed Backlash, or you just want to read about what happened without comment from the WINC staff, check out our WWE Backlash 2026 results page. If you want to know which parts of the show the WINC crew enjoyed and which parts we could have done without, this is the place to be. Here are three things we hated and three things we loved about WWE Backlash 2026!

While the vast majority of the in-ring work tonight was strong, Backlash overall just didn't feel enjoyable and sitting down for it initially felt like a chore. While I did end up liking most of it, even John Cena's surprise announcement, which thankfully didn't turn out to be anything Club WWE-related, it just felt like it was missing something.

I found myself wondering if maybe the show needed a stipulation match, but maybe WWE purposefully didn't book any after WrestleMania's ladder match, street fight, and unsanctioned match. The United States Championship match where Trick Williams defeated Sami Zayn felt like it could have been a street fight, or at least a no disqualification match, with the almost-use of the steps by Zayn and Lil Yachty with the candy cane kendo stick. Especially with Zayn and Williams' hot feud, that could have been taken a little further.

WrestleMania's stipulations aside, maybe a more hardcore match wasn't booked for the show because of the pretty ridiculous, over-the-top match when Danhausen and the Minihausens took on The Miz and Kit Wilson. Whatever the case, Backlash just felt like it needed some more "oomph," and if I was someone who shelled out the money for the new ESPN app specifically to watch tonight, I'm not sure how I'd feel.

Maybe it's because we're just three weeks removed from WrestleMania, and while I'm aware Backlash is always close to 'Mania, to the point it was once briefly called "WrestleMania Backlash," this show just didn't feel special. There are also two more WWE events in May that the company has to attempt to set up for — one a simple Saturday Night's Main Event, the other a big premium live event in Italy, and it's just a lot in one month right after what I thought was a pretty bad WrestleMania weekend. Add the crap booking lately and other factors like the recent releases on top of it all, and Backlash just failed to feel special or unique to me, just another event in the books.

Written by Daisy Ruth

Seth Rollins said on the post-show that he's not done with The Vision, and he's going to destroy them, but Bron Breakker did a pretty good job of beating the hell out of Rollins in the opening match tonight. While the bout absolutely would have benefitted from the WrestleMania stage, it probably got a lot more time tonight than it would have at 'Mania, as it was actually the longest match on the card tonight at nearly 22 minutes.

It seems like WWE and ESPN are going to continue to present the first hour of their premium live events on cable TV, and for Backlash, this was an excellent opener for all to see in attempts to bring in some more eyes to ESPN premium. Breakker is just so good at what he does, and we haven't seen him in the ring since January, so it was a refreshing sight. Even when the pair seemingly botched some kind of DDT transition, instead of simply just going for the pin, Breakker just casually hit a standing moonsault, because of course that's something he can just do, even if we haven't seen it from him a lot.

It was a good, physical match, with Breakker taking it to Rollins on the outside of the ring numerous times, often pushing far into the 10 count before they got back in the ring. Breakker had a big spot where he hit a flying clothesline to Rollins on the commentary desk, as well, which was cool. Maybe not the most viral moment of the night, but it looked great.

Thankfully, Austin Theory and Logan Paul weren't involved too much in the match. Of course, they had to at least make appearances, but Rollins dispatched them both thankfully very quickly with a chair. While I'm never a fan of the camera angles on some of these intricate in-ring attempts, Breakker and Rollins attempted two really cool counters, with Rollins turning the spear into the Pedigree, then Breakker countered a Stomp from the ropes into a spear, followed by another for the victory. This was a fantastic match on a pretty solid card of in-ring work, but it was an even better opener to get the crowd in Tampa, as well as those of us here at home, excited for the night. I don't know if I need to see Rollins continue with The Vision, especially after it didn't happen at WrestleMania, but I can't say another match against Breakker, at least, would suck from an in-ring standpoint.

Written by Daisy Ruth

I'll give WWE this: they were very ambitious with The Miz, Kit Wilson, Danhausen, and Mini-hausen's (Mini-hausens?) tag team match at Saturday's WWE Backlash festivities. I don't recall them running a match like that in recent memory. For the purposes of innovation, I suppose they did their job in trying something new. I also can acknowledge it from a giggler's perspective; as someone who finds a joke in everything, I can appreciate just how absolutely unhinged this is. That's where the compliments end. If you liked this match, scroll along! I don't want to ruin it for you.

This was the stupidest match I've seen in recent memory — it was very bad, very stupid, if you will. Danhausen has been incredibly popular since his WWE debut at Elimination Chamber, and while yes, he is a comedic character at his core, you would think that WWE would have made his first premium live event match more of a big deal. You would think that WWE would've given him the opportunity to team with someone notable — a return, a rebrand, or a debut would have been appropriate here. Instead we got...an unnamed Mini-hausen. Instead we got multiple unnamed Mini-hausens!

For what it was, this wasn't an unwatchable match. The unnamed Mini-hausen (the one who came out initially; not one of the many that poured out after Wilson shoved Mini-hausen prime back into the cloning machine-hausen) was pretty good all things considered, and made the most with whatever laughable role he was given on Saturday's show. The Miz is a veteran (a washed veteran, sure), so he was just okay, and Wilson had a lot of energy that kept him entertaining to watch beyond his uninspired and repetitive gimmick. Danhausen was probably the weakest in the ring, but considering what was going on around him, I think his weak in-ring presence was the least of everybody's worries. This wasn't unwatchable, but it was so deeply stupid, especially when we consider what could have been.

I acknowledge that, if we hold ourselves up to rosy dreams and hopeless romanticism, we will inevitably be disappointed — especially in the world of professional wrestling, where the card, famously, is subject to change. However, I still can't believe people green-lit whatever this was, when we could have had a chance to get Danhausen (or whoever worked with him) even more over, in a more sustainable way. The Mini-hausen gimmick might be funny, but what does this accomplish for the Danhausen character, in the long run? Will anyone remember this in a month or two?

Perhaps Danhausen was never meant for the long run. That's stupid. This match was stupid. I want those 10-15 minutes of my life back.

Written by Angeline Phu

There was no way this was going to be bad.

Months of feuding between Asuka and IYO SKY culminated in a highly-anticipated Saturday match-up, when two former world champions, S-class performers, and former friends took to WWE Backlash to settle their months-long feud in the only way they knew how: in an insane singles match. For a night that was, up until then, full of Mini-hausen madness and Vision interference, Asuka and SKY's match was a testament to grit, as both women battled for superiority, armed with nothing but their own talent and determination. As it turns out, you don't need meaningless gimmicks to have a fun match, and you don't need two mediocre B-list wrestlers to get a win over your former mentor! Asuka and SKY set the standard for what a premium live event match should look like, and managed to save a floundering Tampa show.

SKY has really been having her moment — and for all the right reasons — but Asuka has always been one of the top performers in WWE, even if she hasn't been booked like it. It showed Saturday. Asuka and SKY melded together almost immediately, with their mat work seeing seamless transitions from hold to hold. SKY did her usual flips around Asuka, only to get caught by the ruthless jaws of "The Empress of Tomorrow." The juxtaposition between SKY's showboating tactics and Asuka's brutal efficiency made for a dynamic match-up, where nothing got too boring too quickly. The difference in both of their styles simultaneously kept the match sharp for the viewer, and forced them to innovative so that they could bridge their differences. What you get is, truly, a technical masterclass that is equal parts art and logic. It blends together into a thoughtful performance, in which you are less concerned about the violence, and more about the story they weave.

It's not often that you have a women's match go this long, especially on a WWE premium live event. Cagematch hasn't been updated with the official time on Asuka and SKY's match as of writing, so either Asuka and SKY were given a long time (good), or they were just so invested in their art that they managed to pack 15, 20 minutes' worth of wrestling into a 10-or-so minute timeframe (even better). It fit, though. This should have been a WrestleMania 42 match; if you're going to push it to the Backlash card, at least give them time. Asuka and SKY had time to cook, and the result was incredible.

It sucks that Kairi Sane wasn't there, but this match was a fitting tribute to her. It was phenomenal, as she was in WWE. Match of the night contender, easily.

Written by Angeline Phu

Credit where credit is due: John Cena's big WWE Backlash announcement, contrary to my and many other viewers' expectations, had nothing to due to with Club WWE. I was happy about that. However, what Cena actually announced was convoluted at best and downright confusing at worst.

Here's what we know. There will supposedly be an event called the John Cena Classic. With a name like that, you'd expect the John Cena Classic to be a tournament, but Cena never actually said it was. What he said was that there will be main roster stars competing against developmental stars a la the SNME undercard ahead of Cena's last match, and that there will be a new championship. And this championship will supposedly be awarded via ... fan vote?

It's hard to know for sure because Cena's promo is all we have to go on, but this doesn't seem like a tournament to me. It seems like a main roster vs. "NXT" event where the fans get to award their favorite performance with a title after all is said and done. I'm not saying that's the worst idea I've ever heard, but it also doesn't sound terribly compelling. Cena went out of his way to say that the champion could be someone who didn't win, which just kind of goes against everything inside me as a wrestling fan. The "NXT" vs. main roster concept sounds kind of fun, but it also sounds a little like the "battle for brand supremacy" era of Survivor Series, which isn't something I'm eager to have back, and to my mind, a title being awarded by fan vote isn't much of a title. So speaking personally, I'm giving Cena a bit of side-eye after the explanation of this concept — and that's assuming I properly understood the explanation at all.

Written by Miles Schneiderman

Jacob Fatu challenged Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight Championship and all that goes with it in the main event, compounding what was always going to be a solid-to-great match with a really good story to be told. Every move was impactful, each near-fall felt certain, and crucially Reigns was threatened dearly by his "little cousin." Fatu was made even with an eventual defeat, taking the fight to the "Tribal Chief" from the beginning and besting him in every facet, relentlessly absorbing everything he had to throw at him and throwing it back ten-fold. 

When all was said and done Reigns was in survival mode, clasping at the referee and then the turnbuckles before an opportunity arose; Reigns drove Fatu into the exposed turnbuckle and finally put his cousin down for the count. The Usos were conspicuously absent after being told on Friday not to get involved, clearly taking the warning from Fatu seriously as they were not present for the bout's aftermath either. 

Fatu immediately took Reigns in the Tongan Death Grip yet again, choking him out and only, well, not even stopping when officials come out to stop him. He aptly yeeted Adam Pearce from the ring, choked Reigns a little more until he deemed enough was so. But then when Reigns started to stir and collect himself in the ring, Fatu turned around, wasn't having any of it, and put him back into his foamy-mouthed slumber. And then the closing shot of Fatu standing with the title, which are always great. 

Fatu didn't really stand a chance of winning the title tonight as the first opponent for Reigns since getting it back at 'Mania, and although I personally hoped he would upset the "Tribal Chief" and expected the Usos to interfere, this was a pure bit of wrestling storytelling. Reigns keeps the title, but Fatu is established as the new monster, a title in itself. 

He didn't beat Reigns officially, but he beat him in every way physically, and it's known what lives on between those mentally. It just enhances wherever the story goes next for them both as individuals and as rivals. It will likely feed into the dynamic between Fatu and the Usos going forward, and when something manages to be so compelling in the present while laying groundwork for the future, it's got to be a loved in my book.

Written by Max Everett