Chris King breaks down WWE Backlash 2026, featuring Jacob Fatu challenging Roman Reigns and more!

Chris King has gone back and rewatched WWE’s latest PLE Backlash and is dissecting the
matches. Bron Breakker looks to defeat Seth Rollins and prove he’s ready for the spotlight; Trick
Williams defends his United States Championship against Sami Zayn; Iyo Sky looks to defeat
her former mentor Asuka; and Jacob Fatu challenges Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight
Championship in a family affair!

Seth Rollins VS. Bron Breakker

This match was orchestrated together so perfectly with Rollins utilizing his fast-paced offense to
begin the match and outsmart the young up-and-comer. Breakker was able to showcase his
insane strength at the perfect times, which kept his rival down.

The more Rollins kicks out, the more frustrated Breakker gets as he trash-talks his former Vision
leader. Breakker hit a stunning Frankensteiner off the top rope for a near fall.
‘The Visionary’ intercepted a massive spear on the outside with a nasty-looking superkick.
Breakker should not be able to move this fast as he blasts Rollins with a clothesline. The
veteran was setting up for The Stomp, but Breakker laid his head where he could only deliver a
stiff kick. Rollins tried to counter an attack, but his body couldn’t follow through. Rollins hit a
buckle bomb on his opponent. Breakker took out his opponent with a massive splash onto
Rollins over the announce table. The young upstart countering Rollins’s patented Superplex into
a Falcon’s Arrow of his own was incredible.

Breakker went to the wheel too many times as Rollins landed on his feet from another
Frankensteiner. Rollins has mastered the art of being able to counter a Spear into a pedigree
like no other. Logan Paul and Austin Theory tried to interfere, but The Visionary was prepared.
Breakker thought it was over with a massive spear. Rollins went for a Super Stomp, but it was
intercepted by a Spear. A huge Spear sealed the deal for the young up-and-comer!

• This was a great match with tons of drama and textbook wrestling. The veteran was
  trying to prove that the young upstart wasn’t ready for the main event. Breakker utilized
  his insane speed and freakish power to get the biggest win of his career. The
  interference by The Vision signifies that Rollins and The Street Profits will face off in a
  six-man tag team match in the near future. Under the mentorship of Paul Heyman,
  Breakker will be the main event of WrestleMania in the near future!

Trick Williams VS. Sami Zayn (United States Championship)

Trick Williams made his million-dollar entrance with the Tampa crowd chanting “Whoop That
Trick.” Everything this man touches turns to gold, including the gingerbread man’s funeral
segment on the go-home episode of Friday Night SmackDown.

The irate challenger tried to gain the advantage early, but Trick was not having it. Zayn rolled outside to stop the champion’s momentum, but it didn’t work. The challenger threw Trick headfirst onto the steel steps.

Trick continues to prove why he’s one of the fastest-rising superstars in a long time. A Blue
Thunder Bomb almost gave Zayn the victory, but only a two-count. He feigned an injury to
sucker the champion and hit him with a candy cane behind the referee’s back. Zayn continued
his descent into a full-fledged heel as he used more aggressive moves and even attacked Lil
Yachty on the outside. Trick countered another knee strike and delivered Trick Shot for the
victory.

• Trick successfully retained his United States Championship against a game Sami Zayn.
  He continues to prove why he’s the future of WWE. Zayn continues to portray a more
  aggressive character, and using cheap tactics to try and win the title screams “heel.”
  Despite Zayn saying that he has ride-or-die fans, the Tampa crowd was booing the hell
  out of him.
• Trick’s next title defense should be against Carmelo Hayes, who never got his rematch
  after losing the title to Zayn.

Danhausen & Minihausen VS. The Miz & Kit Wilson

Danhausen arrived in his Danhausen mobile and opened his cloning machine to reveal the
MiniHausen for this tag team match, as The Miz and Kit Wilson were already in the ring. The
MiniHausen is actually El Torito, who was the mascot for Los Matadores back in 2013. This was
a fun little match where, of course, we saw MiniHausen start things off with some surprising
luchador high-flying action. The heels got frustrated and beat down the little man until
Danhausen made the tag.

Despite not being in the match for more than a minute, DanHausen is out of breath. After some
quick offense, Miz and Wilson take the fight to their enemy on the outside. MiniHausen took
them both out with a mini suicide dive. Wilson threw MiniHausen back into the cloning machine,
which caused a plethora of MiniHausens to come out, which was hilarious. MiniHausen took out
Wilson on the outside, and DanHausen hit his signature Pump Kick for the victory!

• I’ve been saying this for years: everything The Miz touches turns to gold. His
  commitment to this DanHausen storyline has been incredible. He’s once again proved
  that he can make every angle/storyline fantastic and a must-see.
• I am quite impressed with how WWE has handled Danhausen over the last few months.
  His segments have been hilarious and very entertaining. I could easily see the new
  fan-favorite possibly winning a mid-card title by the end of the year or possibly at
  WrestleMania. I am a FanHausen of this DanHausen!

Iyo Sky VS. Asuka

Asuka has been portraying this maniacal and jealous heel over the past year. Playing an
integral part in Iyo Sky’s torn relationship with Kairi Sane. Unfortunately, due to her release, this
story is only being told by Sky and Asuka, but both Japanese superstars did not disappoint. This
was the case of anything you can do, I can do better. The mentor tried to silence her protégé in
their first PLE match.

Asuka played her role perfectly as the overconfident heel cutting off her opponent at every turn,
and Sky was the resilient babyface trying to put Asuka in her place. This is a MOTY candidate
that ended with Sky finally getting the best of her opponent and getting some justice for Kairi
wherever she is. Both superstars showed each other respect after an instant classic!

• I wish WWE could’ve gotten Kairi Sane for this beautiful storybook ending of this feud.
  She’s the missing piece of the puzzle, but Asuka and Iyo Sky told an incredible story
  together as mentor and protégé.
• This felt like a goodbye for Asuka, and days after her Instagram post, maybe it was. I’m
  not exactly sure where Sky goes from here. Maybe she gets into the Women’s World
  Championship picture and challenges Liv Morgan. Stephanie Vaquer will return soon,
  and there’s a perfect triple threat on the horizon!

John Cena Segment

• It’s always great to see the never-seen seventeen GOAT in the WWE, no matter what it
  is for. The John Cena Classic, being an annual event, will start off strong, but sadly, I
  fear the WWE universe will shit all over it. The new rising superstars of NXT facing the
  best superstars from the main roster has fantastic potential. I would like to see Mayson
  Rook VS. Kevin Owens, Tony DeAngelo VS. Seth Rollins, and Naruku VS. Shinsuke
  Nakamura. I’m excited that the fans decide the winner like a Cyber Sunday-esque event.

Roman Reigns VS. Jacob Fatu (World Heavyweight Championship)

Roman Reigns and Jacob Fatu had a brutal war over the top prize in professional wrestling. For
several weeks leading up to the PLE, ‘The Samoan Werewolf’ has obliterated ‘The Tribal Chief’
and made it look scarily easy. Fatu used The Tongan Death Grip to get his title shot at Backlash.
Everyone said that Reigns was going to beat the brakes off his opponent, but that wasn’t the
case. I’ve never seen anyone take this much damage and keep getting up.

Fatu took the world champion’s best and still kicked out at one after a devastating Spear. Reigns
had to resort to heel tactics as he took off the turnbuckle pad and slammed his challenger
headfirst and then hit another massive Spear for the victory. Immediately afterwards, though,
The Samoan Werewolf annihilated his cousin and anyone else in his path, including Adam
Pearce and the security team. Fatu stood over an unconscious Reigns, posing with the World
Heavyweight Championship to close the show!

• We all knew Reigns wasn’t losing his title in his first title defense, but this was the perfect
  ending to protect Fatu. The champion having to resort to nefarious tactics shows just
  how dangerous his opponent is and how desperate Reigns was to retain the world title.
• This booking also keeps the door wide open for an impending battle in the near future,
  possibly at Clash in Italy. After being humiliated by Fatu, I can see a major stipulation
  being added to their next family war.

Chris King takes a look at a loaded edition of WWE Monday Night Raw from May 18, 2026!

This was an excellent episode of Monday Night Raw, right from the start to the end of the episode. So many interesting storyline developments, and The Beast Incarnate made his shocking return to take down Oba Femi, and Jacob Fatu challenged Roman Reigns to Tribal Combat at Clash in Italy! Here are my takeaways from this week’s episode of Raw. 

Tribal Combat Is On! 

In the first segment of this week’s edition of Monday Night Raw, Jimmy Uso tried to talk some sense into an unhinged Jacob Fatu. ‘The Right Hand Man,’ Jey Uso, on the other hand, with a steel chair in hand, made the mistake of trying to take out ‘The Samoan Werewolf.’ The Usos were getting their asses kicked until ‘The Tribal Chief’ Roman Reigns made his way into the fray. A triple-team attack from the OG Bloodline forced Fatu’s hand, and he challenged Roman to Tribal Combat! 

• This feud has been exciting for the past month, and Fatu has been built up as an indestructible monster taking down The Bloodline. My only complaint is that Roman will retain his World Heavyweight Championship and his rival will be forced to acknowledge him and fall in line. Perhaps this could lead to the long-awaited debut of Zilla Fatu or possibly the return of The Final Boss. 

Finn Bálor & JD McDonagh Make Magic 

Finn Bálor and former friend turned enemy JD McDonagh faced off in a fun street fight. JD is such a great seller, and his moonsault is simply beautiful. He’s so talented, and I urge you to go back and watch his matches in NXT UK under his name, Jordan Devlin. Dominik Mysterio tried to interfere, but Balor thwarted a 619 attack. Balor was able to stamp his victory with a Coup De Grace through JD and a trash can.

• Finn and JD have insane chemistry together, whether as a team or as rivals. I think they need to add a stipulation for the next and hopefully final match between Dom and Finn. This feud needs to be over sooner rather than later, or all of Balor’s momentum will be lost. Perhaps Balor could move to SmackDown to face some fresh competition.

Sol Ruca & The Man Segment 

The Man’ Becky Lynch interrupted the new Raw superstar’s promo. The antagonizing champion evaded a title match for Saturday Night Main Event only, to give Ruca a non-title match at this Saturday’s event.

• Becky Lynch plays such a great heel who belittles and berates her opponents. This segment was exactly what it needed to be. Short and straight to the point. The fact that the Women’s Intercontinental Champion is Ruca’s first feud on the main roster showed how much confidence the company has in her. 
• Ruca needs to win this match, and she can then challenge for the title at Clash in Italy, and Lynch can cheat to retain it. I don’t see her winning the title until SummerSlam, though. 

El Grande Americano Mix 

El Grande Americano, Bravo, and Rayo vs. OG Americano, Julio, and Bruto in a six-man tag team match. All six Mexican superstars delivered a fantastic performance. El Grande utilized the metal plate to deliver a massive headbutt to secure the victory.

• Every time I watch these matches, it reminds me of the 90s Luchador style that I grew up watching. It’s always fun and fast-paced wrestling that blows me away. Some of the moves they deliver are so dangerous, but thankfully, nobody got hurt. On May 30th, El Grande will unmask the OG El Grande, and I’m assuming Chad Gable will make his long-awaited return to WWE. 

Women’s Tag Team Championship Match: Paige and Brie Bella vs. Judgment Day 

Paige and Bri Bella continued to prove to be a cohesive unit this week, taking on Roxanne Perez and Raquel Rodriguez. Liv Morgan tried to interfere but was ejected from ringside. Roxanne tried to hit Paige with the title belt, but it was avoided, and she rolled her up to successfully retain the titles.

• Brie Bella and Paige are working well as a makeshift tag team while Nikki Bella heals for her return. I see the writing on the wall for The Bella Twins to turn on Paige, and I think she’ll call AJ Lee to tag with her at SummerSlam. Right now, the women’s tag team championships are a central focus on both shows, and that’s always a great thing. 

The Beast Is Back 

We were all prepared for another Oba Femi open challenge when ‘The Beast Incarnate’ Brock Lesnar shocked the world with his return to WWE. The Beast dropped Femi with four thunderous F5s and left him laid out in the wake of destruction. Following the attack, Paul Heyman gives Adam Pearce a contract for Clash in Italy with Lesnar’s signature already on it. We are getting Lesnar/Femi Part Two!

• For over a month, WWE has hinted at Lesnar’s retirement after leaving his boots and gloves in the ring at WrestleMania, but they never confirmed it either. I feel like it was his last match at Mania, before formally retiring at SummerSlam in his hometown of Minnesota. 
• My only concern is that it feels like Femi will lose at Clash and then ultimately retire Lesnar at SummerSlam. I don’t know if that’s the smartest decision here. Time will tell.

Seth Rollins vs. Austin Theory 

In his first match on Raw in over nine months, ‘The Visionary’ Seth Rollins looked great against The Vision’s Austin Theory. Rollins had to fight off Logan Paul, who tried to interfere to give his tag team partner the win. A determined Rollins outlasted the shenanigans and delivered a Pedigree to ensure the victory. Immediately, he was pummeled by Paul, and Bron Breakker quickly entered the ring.

Rollins was no match for The Vision until Angelo Dawkins came out to help. Montez Ford was pissed that Dawkins ate a spear on Rollins’ behalf. It didn’t matter though, and Ford would also fall victim to a thunderous spear! Breakker would not stop his assault on Rollins as security broke things up to end the show. 

• WWE was smart not to give us Breakker vs. Rollins on free television. I was very surprised to see how well Rollins and Theory gel together as opponents. Theory is insanely talented, and he needs to win a singles championship sometime soon. He’s got all the tools for success in WWE. Breakker is a freak, and his torpedo spears are insane. 
• I can see them building The Street Profits and Rollins vs. The Vision at Clash in Italy, especially if Dawkins and Ford don’t win the tag team titles at Saturday Night Main Event. I also have another idea, and I’m so intrigued at the possibility of Ford turning heel and joining The Vision. The thought of Ford under the mentorship of Paul Heyman is money! 

Final thoughts: This was not hyped up as a special episode of Raw, but damn, was it good! WWE hyped up Saturday Night Main Event with the addition of Sol Ruca vs. Becky Lynch and continued to add interest for Clash in Italy!