WrestleMania brought back legends, and saw new legends be made. It marked a sweet end to some wrestler’s careers in the form of a award, and put a sweet beginning to other careers in the form of a championship. Looking back at WrestleMania 21, I’m eager to know what the future holds for the business we love so much. What will the events from this year’s WrestleMania mean to the industry, and to the wrestling business as a whole? But when looking forward, I always make it a point to look backwards. History is a fascinating thing, and history can teach us a lot about wrestling and how the wrestling business is structured and ran. History can teach us a lot about the events of the present, and the events of the past. We know from history that WrestleMania has came and gone. The showcase of the immortals is once again done, and that means the biggest event in the wrestling year of 2005 is officially over and done with. The smoke has cleared, and the wrestling clock is still ticking on till the next WrestleMania in Chicago next year. But while we wait, WrestleMania has set the stage for many of the events that are bound to happen in 2005. In the coming weeks and months WWE will feel the backlash from the events that happened at the biggest stage of them all, and it will feel the backlash of the events that have followed.
Ironically enough, feeling the backlash from WrestleMania will bring us the first post-Mania’ PPV entitled Backlash. Simple put, Backlash lives up to it’s name. It’s more then the event following the career starting, and sometimes career ending WrestleMania. In past Backlash’s old feuds have been rekindled, and new feuds have begun. Storylines have been continued, re-opened, and often ended. The event, much like it’s name, is the place for the backlash of revenge. A place to make a name for yourself if you may have failed to do so at WrestleMania. A place to retain or regain a championship, to prove at WrestleMania you were not a one hit wonder. This years Backlash will see Batista try and prove the critics wrong. Try and prove that at WrestleMania 21 he was not a one hit wonder, and a one month champion. He’s got to prove at Backlash that he is truly “the Animal,” and he has to unleash that animal in order to defeat “The Game.” Triple H will be looking for vengeance, retaliation, and a chance to regain his spot as Raw’s biggest superstar and his spot as the eleven time champion. If Batista doesn’t go into Backlash and give it his all, he will feel the backlash of his choices and lose his belt. If Triple H doesn’t go into Backlash, and take Batista seriously the consequence of his arrogance will cost him his prized World Heavyweight championship. This is bigger the titles for these two men however. It’s about revenge. For Batista it’s about the revenge of beating Triple H, and proving to the “Cerebral Assassin” that he is nothing without the help of Evolution. For Triple H it’s the revenge of finally proving Batista wrong, and making his World Heavyweight title reign look like the shame he’s made it out to be. Batista and Triple H, one more time at Backlash, will not be business as usual for these two men. It’s about titles, it’s about whose the better man, and it’s about whose the best wrestler in the squared circle today. Raw is the baby boy of the World Wrestling Entertainment, and the man who leaves Backlash champion will prove to be the biggest superstar in WWE today. That’s how important this match was at ‘Mania, and how big it will be at Backlash. And that’s how important feeling the backlash will be for these two superstars. In all reality, I don’t think this match will be as exciting as last years WrestleMania rematch for the World Heavyweight title. Last year you had a rematch from arguably one of the greatest matches in wrestling history between Chris Benoit, Shawn Michaels, and Triple H. All three men were on top of their game. Chris Benoit seemed flawless after WrestleMania XX, and brought a lot of attention and credibility around the World title after Triple H’s reign of terror. Shawn Michaels was still the show stopper, and was perhaps in the best shape of his career. Then you had Triple H. While I hate to admit it, Triple H is a incredible wrestler. While I’m sick of his politics, I must admit last year he seemed to be on top of the wrestling world as far as I’m concerned. There match at WrestleMania XX is personally one of my favorites, and undoubtedly a hard match to live up to. But they did at Backlash 2004. While the Backlash rematch wasn’t as great as the match at ’Mania, it was still great through and through. Chris Benoit proved himself as a champion, Shawn Michaels still left in a blaze of glory, and Triple H still looked to be on top of his game (no pun intended). Now fast forward the clock 365 days, approximately one year later and things look grime. Don’t get me wrong folks, Batista and Triple H wasn’t bad at WrestleMania 21. Not bad at all! But when WWE had stellar main events at the two previous WrestleMania’s, it was hard to live up too. At ‘Mania 19 we saw Brock Lesnar take the WWE championship from Kurt Angle in a classic. And like I just said, Benoit retained his gold against Triple H and Shawn Michaels at last years big event. So in that respect Batista and Triple H wasn’t even near the league of the last two ‘Mania main events. And for them to go out there for a rematch, competing against the incredible rematch at last year‘s Backlash, it’s a tough field of competition to beat. Batista is a good champion no doubt. But he performed only average at WrestleMania. He didn’t hold a candle to Benoit or Lesnar’s win a year and two years previously. So looking at their main event rematch at Backlash, comparing it to last year, I have to say I’m already a little disappointed. Disappointed that we can’t see better out of the WWE. In that respect, WWE will feel the backlash of fan’s comparing this years main event rematch to last year’s main event rematch. The backlash then is simple: Triple H and Batista, as good as they are, can’t top last year. They can’t top the rematch of a life time we saw at Backlash 2004. The backlash will be tremendous, but in the end I think Raw will pull through with little to no harm. All in all, even with the backlash of last years rematch I think the Raw brand is in a strong place right now going into the Draft Lottery and will be after Batista and Triple H’s rematch on May 1st.
Unlike Batista, Shawn Michaels lost at WrestleMania. The self-proclaimed “Mr. WrestleMania” lost to a man he vowed to defeat, and vowed to destroy. He lost to a man who embarrassed him, crapping on all of his accomplishments and even attacking his friends and companions like Sensational Sherri and former tag team partner Marty Jannetty. Kurt Angle made the “Heartbreak Kid” look weak and stole the show from Michaels, and at Backlash he’ll have the determination of winning back the spotlight as one of the best wrestlers today gleaming in his eye. Muhammad Hassan, which like Angle, embarrassed Shawn Michaels shortly after his loss at WrestleMania. And at Backlash, Shawn Michaels will recruit the immortal one to help defeat two men, Hassan and Diavari, who are determined to expose Shawn Michaels as a has-been and another legend whose time has pasted in the ring. Shawn Michaels is determined with the help of Hulk Hogan, to prove he hasn’t felt the backlash of WrestleMania. That he isn’t a loser in the ring, and can still perform with the best of them. He’s got to prove what he’s always said he is: the show stopper. Hulk Hogan too will be facing the backlash of ‘Mania. To finish what he started at WrestleMania, and prove his point with Muhammad Hassan that he still can go in the ring. Frankly, I think this will do wonders for the WWE. I think Michaels and Hogan will officially put over the heel team of Hassan and Diavari. A lot of people (including me) have been skeptical of Hassan and Diavari’s abilities. Their ability to wrestle, their ability to perform, and most of all their ability to keep the attention around their character and their gimmick like John Bradshaw Layfield has over the last year or so. Then I think this match will also put over Shawn Michaels. Michaels, while he has always been in the spotlight, hasn’t been a major contender for the World title. I can only hope that WWE is through with handing the belt to Triple H every other month for a while. And I hope guys like Benoit, Orton, Batista, Jericho, and especially Shawn Michaels will get their chance to hold the prized World’s title. And for Hogan this is too prove to the world that Hulkamania is still going strong, and running wild in the wrestling world. While the WWE is advertising this as Hogan’s “one more match”, I think WWE and Hogan have ulterior motives. Maybe this is a test run. A trial, if you will, to see if the Hulkster still has enough gas in his tank to make one last final run. Maybe not. Maybe this is just to keep Hogan in the limelight to promote a possible future match, maybe at WrestleMania 22, between him and Stone Cold Steve Austin. Any way you look at this it’s going to in my opinion help the WWE. Help them put Hassan and Diavari over, help give Shawn Michaels the serious step in the right direction he needs, and to prove or disprove Hogan’s ability to still perform in the ring. I think it’s a win-win situation for Raw, and any way this match can possibly end will spell a major victory for the wrestling industry. I think Raw will feel the backlash of this match for months, possibly even years to come. This could be the beginning of new legacies, and possibly the end of old legacies. The backlash is in these four men’s hands!
Then folks, you have Chris Jericho. Jericho’s career has as of late taken a turn for the worse. And if you think about it, it all originates from losing one belt from one man. He lost his Intercontinental Title back this fall followed by several other defeats: He didn’t even become a final factor in the New Years Revolution Elimination Chamber, didn’t leave his mark on the Royal Rumble match, and lost in the Money In The Bank Ladder match at WrestleMania. And to top it all off, the Money In The Bank Ladder match was originally his idea in the first place. To say Chris Jericho is feeling the backlash of losing the Incontinental title is a understatement to say the least. And who did Jericho lose that belt to? His opponent at Backlash, Shelton Benjamin. He’ll have a chance to erase this recent losing streak, and bad luck in one match by regaining his prized IC belt and proving that the backlash of his recent defeats isn’t strong enough to keep him from becoming champion once again. If he’s going to beat Shelton, I think he’s got to show Benjamin the backlash of his frustration. Let the frustration out, and let the championship reign began!
Wrestling fans the name of this months Pay-Per-View is quite simply put the truth. This PPV is about the ‘Backlash’ of choices, consequences, and actions of wrestlers and their title belts. Making your opponent feel the backlash, letting your fans see the backlash unfold, and making a impact following ‘Mania that makes your opponent feel the backlash is what this is all about. Backlash is more then the title of this event, and more then the theme of this event. It’s the foundation of the PPV itself. This is the beginning, and end of feuds. The making, or breaking of legends and legacies. And the time to retain, or regain for some champions and their challengers. It’s time to make a choice. It’s all down to this. 2005 will much depend on the backlash that occurs. Feeling the backlash is in the hands of the beholder.
Thanks to everyone at “TheWrestlingVoice” for voting me as the most controversial columnist in wrestling today. While this column was laid back, and mellow. You can bet we’ll be back to creating controversy next week. I have something planned for next week. Something that may shock you, and frankly may shock me. So please, please, please don’t miss next week’s duration. I promise, you do NOT want to miss next week’s masterpiece. From the self-proclaimed and wrestling world acclaimed most controversial columnist, this is me saying I’ll see you all back here for another edition next week.
Till Next Time…..
Have A Nice Day, The Wright Way!
“No one, and I mean no one has the outspoken attitude I bring to my column. I take pride in saying what I believe, and not caring what people think. If you care what people think, I think that effects your ability as a columnist. Am I controversial? Yes. Do I give you my true honest opinion? Yes.” – Jordon Wright
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