10 Positives Heading Into WWE Backlash 2016

This Sunday marks something of a double-whammy of returns for WWE. Not only will we be seeing our first brand-exclusive pay-per-view since No Way Out 2007, but we’ll also be witnessing the resurrection of Backlash after a seven-year hiatus.

That in itself could be seen as a major positive, given the rich history of the Backlash PPV; a show with a highlight reel that includes Shane McMahon falling from the top of the stage and John Cena being chokeslammed through a giant spotlight.

I’m not saying that we should be expecting that kind of mayhem this time around, but we should still be expecting a decent showing in the PPV’s big re-debut.

The SmackDown brand has done a pretty decent job of building the show in the 21 days it’s had to do so, with plenty to look forward to on Sunday night. This article recaps some of those reasons to be optimistic, as we take a look at ten positives heading into WWE Backlash.

At Backlash, we’ll be seeing the finals of a tag team tournament and consequently the crowning of the first-ever SmackDown Tag Team Champions.

As well as being a great thing for the overall card - you can just about guarantee it’s going to be a top-quality match - the fact that they opted to go with a tournament to determine the inaugural champions is another major positive.

Rather than simply throwing the two most popular teams together, staging a tournament will make the eventual final at Backlash feel all the more important, but more crucially than that, it’s dispelled the worries that there weren’t enough tag team to justify an entire SmackDown tag division.

Admittedly they had to call in the Headbangers along the way, but even so; if you’ve got enough bodies for a 16-man, eight-team tournament then that means you’ve got enough for a whole division in my eyes.

Long story short; this format proves that a lack of depth isn’t going to be an issue at Backlash or beyond.