6 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE Payback 2023 (Results & Review)

2. Exceeding All Expectations

The feud between Trish Stratus and Becky Lynch went well beyond its sell-by date, dragging on to diminishing returns and limping into Payback for its long-overdue final chapter, nearly five months after the rivalry began.

But if the wrestlers knew that the angle was a colossal disappointment on Raw and fans had lost interest, Lynch and Stratus seemed to use that for fuel Saturday night in their steel cage match, Trish’s first time being locked inside the structure.

Both women used the cage as a weapon, battering each other into the cage repeatedly and even working in a cheese-grater spot. Both used moves that were callbacks to past opponents and allies, with Trish hitting a Widow’s Peak and Becky utilizing a Twist of Fate. They fought up top and drove each other off the top with signature moves.

Stratus looked worse for wear, sporting a huge welt on the middle of her forehead, but she and Lynch both had a physical war. It would’ve been nice if this feud was about two months shorter, but at least it closed on a really strong note.