Every WWE Backlash World Title Match Ranked From Worst To Best

Highs and lows from the post-Mania shows.

Edge The Undertaker
WWE.com

Jinder Mahal's sudden elevation to WWE Title contender may be the most contentious booking decision the company has made in decades.

Not since John Bradshaw Layfield's one week transformation from ailing tag team cowboy to millionaire number one contender in 2004 has a title challenger been received with such bewilderment from the audience at large.

Back then, the company went a step further and put Eddie Guerrero's WWE Championship on the re-christened 'JBL' at Layfield's second attempt. As unthinkable as it may have seemed during his three minute Monday Night Raw loss to Sami Zayn just over one month ago, Jinder may earn similar reward.

WWE have made no secret of their efforts to penetrate a burgeoning Indian market also courted by Impact Wrestling, and Mahal atop the blue brand offers limitless promotional potential.

In elevating 'The Maharaja', the company's first hurdle may be their biggest. With his Backlash pay-per-view title shot set to occur in Chicago, Mahal is likely to face fierce opposition from a traditionally boisterous crowd. Furthermore, his opponent Randy Orton doesn't fit the ideal standard for a 'Windy City' favourite. If the match collapses, Jinder's momentum may fall with it.

It's an awful lot of pressure for both to overcome, but it's well-trodden ground for all company greats. In the 18 years since it's inception, Backlash has played host to some outstanding title clashes as well as some regrettable stinkers. Just where will Orton and Mahal end up amongst these era-defining contests?

15. The Two-Man Power Trip Vs Undertaker & Kane (2001)

Edge The Undertaker
WWE.com

Trapped within the inertia of Stone Cold Steve Austin's heel turn, the Two-Man Power Trip combo of 'The Rattlesnake' and Triple H are fondly remembered for their merciless beatdowns of the babyface headliners in mid-2001, but nostalgia tints what was actually a rather destructive and mishandled run.

This high stakes tag team match against The Undertaker and Kane was symbolic of the problems surrounding the unit.

Triple H was inarguably the best in-ring performer in North America at the time, assembling a litany of phenomenal encounters over the prior 18 months that had cemented him in the upper echelon. But the decision to give him Intercontinental Title for this all-belts clash brought out the worst in his detrimental style. Trading the secondary strap with Jeff Hardy, Hunter had gobbled up the popular North Carolinian in the programme, with similar abuse dished out to the other 'Team Extreme' members by Austin.

'The Rattlesnake' himself was currently floating between malevolent champion and lumbering snickering sidekick to 'The Game', who cleverly positioned himself as the de-facto muscle of the team.

'The Brothers of Destruction' didn't help things. Entering the match as tag team champions simply to drop the gold to the heels, Undertaker in particular showed visible disinterest, with a Kane character fans had grown weary of forced to do the heavy lifting for the duo. Just one month on from the greatest WrestleMania of all time, the product already looked a shadow of it's former self.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 30 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz", Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 50,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett