WWE Backlash left fans talking about more than just IYO SKY’s victory over Asuka. The post-match interaction between the two stars quickly sparked speculation that “The Empress of Tomorrow” may have been saying goodbye to WWE altogether.
Following the event, several WWE talents shared emotional messages directed toward Asuka on social media, fueling rumors that her in-ring career could be winding down. A report from Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer indicated that Asuka was considered “semi-retired,” adding even more uncertainty to the situation.
According to a new report from Fightful Select, there is still no clear answer internally regarding Asuka’s status. Many within the WWE locker room reportedly do not know whether Backlash marked the end of her full-time run or if she is simply stepping away for a break. The confusion reportedly extends to WWE creative as well, with staff said to be unsure about the company’s long-term plans for her.
Despite the speculation, one point appears to be consistent backstage: the match against IYO SKY was not viewed as Asuka’s retirement bout. The belief is that she will wrestle again at some point in the future.
The report also notes that Asuka signed a new long-term WWE deal in 2024, although the exact length of the contract has not been disclosed publicly. It remains unknown whether recent WWE budget-related changes — including reported requests for some talents to take pay reductions — had any impact on her situation.
Another topic reportedly discussed backstage is the recent release of Kairi Sane. Sane’s departure came as a surprise to many, especially given her close on-screen and real-life connection with Asuka as part of the Kabuki Warriors. While there is no confirmation that Sane’s release directly affected Asuka’s outlook, the report states that several people within WWE were unhappy with how the duo had been utilized over the past year.
There was reportedly frustration over the limited television focus placed on Asuka and Sane throughout late 2024 and early 2025, particularly because many believed the storyline involving the Kabuki Warriors and IYO SKY had strong potential if given more consistent development.
For now, Asuka’s WWE future remains uncertain, but it does not appear that fans have seen the last of her inside the ring.
John Cena made an appearance at WWE Backlash 2026 to unveil a brand-new WWE project centered around the next generation of talent.
During the segment, Cena officially announced the creation of the “John Cena Classic,” a new WWE event that will feature crossover matches between WWE main roster stars and talent from WWE NXT.
The WWE legend reflected on his retirement match against GUNTHER at Saturday Night’s Main Event back in December and specifically pointed to Oba Femi’s breakout appearance on the same show as inspiration for the concept. Cena praised Femi’s rise over the past several months, noting that the powerhouse has since become one of the top stars on Raw and famously retired Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 42.
According to Cena, the goal of the John Cena Classic is to continue giving younger talent major opportunities on a big stage while allowing established WWE stars to help elevate the next wave of performers.
Cena also announced that the event will introduce a brand-new championship with a unique twist attached to it.
In one of the more surprising details of the announcement, Cena stated that fans will have direct input in determining the champion regardless of the actual in-ring result. He explained that the WWE Universe will be able to vote on who becomes champion, meaning a wrestler could potentially lose their match and still walk away with the title.
While Cena shared the overall concept for the event and championship, he did not reveal additional details about how the voting system will work. WWE also did not unveil the championship belt itself during the segment.
No official date for the inaugural John Cena Classic was announced at Backlash.
.@JohnCena just announced the John Cena Classic! 👏
Stream WWE Backlash LIVE RIGHT NOW on the @espn App with ESPN Unlimited!
WWE Backlash 2026 delivered a packed night featuring championship clashes, surprise comedy chaos, and a brutal main event that left Roman Reigns barely standing by the end of the show.
Here are the full results and highlights from WWE Backlash 2026.
Bron Breakker def. Seth Rollins
Backlash opened with an explosive showdown between Bron Breakker and Seth Rollins, and the two wasted no time turning the match into a war.
Rollins came flying out of the gate with multiple dives to the outside, but Breakker eventually turned the momentum around after catching Seth with a massive belly-to-belly suplex over the ropes to the floor.
The former World Heavyweight Champion battled back repeatedly with superkicks, Buckle Bombs, and a Pedigree, while Breakker answered with brutal power offense and multiple spears throughout the match.
Late in the contest, Paul Heyman attempted to distract Rollins from ringside while Austin Theory and Logan Paul appeared at ringside. Rollins fought them off with a steel chair before returning to the ring, only to get nearly split in half by another spear.
After surviving a Pedigree and Blackout combination, Breakker finally finished Rollins off with a devastating spear for the victory.
Winner: Bron Breakker via pinfall
Trick Williams def. Sami Zayn to retain the WWE Men’s United States Championship
Sami Zayn challenged Trick Williams for the WWE Men’s United States Championship in a highly physical contest that also featured plenty of interference from Lil Yachty at ringside.
The match featured strong back-and-forth action, including Zayn delivering a Blue Thunder Driver for a near fall and Trick responding with a Book End and several close calls of his own.
Lil Yachty repeatedly inserted himself into the match using a candy cane kendo stick, creating several distractions that nearly cost both men the match.
Zayn appeared close to victory after taking Yachty out at ringside and setting up for the Helluva Kick, but Williams avoided the move at the last second and connected with Trickshot to retain his championship.
After the match, Yachty celebrated in the ring alongside Williams.
Winner: Trick Williams via pinfall to retain the WWE Men’s United States Championship
Danhausen & Minihausen def. The Miz & Kit Wilson
One of the night’s more bizarre moments came when Danhausen revealed his mystery partner: Minihausen.
The comedic tag team match quickly turned chaotic, featuring cloning machine antics, multiple Minihausens appearing during the closing moments, and plenty of trademark Danhausen absurdity.
Minihausen impressed early with high-flying offense before The Miz and Kit Wilson isolated him for much of the match.
The finish came after the cloning machine seemingly produced several additional Minihausens, creating enough confusion for Danhausen to connect with a pump kick on The Miz for the victory.
Winners: Danhausen & Minihausen via pinfall
IYO SKY def. Asuka
IYO SKY and Asuka delivered one of the strongest in-ring matches of the night in a hard-hitting, emotional battle.
The two traded submission attempts, strikes, counters, and several near falls throughout the contest. Asuka targeted SKY’s arm repeatedly while IYO answered with her trademark speed and aerial offense.
One of the biggest moments came when Asuka attempted to use mist on top of the announce desk, only for IYO to block it using Wade Barrett’s notebook before countering into a huge dive.
After escaping the Asuka Lock late in the match, SKY finally connected with her signature moonsault to secure the victory.
Following the match, the emotional moment continued as Asuka embraced IYO, raised her hand, and showed respect to her longtime rival and student.
Winner: IYO SKY via pinfall
John Cena announces the “John Cena Classic”
John Cena appeared at Backlash to make a major announcement regarding the future of WWE.
Cena revealed the creation of the “John Cena Classic,” a new WWE event designed to showcase current WWE stars alongside rising NXT talent. During the promo, Cena specifically praised names such as Sol Ruca, Je’Von Evans, and Oba Femi.
Cena also announced a new championship tied to the event, with fans reportedly being given voting power in determining the champion, even allowing a wrestler to potentially lose a match but still win the title through fan voting.
The WWE legend stated he hopes the event becomes a long-running tradition moving forward.
Roman Reigns def. Jacob Fatu to retain the WWE Men’s World Championship
The main event saw Roman Reigns defend the WWE Men’s World Championship against Jacob Fatu in a violent and physical clash.
Fatu immediately proved he belonged in the spotlight, matching Reigns shot-for-shot while repeatedly surviving major offense, including Superman Punches and spears.
Roman attempted to target Fatu’s arm throughout the match, but the “Samoan Werewolf” continued fighting back with powerbombs, sentons, moonsaults, and the dangerous Tongan Death Grip submission.
The action escalated when Fatu powerbombed Reigns through the announce desk before later kicking out of another spear.
After a chaotic closing stretch involving an exposed turnbuckle and referee involvement, Reigns finally managed to put Fatu away with one final spear to retain the championship.
However, the story didn’t end there.
Following the match, Fatu snapped and brutally attacked Reigns, referees, and WWE officials. Raw General Manager Adam Pearce, Jason Jordan, Jamie Noble, and even Shane Helms attempted to stop him, but Fatu continued assaulting everyone in sight.
The show ended with Jacob Fatu standing tall over a destroyed Roman Reigns while holding the championship belt high.
Winner: Roman Reigns via pinfall to retain the WWE Men’s World Championship
WWE Backlash 2026 Results Recap
Bron Breakker def. Seth Rollins
Trick Williams def. Sami Zayn to retain the WWE Men’s United States Championship
Danhausen & Minihausen def. The Miz & Kit Wilson
IYO SKY def. Asuka
Roman Reigns def. Jacob Fatu to retain the WWE Men’s World Championship
WWE Backlash – Saturday May 5, 2026 – 6 ET/3 PT on the ESPN App with an ESPN Unlimited Plan in the United States and Netflix internationally – Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, FL.
The first hour to air on ESPN 2.
John Cena to make an announcement.
CARD
World Heavyweight Championship: Roman Reigns (c) vs. Jacob Fatu
Seth Rollins vs. Bron Breakker
United States Championship: Trick Williams (c) vs. Sami Zayn
John Cena has officially confirmed that he will be appearing at this Saturday’s WWE Backlash event in Tampa, Florida — and according to the Undisputed WWE Champion, he plans to make a major announcement.
Taking to X on Monday, Cena revealed that he will be live at Backlash inside Benchmark Arena and teased that he’ll be delivering “history-making” news during the show.
While keeping the details under wraps, Cena hinted that whatever is planned could have a significant impact on both WWE talent and fans moving forward.
“I can’t promise it will be perfect,” Cena wrote, “but I can promise it will change the WWE experience for Superstars and fans.”
This latest tease follows a message Cena posted on April 23, where he told fans he was still planning to do “something epic” in Tampa on May 9. At the time, he specifically referenced Club WWE and encouraged fans to stay tuned for further updates.
Speculation surrounding Cena’s involvement grew over the weekend after the venue began advertising him for the premium live event.
WWE Backlash will stream live this Saturday, with the event airing on ESPN Unlimited in the United States and on Netflix internationally. WWE also announced that the first hour of the show will be available free on ESPN 2 for U.S. viewers.
The event is scheduled to begin at 6:00 PM ET / 3:00 PM PT.
It’s official! I’m headed to #WWEBacklash! After months of planning and effort, I am SO excited to break some history-making news! I can’t promise it’ll be perfect but I can promise it will change the WWE experience for Superstars and fans!
For weeks, it looked like WWE was steering directly toward a high-profile singles clash between IYO SKY and Asuka at WrestleMania 42. The tension has been there, the interactions have been building, and even a public challenge was thrown into the mix—but as of now, the match still hasn’t been made official, and the latest backstage update suggests things may not be as locked in as fans expected.
The situation took an interesting turn following last week’s episode of Raw, where Asuka called out SKY, only for “The Genius of the Sky” to respond with a WrestleMania challenge on social media. That alone felt like a clear signal the match was imminent. Typically, WWE doesn’t push talent to make those kinds of public challenges unless there’s a plan in place.
However, that momentum stalled. On this week’s Raw, SKY faced Kairi Sane, Asuka’s Damage CTRL ally, and while Asuka got involved to cost SKY the match, WWE still stopped short of confirming the WrestleMania bout. That raised eyebrows—and now we may know why.
According to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, the match is currently in a state of uncertainty. While it hasn’t been outright canceled, it also hasn’t been finalized. Meltzer noted that SKY even removed her WrestleMania challenge from social media, which only adds to the confusion surrounding the situation.
Behind the scenes, there’s reportedly been talk that the match could be shifted to Backlash instead. While that’s not a definite decision, it’s being considered, especially given WrestleMania Sunday’s already packed lineup. At one point, SKY vs. Asuka was expected to land on night two of the event, but timing constraints may have forced WWE to rethink their plans.
At this stage, the door isn’t completely closed on the match happening at WrestleMania—but it’s far from guaranteed. Whether it gets squeezed onto the card last-minute or saved for a future premium live event, the company is clearly still weighing its options.
For now, fans hoping to see SKY and Asuka collide on the biggest stage of the year may have to wait a little longer—or at least keep a close eye on any last-minute changes leading into WrestleMania weekend.
WWE’s first premium live event following WrestleMania XL delivered on chaos, surprises, and hard-hitting drama. With four championship matches, an unexpected debut, and a main event filled with controversy, Backlash 2025 set the tone for a turbulent summer in WWE.
United States Championship Fatal 4-Way: Jacob Fatu (c) def. Drew McIntyre, Damian Priest, and LA Knight
The United States Championship match exploded into action from the opening bell, with each man quickly rekindling post-WrestleMania rivalries. While Drew McIntyre and Damian Priest battled outside, LA Knight used the chaos to send Jacob Fatu crashing into the ring post. Momentum swung early and often, with Knight briefly taking control before Priest, McIntyre, and the champ started a cycle of signature offense.
An explosive exchange saw Fatu deliver a senton to McIntyre, only to eat Knight’s BFT, which led to a Priest chokeslam, followed by a Claymore from McIntyre — but no pinfall.
As the ring cleared, McIntyre seemed poised for victory after hitting Knight with a Claymore, but Priest yanked him out of the ring, robbing him once again. That sparked a brutal brawl between the two up the ramp and into the timekeeper’s area, culminating in Priest hitting South of Heaven off a production box through a table.
Back in the ring, Knight nearly had it won with a pair of elbow drops on Fatu — but the Samoan Werewolf refused to stay down. Just when Knight looked ready to end it, Solo Sikoa appeared to rescue the champion, dragging him to safety. That distraction allowed a mystery man, revealed to be Jeff Cobb, to ambush Knight.
Cobb demolished LA and fed him to a confused but opportunistic Fatu, who hit a moonsault for the pin. The champ retained, but his post-match stare-down with Sikoa and the debuting Cobb hinted that bigger moves may be in motion.
In a fiercely contested bout, Lyra Valkyria proved she’s more than a rising star — she’s a fighting champion. The challenger, Becky Lynch, leaned hard into her heel tendencies, taunting both the crowd and Lyra’s fiancé at ringside, using every trick in the book to get under the champ’s skin.
Despite Lynch’s mind games and underhanded tactics — including exposing a turnbuckle and going for a steel chair — Valkyria stayed composed. A key sequence saw her hit a devastating top-rope leg drop and later a Nightwing, but a delayed count due to Carr’s distraction allowed Lynch to kick out.
The finish came after a frenzied exchange of reversals and an eye poke from Lynch. Valkyria outsmarted the veteran by reversing a roll-up for the three-count. Lynch lost it post-match, refusing to release a Dis-Arm-Her on the champ. It took GM Adam Pearce and officials to restore order, with commentary speculating Valkyria may have suffered a broken nose.
Penta gave Dirty Dom all he could handle in this first-time-ever match, taking early control and stunning the champ with a destroyer on the apron. But Judgment Day’s presence loomed large, and when Penta dove onto Carlito and JD McDonagh, Finn Bálor was able to distract the referee.
That allowed El Grande Americano to strike — headbutting Penta with a loaded mask just as he prepared for a high-flying attack. Mysterio hit a frog splash to steal the win and retain the Intercontinental Championship. The Judgment Day stood tall on the ramp, looking more unified than they have in weeks.
Gunther def. Pat McAfee via Submission
Pat McAfee returned to the ring in front of a hyped St. Louis crowd, but found out quickly that Gunther doesn’t do comedy matches. The Austrian juggernaut brutalized McAfee with his signature stiff offense, but the commentator-turned-wrestler showed incredible heart.
A spirited comeback — and some help from Michael Cole, who actually grabbed Gunther’s foot — gave McAfee a glimmer of hope. A sleeper and roll-up nearly shocked the world, but in the end, Gunther’s technical dominance was too much. He choked McAfee out cold, winning via submission while sending a message that even entertainment personalities aren’t safe in his ring.
Undisputed WWE Championship: John Cena (c) def. Randy Orton
In a wild, main event clash filled with mind games and veteran counters, John Cena once again walked away as Undisputed Champion — but not without controversy.
The match began with mutual gamesmanship and turned personal quickly. Cena poked Orton in the eye during a fake handshake, and it was off to the races. The Viper dished out punishment with stomps, DDTs, and even a table spot on the outside. Cena responded with multiple Attitude Adjustments and even tried a punt kick of his own.
Ref bumps, interference teases, and multiple finisher kickouts left the match teetering on chaos. After Orton fought off GM Nick Aldis’ staff, R-Truth tried to intervene, only to be dropped with an RKO. That allowed Cena to blast Orton with the championship belt. With the referee slowly getting into position, Cena covered and scored the controversial win.
Post-match, Cena declared himself the last real champion and dismissed the crowd — but when a “Thank you Cena” chant broke out, the 16-time world champ paused, appearing to fight off emotion before walking to the back, title in hand.
John Cena attacks R-Truth at the WWE Backlash Press Conference
The WWE Backlash post-show press conference in St. Louis took an unexpected turn when 17-time World Champion John Cena made a surprise appearance—one that ended with R-Truth eating a table.
After quietly exchanging a few words with WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque, Cena took the mic to a big reaction. Levesque dubbed him the “Greatest of All-Time” before handing over the floor, and Cena stepped up in a notably subdued tone. Sounding more like one of his introspective tweets than the fiery Cena fans are used to, the champ said he felt it was time to “step forward” and address the media personally following his latest successful title defense.
Cena promised to answer any question the press had, starting with one about his longtime rival and opponent from the Backlash main event, Randy Orton. But before he could get a word in, chaos arrived in the form of R-Truth.
Bursting into the room, Truth excitedly called out for his “childhood hero,” clearly thrilled to see Cena after his big win. At first, Cena took the interruption in stride with a smile. That changed quickly when Truth, in his usual mix of comedy and confusion, mentioned that some people say Cena “sucks and can’t wrestle.”
That struck a nerve.
Cena’s demeanor darkened, warning Truth that he’d crossed a line and better not push his luck. But, of course, Truth being Truth, he didn’t stop talking.
That’s when Cena snapped—lifting Truth and sending him crashing through the press conference table in front of a stunned media crowd.
While the status of Truth after the attack hasn’t been officially updated, it’s clear that Cena’s current title run is coming with a new edge—and a much shorter fuse. As for the soul-searching Cena alluded to? If this moment is any indication, it may be leading him down a darker path than fans are used to.
WWE Hall of Famer Edge was reportedly injured while filming re-takes for the Backlash loss to Randy Orton.
As noted, Edge reportedly suffered a torn triceps in his right arm. Dave Meltzer noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that WWE filmed parts of the match multiple times, and Edge was hurt during the second tapings. There’s no word yet on exactly which spot caused the injury, but Edge was reportedly hurt during the second taping while they were going over re-takes.
WWE did everything they could to keep the injury, and the match result, quiet. The match was first filmed back on Sunday, June 7.
It’s likely that we will hear more on the injury now that the match has aired. A torn triceps usually requires around 8 months or so of recovery time, plus surgery, but there is no timetable for Edge’s return as of this writing.
(Kickoff) United States Championship: Apollo Crews (c) vs. Andrade w/Zelina Vega and Angel Garza
Winner: Apollo Crews
WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship: Sasha Banks and Bayley (c) vs. The IIconics vs. Nikki Cross and Alexa Bliss
Winners: Sasha Banks and Bayley
Jeff Hardy vs. Sheamus
Winner: Sheamus
RAW Women’s Championship: Asuka (c) vs. Nia Jax
Double Count Out
Universal Championship – 2-on-1 Handicap Match: Braun Strowman (c) vs. The Miz and John Morrison
Winner: Braun Strowman
WWE Championship: Drew McIntyre (c) vs. Bobby Lashley w/MVP
Winner: Drew McIntyre
– After the bell, Drew is face-down on the mat but he gets up after the WWE Title is handed to him. MVP is frustrated. Lashley is down. Lana looks on from ringside and is still down, possibly about to cry. MVP stares her down. Lashley walks over and stands with MVP, then follows him to the back after looking down at his wife. Lana starts to get emotional while still on the ground
– The announcers are interrupted as the camera cuts outside to The Viking Raiders and RAW Tag Team Champions The Street Profits brawling. They damage the car of WWE Universal Champion Braun Strowman. Erik, Ivar, Montez Ford and Angelo Dawkins all stop in fear and retreat inside.
The brawl continues backstage. Ford and Dawkins pull out golf clubs and get ready to fight but they turn around to Erik and Ivar, with shields and their axes. They stop and agree on fighting like men, in the ring. They all put their weapons down and The Street Profits strike first. They continue fighting through backstage as intense music plays. Dawkins and Erik fight off to another area. Ivar picks up a bowling ball and has flashbacks to the recent bowling competition on RAW. He then bowls the ball to Ford, right between his legs. Ford sells it and Ivar walks off, apologizing, fam.
Ivar finds Erik down outside. Dawkins runs and tackles him through a glass door. They land on the debris. Ivar has a flashback to eating turkey legs. “Anything you can do,” Ivar says. “We can do better,” Dawkins adds. Erik and Ford come over and they comment on how quickly everything has escalated. They limp over to the parking lot to continue the fight but here come a group of people on motorcycles. One man steps off and approaches. He takes his helmet off and it’s Akira Tozawa. “Anything you can do, we can do better,” Tozawa tells the two teams. He tosses his helmet at Ivar. He throws it away. The Profits and The Vikings get in a huddle. It’s time to do this together, take out the ninjas on motorcycles.
They stand together as The Viking Profits now, turkey legs and red cups in hand. And they want the smoke. Tozawa calls for his ninjas and they stand next to him. They take turns attacking The Profits and The Vikings but get taken out. These are mostly comedy takedowns. Tozawa calls for his back up and it’s a very large man. So large that both of the tag teams are stunned. The large man goes to take out his sword but Ivar takes a bite from a turkey leg, which he summons from the bush it was earlier knocked into. But even that’s not enough as Ivar is too shocked to attack. Erik wants to attack but Dawkins holds him back. The two teams climb to the top of an 18 wheeler. Ivar is out of breath and can’t keep up with the other three. He finally catches up and Ford says he wouldn’t be so tired if he wasn’t obsessed with turkey legs. Erik says he’s tired because he beat all the ninjas up. The Profits take credit for beating the most up. The Profits and The Vikings fight on top of the truck now. Dawkins and Erik go over the side. Ford stands with Ivar and says they’re supposed to be together. Ivar shoves him off and he also lands in the dumpster with Dawkins and Erik. Ivar leaps and lands in the trash with them.
Ivar has flashbacks to the other challenges from recent weeks, with the women telling Ivar he’s cute but not Erik. The female referee appears on a ladder next to the dumpster. She asks the two teams what they’re doing because their match is next. She also thinks Ivar is cute but not Erik. There’s something alive under the trash bags now, growling. All four of the Superstars start scrambling to get out of the dumpster. We see some sort of dragon’s tail coming from under the trash bags, maybe Loch Ness? The bizarre and lengthy segment abruptly ends and goes to a break.
Randy Orton vs. Edge (Billed as the Greatest Wrestling Match Ever)
– After the match, Orton is slow to get up while Edge is flat on his back in the middle of the ring. Orton crawls over, still down low to the mat, and has more words for Edge in his face. Orton is saying something to Edge about going home to be with his family, and tell them Uncle Randy said hi. Orton gets back to his feet and has his arm raised while the music plays. We go to replays. Orton hits the corner to pose as referees enter the ring to check on Edge. Orton watches from the ramp as Edge apparently refuses help from the referees. Edge looks disappointed and defeated as Orton smirks back at him from the ramp. The 2020 WWE Backlash pay-per-view goes off the air.
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