Author: Brian Campbell / Source: CBSSports.com
Significance of Greatest Royal Rumble
Let’s face it: WWE finds itself in the midst of a weird stretch as far as booking is concerned in the aftermath of WrestleMania 34. While the Superstar Shakeup provided two weeks of strong content, the forced addition of last Friday’s Greatest Royal Rumble card from Saudi Arabia certainly played a huge role in some of the questionable creative decisions which followed.
So too did the announcement of dual-branded pay-per-view cards for the rest of 2018, which have created more questions than answers as to which direction many of the top superstars are headed.All of this has conspired to create a palpable lack of buzz heading into Sunday’s Backlash show. Not only has the card been lost in the shuffle behind the pomp and circumstance of Saudi Arabia, it has yet to acquire an identity, especially after Monday’s disappointing go-home episode of Raw. For all of the buzz created by Brock Lesnar and Roman Reigns over the past four weeks, the two superstars won’t be facing each other on Sunday. And for all of the high spots and energy created by Seth Rollins and Finn Balor in Monday’s incredible main event, those two won’t be meeting at Backlash either.
Raw lacked any kind of electricity from segment to segment, and outside of both the main event and a strong Ruby Riott-Sasha Banks match, left viewers without much to speak about either positive or negative. Fans can respect when WWE swings big and ultimately misses due to the effort of trying. Instead, this week’s Raw felt much like a hangover with those involved still fatigued from the grueling travel and exorbitant hype paid to the Greatest Royal Rumble.
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Seth Rollins outlasts Finn Balor in a classic
Rollins entered the ring earlier in the night to chants of “ole” and “you deserve it” from the adoring crowd. The Architect popped them just a bit more — in what would become a theme for the evening 00 by stumbling through a “merci beaucoup” in French. After Rollins took a surprising shot at an absent Brock Lesnar for not being a fighting champion, Balor produced his own pop by greeting the fans in French and asking for a title shot. Rollins left the decision up to the approving crowd but was interrupted by Miztourage. Referencing their mistake of trying to create a new faction with both last week, Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel revealed t-shirts with all four of their faces on it. Balor and Rollins turned down the offer for a Four Horsemen-like stable and fought off Miztourage’s attack. Balor then attacked Rollins to a chorus of boos from the crowd.
The match was high energy from the very start. The biggest spot came when Rollins’ superplex was countered by a Falcon Arrow from Balor for a dramatic two count. A wild finishing sequence saw Balor miss his Coup de Grace and Rollins twice miss Stomp attempts. Balor eventually ran into a stiff superkick before Rollins finally hit a Stomp to end the match.
As far as free TV matches go, this was about as good as it gets. Both superstars emptied the jar to, at the very least, send fans home happy after a disappointing night. Whether or not Rollins hangs on to his title against The Miz on Sunday, here’s to hoping this is just the beginning for a lengthy and electric feud against Balor with match-of-the-year potential once they finally meet in a one-on-one opportunity at a pay-per-view. Grade: A-
.@WWERollins & @FinnBalor know each other SO WELL, but only ONE can walk out of Montreal as #ICChampion! #RAW#ICTitlepic.twitter.com/Fhbs07fKB3
— WWE (@WWE)
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