Backlash Preview

Live from Baltimore, MD at 8:00 tonight!

Seems like forever since WrestleMania, doesn't it? This show seems to have a good deal of potential, and may I remind you, there is a certain gentleman missing from the card who happens to have a briefcase with him at all times. He'd better not use it on anything but the WWF title; that should be a rule.

Let's take a look at the lineup, shall we? As always, these are in projected match order:

WCW United States Championship
MVP vs. Matt Hardy
I love this feud. Loooooooooove it. It's a beautiful throwback to the years of blood feuds that spanned years rather than weeks - although they don't have to keep fighting each other directly, I hope these two continue to thwart each other at every turn for years to come.

Winner: MVP
My Pick: MVP, in a disputed finish so that we can see more of this

ECW Championship
Kane vs. Chavo Guerrero

This took about two seconds at Wrestlemania - why are we supposed to buy the rematch on PPV?

Winner: Kane
My Pick: Kane, quickly

Shawn Michaels vs. Batista
Special Referee - Chris Jericho

I've actaully enjoyed the build for this, there's a somewhat justifiable reason why they're fighting. Michaels now is what Flair was back in the day, he can carry pretty much anybody to ***+. Let's hope he shows it tonight, because he has a hell of a lug to work with.

Winner: Shawn Michaels
My Pick: Batista - come on, the big guy needs some kind of momentum

The Great Khali vs. The Big Show

The build for this, on the other hand, has centered around the fact that if you're really tall and you see another really tall person, you need to stare them down. Sometimes hit them, even.

Winner: Big Show, who's apparently due for a feud with the Taker.
My Pick: Big Show; I want Khali off of television, and they can just edit this for India to make it look like he won anyway.


WCW Championship
The Undertaker vs. Edge

I was quite impressed by their match at Wrestlemania (one of those where the first ten minutes sucks, but you're rewarded if you stick with it) and I hope they get even more time here. This probably ends up being the match of the night, but the four-way could always steal the show there.

Winner: Undertaker, of course
My Pick: Canada's Finest

12-Diva Tag Team Match

Hey! Mickie's the champ again! Sweet!

Winner: Baltimore Arena concessions operators
My Pick: Parmesan Goldfish, a fine snack if there ever was one

WWF Championship
John Cena vs. JBL vs. Randy Orton vs. Triple H


If this doesn't go on last, then Orton's your winner here. Good promo work by each guy leading up to the match, and hopefully they can live up to the four-way at Backlash last year.

Winner: Triple H
My Pick: Well, again, it depends on my level of sobriety. When hammered, I'm a huge mark for Cena. However, my thought is that if Triple H gets the belt, he might say "hey, this belt looks like a piece of shit" and ask the Powers that Be for a new design. In return for that - mark my words now - I'm willing to accept up to 9 months of Triple H as champion. No complaints, I promise.

Recommendation: Is there a bar near you that's showing this? Do you live a block away from the arena? If not, I would probably just watch it via illicit channels or download the sumbitch tomorrow. No need to shell out 40 bucks for this one. I'll absolutely be watching it though, and as long as its not a horrible letdown (paging King Regal) I'll try to have a Capsule Review up tomorrow.