Predicting WWE Backlash 2025 Match Card After WrestleMania 41

For the first time in what feels like a long time, Backlash is quite the fitting name for the WWE premium live event immediately following a WrestleMania. 

That single word is, after all, the overwhelming feeling exiting WrestleMania 41, where John Cena's dethroning of Cody Rhodes oddly featured Travis Scott and not The Rock, creating a groundswell of negativity. 

WWE has a chance to turn things around at Backlash on May 10 in St. Louis, though. The PLE's cover star and hometown hero, Randy Orton, figures to take center stage. 

Beyond that, it figures to be another standard Triple H-directed PLE, meaning just a handful of critical matches featuring prominent feuds and outcomes. Remember, Backlash last year had just five matches, four of them with titles at stake.

Such a card will feature many of the titles that changed hands at 'Mania and/or storylines that didn't come to an end there.

Here's a look at a predicted match card in no particular order—besides that super-obvious main event at the end.

WWE didn't bring back Becky Lynch right now just to have her compete in tag matches, nor did it bring her back to watch her fade away and not be on major programs again. 

And no, it didn't bring her back and turn her heel for nothing. 

Lynch and Lyra Valkyria dropping the women's tag belts they won at WrestleMania the very next night led to the heel turn, which will undoubtedly lead to a feud over the women's intercontinental title. 

No need to drag this out. Fans get a few weeks to hear the why behind The Man's actions before a big match.

All of this, it seems, is directly aimed at continuing to boost Valkyria, with names such as Bayley likely floating in the background waiting. 

Of the many title changes at 'Mania, one of the easiest to forget already was Jacob Fatu besting LA Knight for the United States title. 

That's not meant to throw shade at Fatu—before long, we'll be seeing him in much, much bigger moments for top titles. 

For now, though, WWE seems likely to get the ball rolling slowly on his title reign while stuff above him sorts out.

Until then…Solo Sikoa. There's some lingering, interesting stuff there worth exploring and, frankly, WWE needs to do something to get Sikoa back in a good spot that doesn't involve Roman Reigns. 

And if nothing else, Backlash will need some space-eating matches to keep things well-paced.

There's zero chance WWE takes its foot off the gas when it comes to Dominik Mysterio now he's got the intercontinental title around his waist. 

First up, a quick one-off to really get him some momentum, likely against one of the names he bested at WrestleMania in the Fatal Four-Way match that went just 10:30 in runtime. 

WWE already did this on the Raw after ‘Mania with Mysterio’s match against Penta. 

More interesting and PLE-worthy, though, would be a defense against Finn Bálor, his Judgment Day stablemate. 

Mysterio springboarding off the Irishman to bigger things feels pretty predictable, but also necessary, especially at this level of PLE. 

Is Jey Uso a transitional champion or something more? 

It’s probably too early to get a good read on that, but the first title shot will go to someone deserving now that the logjam has been cleared a bit in the wake of his big WrestleMania win over Gunther. 

Drew McIntyre, on the other hand, got put on the back-burner a bit at the weekend but remains a top dog in WWE, too. After his brief Street Fight win over Damian Priest on Sunday, there's certainly room for him to step into something much bigger at the next PLE. 

Make no mistake, the foreshadowing with Sami Zayn standing in the background as Jey celebrated his championship win on Monday night was right there. But having Zayn turn on him in just a few weeks doesn't feel right. 

Until then, Jey can build some credibility, if he's to keep the title anyway, by beating McIntyre. 

This one feels like a coin flip—does WWE really fast-track this? 

If WWE positions Paul Heyman's modern Evolution-like stable as the next Bloodline after its debut on Monday night, then this match at Backlash is likely a must-have. 

WWE could smell money being printed last year when Reigns and Punk had a shaky alliance, anyway. There's so much more meat on the bone in terms of their interactions and now both have been betrayed by Heyman. 

This wouldn't main-event, which makes it a little awkward. But it could easily be a vehicle to introduce more members of Heyman's faction, such as, say…Becky Lynch or an up-and-comer or two from NXT that Breakker has feuded with in the past. 

About that super-obvious main event. 

When fans ran down the list of possible opponents for Cena on his retirement tour, even long before he beat Rhodes, Orton was right there at the top. 

It’s only fitting, then, that Orton is first up in Cena's string of title defenses. Beyond the above, the fact that The Viper has been hovering away from title scenes and had a quick ‘Mania match due to a change of plan means he's more than deserving to get in the picture first. 

WWE didn't waste any time on the Raw after 'Mania, either, having Orton put an end to Cena's standard victorious heel promo with a physical altercation. 

Granted, it's hard to see Orton actually winning in front of his hometown fans in St. Louis on May 10. It's more likely Cena will go for a mega-heat angle by cheating in front of a hostile crowd to keep his title reign going. 

But that's not really the point, is it? This is by far the main event and likely last time fans will ever see this matchup, elevating an annual mid-tier PLE to something more.