411's PPV Preview: The Road to Backlash 2006
Posted by Leonard Hayhurst on 04.29.2006
Revenge doesn’t end here, it starts
RIC FLAIR VS. UMAGA
Background: On the April 3rd RAW Ric Flair entered the ring to address the Chicago crowd. He lost the Money in the Bank match at Wrestlemania, but was still going strong. He was interrupted by the debuting well dressed Cuban, Armando Alejandor Estrada. He called Flair old and washed up. He had the new and that was Umaga. A giant island savage then lumbered out and squashed Flair. Flair was out for week while Umaga tore through the RAW roster. On April 24th Umaga dismantled Steve Lewington. Post match Ric Flair returned to give payback via a testicular claw.
Match Up: Umaga had surprise on his side the first time against Flair, but this time he knows he's coming. This is an interesting match up as you have one of the most crafty, experienced wrestlers in history against a fresh, unknown commodity who barrels full speed ahead on pure power. Flair can't lose his cool. He needs to be that experienced veteran and not the loony geezer he has turned into on occasion. He needs to control the tempo of the match and neutralize Umaga's strength by taking his legs out from under him by building to the figure four. Estrada is a valuable commodity for Flair and he'll have to keep an eye on him, but worry about Estrada too much and Umage kills him. Umaga just needs to do what he does best. Crush Flair hard and fast before the old man can get his bearings.
Outcome: If Flair loses the match it's a sure sign that his late career push is probably over. However, WWE doesn't seem to really know what to do with Umaga and he doesn't match up well with many people on the roster. Oddly, Estrada versus Flair seems like a more interesting match up. If they want to push the feud then look for ‘crazy geezer' Flair to emerge and cause a double DQ.
CARLITO VS. CHRIS MASTERS
Background: To open the March 6th RAW Vince McMahon made several announcements, including giving Carlito Caribbean Cool and Chris Masters a WWE Tag Team Title match against Big Show and Kane at Wrestlemania. This was in spite of the fact that the two had already lost a tag title match weeks before and had been on the outs with each other since. In the main event Big Show wrestled John Cena. Carlito and Masters tried to interfere, but Kane cut them off. Earlier they faired better when Carlito spit apple chunks in Kane's face to allow Triple H to Pedigree him and win a match. On the March 20th RAW Kane defeated Carlito. He argued with Masters in the back about the loss and told Carlito to watch him to see how it's done. In his match with Show Masters took him out with a chair and then put him in he Masterlock. Show won by DQ. Kane and Carlito had a rematch on March 20th. Carlito yanked the referee into Kane for the DQ and ran off. Kane followed to be ambushed by Masters, Trevor Murdoch and Lance Cade. They threw him in a room and put a forklift in front of the door. Show scared the heels off and attempted to move the forklift by pushing it. Soon as he had it moved Kane entered from around the corner. The room had another door. This put a crimp in the plans of Masters and Carlito as Show was set to take the Masterlock challenge. Masters couldn't even get his arms around Show, so he attacked him and everyone brawled. At Wrestlemania Masters was tossed into Carlito and then sent to the floor. This left Carlito alone to take the double choke slam and lose the bout.
The next night on RAW Chris Masters easily defeated a jobber. Carlito came out to congratulate him and then turned on him. Masters took the back cracker and some apple spittle. Carlito took the ring on April 10th to let everyone know that Masters is not cool. He then strutted out to challenge Carlito to the Masterlock challenge. He wound up stealing Carlito's apple and Triple C bashed Masters with a chair. The next week Matt Striker was dressing down the crowd in the ring. Carlito came out, because Striker stole his apple. Carlito got his apple back and spit chunks of it at Striker. Masters made the save. The following week Masters and Striker teamed with Shelton Benjamin to face Carlito with Charlie Haas and RVD. Van Dam pinned Benjamin.
Match Up: Carlito and Masters were not tag team partners very long and were not very communicative when they were. This means they don't know each other as well as they might. However, Carlito has proven himself to be the much smarter ring general. He knows that Masters bread and butter his strength and the use of that to set up the Masterlock. Carlito wants to stick and move. Use his speed and unorthodox move set to get Masters off his game and off his feet. A key point would be if Matt Striker sticks with Masters as his help as a manager and a presence on the outside could be the deciding factor.
Outcome: Smartly Carlito was turned face and Masters stayed heel. Carlito matches up better with Striker and moving the feud onto him would be the way to go. Striker could interfere to give Masters the win at Backlash. Or have his interference backfire to let Carlito win and then attack him the next night on RAW. This feels like a stop gap for both men and for their betterment they should be moved onto new programs.
BIG SHOW VS. KANE
Background: The night after Wrestlemania Kane and Big Show defended the tag team titles in what seemed like a routine defense against Kenny and Mikey of the Spirit Squad. No two men could ever beat the tag champs, but five were able to cheat to win and score the major upset. On April 10th viewers were treated to a preview of Kane's upcoming movie See No Evil set for release May 19th. Kane was supposed to be interviewed about it, but was nowhere to be found. Eventually he turned up in the hallway struggling with voices in his head echoing the May 19th date. Big Show shook him from his stupor and told him they had a rematch with the Spirit Squad. The former champs had the match in hand until Kane tossed a chair into the ring to draw the disqualification. He and Show got into it. They tried to choke slam each other, but Kane won that battle and walked off. The next week on RAW Kane defeated Rob Conway. He then went after Lillian Garcia for mentioning May 19th, but she didn't. Big Show made the save and really did say May 19th. Kane tried to choke slam Show again, but this time he hit it. On April 24th Big Show confronted Kane about May 19th. This caused him to attack Big Show and try to rip out his eye. Security pulled Kane off while paramedics rushed to Show.
Match Up: Kane and Big Show are both power wrestlers pure and simple. Kane has shown some speed and agility for a man his size. He'll go to the top rope a lot quicker than Show will. As tag team partners they got to know each other very well and they've proven themselves to be pretty equal in strength. Lately Kane has been delusional and psychotic. This makes him aggressive and dangerous, but sloppy. The status of Show's eye is in question. If he only has one eye on Sunday it will cause him problems with depth perception and peripheral vision, but will Kane be in a state of mind to take advantage of that?
Outcome: Kane has a movie coming out, Big Show doesn't. You would think they would want the star of the first project from WWE films to go over big on the pay per view before the movie debuts. However, they seem to be doing one of these negative pushes. They hype the movie, by not talking about it. The feud is still fresh and the mystery of May 19th relating to Kane is still foggy. It will most likely end as a draw due to a double DQ or count out. If someone wins, it should be Kane.
TRISH STRATUS VS. MICKIE JAMES FOR THE WWE WOMEN'S TITLE
Background: Mickie James debuted months ago to save Trish Stratus and Ashley from a post match beat down by the trio of Victoria, Candice Michell and Torrie Wilson. James quickly established herself as the biggest Trish Stratus fan, aping her in and out of the ring. Trish seemed a little skittish concerning James' fanatic attitude toward her. On the RAW after Survivor Series the two trios of Divas squared off. The faces were victorious. James celebrated with Trish's WWE Women's Title and seemed reluctant to give it up. On the December 5th RAW Trish stood in James' corner as she battled Victoria. An errant kick by Trish hit Mickie and allowed Victoria to pin her. James seemed briefly steamed, but quickly shook it off. James and Victoria locked up again the following week with Trish Stratus sitting in on commentary. James won and received the title shot at Stratus for New Year's Revolution.
On December 26th Mickie James was decorating the locker room even though it was past Christmas. She pointed out to Trish that she was under the mistletoe and gave her a kiss on the lips. A stunned Trish ran off and Mickie was very embarrassed. On the RAW before the pay per view Vince McMahon asked James about the incident from the week before and she admitted to being embarrassed by it. Todd Grisham then found Trish jogging stairs to work out. He asked her about the kiss and she said it was uncomfortable. He asked about James maybe trying mind games. Trish said she wasn't sure, but it didn't matter. She then went to take a shower. Later, James is waiting for Stratus to get out of the shower so she could talk to her. She wanted to apologize. However, she made matters worse by handing Trish a towel and commenting, "hey, nice boobs." Both again were shocked and James ran off. Stratus held onto her title at New Year's Revolution, but James did not seem upset. The next night on RAW Trish put the title on the line against Ashley. James introduced Trish and jeered the crowd for not cheering louder for the Women's Champion. Ashley got a two count on Trish and this pushed Mickey to jump her. Trish pulled James off and scolded her for her actions. The next week everything seemed find as the three girls were set to team against Torrie Wilson, Candice Michelle and Victoria. James even gave her partners a slap on the rear to cheer them on. Football players do it all the time. In the match Ashley tagged in and accidentally knocked Mickie to the floor. Her temper got the best of her and she speared Ashley. Trish pulled her off and while they argued Victoria got the pin on Ashley with the Widow's Peak.
On the January 23rd RAW Mickie James confronted Trish as she stretched out. She demanded to know why Trish picked Ashley over her for her tag match that night. Trish said that if she wanted to whine she could be her partner, Mickie said no. In the match with Candice Michelle and Victoria Ashley scored the pin fall and was then promptly attacked by James. Trish once again pulled her off. Later a Royal Rumble match was announced between James and Ashley with Trish wearing the referee's stripes. Trish begrudgingly counted the winning pin fall for James. The next night on RAW Mickie celebrated Trish's awesomeness with a celebration including the Spirit Squad. Ashley came out and told Mickie that Trish thought she was a psycho and to leave her alone. Mickie attacked Ashley and Trish pulled her off.
Ashley and James had a rematch on the February 6th RAW with Trish once again the special referee. Ashley ducked a crossbody and James took out Stratus. While she checked on her, Ashley rolled her up from behind and Trish counted a quick one, two, three. In the back Mickie told Trish there were no hard feelings and that she only loved her as a friend and her idol. Trish was glad to hear that and introduced James to her date Jack. Mickie seemed jealous. The next RAW Jack entered Trish's locker room to find Mickie in a blonde wig and wearing Trish's clothes. When he rebuked her advances Mickie cried rape. Later Trish came in to find Mickie relating a false story to a security guard. Trish was shocked and comforted James. On the February 27th RAW Trish Stratus defended her Women's Title against Candice Michelle due to her winning a battle royal the week before. Stratus won and James celebrated by hugging Trish around the waist and burying her face in the champion's crotch. Needless to say Trish was uncomfortable and shoved her off. The next week the two talked with Trish finally telling James that she felt smothered by her. On March 13th Torrie Wilson accompanied Trish to the ring to face Victoria. It was announced that Wilson and Stratus would face Victoria and Candice at Saturday Night's Main Event. Trish beat Vickie with help from Torrie. However, later on Torrie would be found knocked out with a copy of Candice's Playboy magazine on top of her. With Ashley out injured, this forced Trish to team up with James for the SNME match. They would win and post match James offered a kiss and a hug. Trish refused so James hit her with the Chick Kick and the Stratusfaction.
On the March 20th RAW James stood in the ring with a present box. She understood if Trish didn't want to be her friend anymore and to show there were no hard feeling she opened the box and unwrapped the figure inside to reveal a gagged and tied Ashley. Trish ran out to make the save, but was taken out by Mickie. James bled from the nose, but liked the taste of the blood and shared with Trish by kissing her. On March 27th Mickie James was shown in her bedroom. It had pictures of Trish everywhere and candles lit. James said she once loved Trish, but now she only obsesses over her destruction. After that Trish and Torrie defeated Victoria and Candice in a tag match. At Wrestlemania James would mess up the Stratusfaction, but land the Chick Kick to take the WWE Women's Title. The next night on RAW the team of Mickie James and Candice Michelle defeated Trish Stratus and Torrie Wilson. Now James had dyed her hair blonde to look like Trish instead of wearing a wig.
On April 10th Maria interviewed Mickie James. She claimed to be from Toronto, which is where Trish is from, and Maria called her on it. James flipped out for a moment, but regained her composure to offer Maria a Women's Title match. Mickie won easily, but was surprised by Trish Stratus dressed as her running out post match. Stratus claimed that grandpappy was Mickie's biggest fan and then stole a kiss. A totally shocked Mickie ran off. The following week on April 17th Trish continued to play Mickie James and asked the real Mickie to come to the ring to receive a present. Trish unwrapped a big box to reveal her former boyfriend Jack. The gambit being tried was that if Mickie was the real Trish she would show concern for Jack. The plan backfired as Mickie told Trish to stay away from ‘her' boyfriend and attacked her. She then attacked Jack for cheating on her. On April 24th Mickie had returned to her natural looks, but Trish hadn't. They brawled with Trish getting the best of it.
Match Up: Trish and Mickie know each other very well by this point. So well they've become each other. They've taken on each other's move sets and in ring style. Expect a lot of counters and switches. Trish has turned the tables and gotten into Mickie's head. James was always unsettled, but now she is highly unstable. She will need to pull it together mentally to win. If everything she's done to Trish was simply a gambit then it will come to light at Backlash.
Outcome: It would be self-defeating to move the Women's title back on Trish so soon. It would really hurt Mickie James and while giving Trish a fresh boost she has no one to really feud with. However, the WWE cut the legs out from under the Women's division on numerous occasions. Expect a new storyline turn of some sort to propel the feud on.
SHELTON BENJAMIN VS. ROB VAN DAM, MONEY IN THE BANK VS. INTERCONTINENTAL TITLE
Background: Rob Van Dam won the Money in the Bank ladder match at Wrestlemania 22 to give him a WWE Title shot whenever he wanted it. While Van Dam won, Benjamin put on a hell of a show in the match. On April 10th Benjamin championed himself while on commentary for RVD's match with Rob Conway. Shelton announced that he challenged Van Dam to a match at Backlash for the Money in the Bank right. Post match Rob turned the tables by challenging Shelton to an Intercontinental Title match at Backlash. It was decided that both men would have matches on April 17th to decide how Backlash would be set up. Rob Van Dam would face the Spirit Squad if he could choose a mystery opponent for Benjamin. However, Shelton never thought that opponent would be his old tag team partner Charlie Haas. That element of surprise allowed Haas to take the win. Unfortunately, RVD couldn't overcome five on one odds. So since both lost then the IC Title and the Money in the Bank title shot would be on the line at Backlash with the winner taking all. The following week Benjamin led Chris Masters and Matt Striker against RVD with Charlie Haas and Carlito. RVD pinned Benjamin with the frog splash.
Match Up: Both men have spectacular high risk innovative move sets. Their speed, agility and athleticism knows no equal in WWE. However, if you play high risk you can screw up big time. The first man to slip up or leave an opening will be in trouble. Benjamin will want to play opossum and give Van Dam enough rope to hang himself. RVD has been growing in his ring generalship and is starting to find a nice mixture of daredevil and thinking man. This has all the potential to be the match of the night.
Outcome: This is sort of a Catch-22. Neither man needs the IC title and the Money in the Bank title shot. Rumors have it that Van Dam will face John Cena for the WWE Title at the ECW One Night Stand 2 in June. However with ECW coming back as a real company that could change. If Van Dam does win the IC title he could serve as a mere transitional champion to a rising heel, such as Umaga, Striker or Masters. RVD is also a more viable main eventer than Benjamin, but WWE has shown that they will rule the dice on a guy right below the main event level. An ambiguous win where both men keeps what they already have is possible, although a huge cheat to the fans. Look for RVD to come up big.
SHAWN MICHAELS AND GOD VS. VINCE AND SHANE MCMAHON
Background: On the December 26th RAW Vince McMahon watched the newly release Bret Hart DVD from WWE. He took the ring at the end of the night to give his ‘review.' Vince McMahon ran down Bret Hart until Shawn Michaels came out. He tried to whisper to Vince, but he told him to tell everybody. Michaels said that Vince needed to move on from Bret Hart and the Montreal screw job. He has. Vince threatened to fire Shawn. On the January 2nd RAW McMahon booked Michaels to face Kane. If the super kick was used Michaels would be disqualified. Shawn got Kane down and started to strike up the band anyway. Vince then decreed that the super kick would mean that Michaels would lose his place in the Elimination Chamber at New Year's Revolution. This caused Michaels to holdup long enough for Kane to choke slam him. On the January 9th RAW Michaels was forced to team with old enemy Kurt Angle. When Angle refused a tag Shawn dragged him into the ring and super kicked him. Vince charged Shawn with stabbing Angle in the back and booked a match between them for the following week. If Shawn lost he would be fired. Michaels won with botched interference from Daivari. On January 16th he was booked against Shelton Benjamin. A loss would mean Michaels out of the Royal Rumble. Michaels won. Vince McMahon then entered Michaels' locker room post match to congratulate him. McMahon told Shawn he wanted the HBK of old; all sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll. Michaels said that HBK is never coming back. In the Royal Rumble Vince distracted Shawn long enough for his son Shane McMahon to run in the ring and eliminate Michaels.
The night after RAW Vince took the ring to talk about how he screwed Michaels in the Rumble. Shawn came out and challenged Vince to a match, but was Pearl Harbored by Shane. On the February 6th RAW Shawn Michaels was booked to face Big Show in a Wrestlemania WWE Title shot match. Vince decided to take Shawn out of that just because he could and substituted Shelton Benjamin. He then announced that Shawn would face ‘mandatory' retirement the following week. On the January 16th Thursday special edition of RAW Vince paid tribute to Shawn with a performance from the Spirit Squad. That couldn't budge him to sing the retirement papers. Vince got upset, slapped Shawn and ran off. On the February 20th RAW McMahon booked Michaels four on one against the Spirit Squad. The match would break down into Shawn getting pummeled by the Spirit Squad until his old teammate Marty Jannetty appeared out of nowhere for the save. Later McMahon said he would give Jannetty a full time contract and all he had to do was join the famed Kiss My Ass Club by putting his lips on Vince's tush. On the February 27th RAW Michaels went to Jannetty and told him he didn't have to kiss Vince's ass. Marty asked him to mind his own business, he really needed the job and another chance in WWE. Shawn then went to Vince and asked him not to do it, but no dice. However, when the moment of truth came Marty could do it. Ok, Vince offered him another chance. All he had to do was win the Masterlock Challenge off of Chris Masters. Marty was putting in a good effort until McMahon kicked him in the crotch. Masters pushes Marty's face toward Vince's bare rear. Michaels ran in to super kick Masters and save Marty. Then Shane blindsided Shawn and shoved his face into his father's keister. Vince then booked Shawn versus Shane in a street fight for Saturday Night's Main Event and he versus Shawn at Wrestlemania.
The next week Shane and Vince started RAW flanked by security. They showed footage from the previous week. Shawn attacked and was held back. Vince booked Shane vs. Shawn for that night, why wait? Shawn prepared in the back when a pregnant Stephanie McMahon greeted him. Being pregnant changed her outlook on a lot of things and she wanted to apologize to Shawn for her family. She then experienced a pain and Shawn went to get her a water. Steph then put some sort of drug in Shawn's water. In the match Shawn seemed off and sluggish. Eventually the drugs took affect and he was out for the count. Shane beat him and to add insult to injury Vince pinned him too. On March 6th Shane and Vince took the ring. They were convinced after how Shawn acted the week before that he was on drugs and they wanted him to take a urine test, live in front of everyone. Shawn came out and went with a doctor behind a screen. He filled up almost an entire cup. Shawn then threw the urine and Shane and Vince. For revenge Vince booked Shawn in a four on one Texas tornado cage match against the Spirit Squad. Shane interfered by slamming the cage door on Shawn's head and the Squad stole the win. At Saturday Night's Main Event Michaels was poised to win the match until Vince pulled the referee out of the ring. Shane locked Shawn in the sharpshooter and Vince had the bell rung, similar to the famed Montreal incident with Bret Hart. On March 27th Michaels faced Triple H. Vince McMahon jawed at Michaels from the apron. Shawn slingshot Hunter into Vince and then dared Vince to come into the ring as he held Triple H's sledgehammer. Triple H fought back and Cena ran in for the save. Vince then declared that Michaels would be at ringside with Cena and he would have Triple H. The rub was that they would be handcuffed to the ring ropes. A blatant kick in the crotch by McMahon ended the match early. It was another gambit. Vince unlocked Hunter's cuffs, while Shawn was still shackled. Both faces were demolished to end the show.
The March 20th RAW kicked off with a Dixieland band playing "When the Saints Come Marching In" with Vince and Shane dancing in front of them. John Cena interrupted their celebration and stated that he wanted a piece of Triple H that night. Vince consented by booking a tag team match with Triple H and Shane vs. Cena and Michaels. In the match Cena was disqualified by Vince for using a closed fist. Vince then booked a handicap match against Michaels alone. Cena was carried from the ring by security, but he broke back in to save Shawn. An enraged Vince then booked himself against Cena for the next week. Old foes Triple H and Shawn Michaels would square off first on March 27th. Triple H hit the Pedigree, but instead of pinning HBK he invited Vince in to hit Shawn with a sledgehammer. Cena made the save. In the later match McMahon allowed Triple H and Michaels to be at ringside, but they had to be handcuffed to the ropes. Vince blatantly low blowed Cena to lose, but this allowed him to unlock Hunter while Michaels remained helpless. Cena and Michaels were viciously accosted. At Wrestlemania 22, Shane tried to get involved, but wound up having his face crammed into his father's rear. Shawn then handcuffed Shane to the ropes and worked over both men before triumphantly defeating Vince.
The next night on RAW Shawn told the fan that it was great to have the burden of Vince McMahon off his chest, but he spoke to soon. Vince and Shane appeared on the entrance stage. Vince said he only won the match at Wrestlemania due to divine intervention. So the born again Shawn can have ‘God' as his tag team partner against Vince and Shane at Backlash. On April 10th Shane and Vince visited a church for the first time to chat with God. Vince started off great by using the holy water to imitate Triple H. He then mocked God and had Shane read a Vince inspired prayer. On April 17th Vince declared himself the God of Sports Entertainment and coined the term McMahonism. He then spliced his picture into several religious portraits and pictures. Shawn Michaels finally ended matters with a super kick. An upset Vince was visited in the back by Alejandro Armando Estrada who offered Umaga's services against Shawn Michaels. They were accepted. Umage pushed the referee to be DQ'ed, but continued to work Shawn over. Vince wanted to finish him off, but was scared off by mysterious fireworks exploding from the ring posts.
Match Up: This is basically a handicap match, unless someone shows up to take ‘God's' place at Shawn's side. Michaels has shown that he can take on multiple opponents, even all five members of the Spirit Squad, and fair well. Michaels will want to blitz Shane and Vince. He has the speed and wrestling skill to take on both men at the same time. If he's focused on both that means one can't sneak up on him. Vince and Shane will cheat to gain the upper hand early and then utilize quick tags and double teaming to not only work Michaels over, but humiliate him.
Outcome: The big question here is if ‘God' will show up. Will it be Mick Foley, Marty Jannetty, Hulk Hogan, someone else from Michaels' past? Most likely another act of divine intervention, like the pyro going off, will occur to give Shawn Michaels the win. Possibly it will knock Vince out of action for several weeks. As we saw after Wrestlemania Vince is just not going to let Shawn Michaels lay around the roster. Having Vince take a back seat to Shane as acting GM could propel the feud in a new direction and certainly freshen up RAW. Vince and Shane could win, but their egos can't be that big? They can't be that sacrilegious? Can they?
TRIPLE H VS. EDGE VS. JOHN CENA FOR THE WWE TITLE
Background: John Cena came out the night after Wrestlemania 22 still WWE Champion. He received jeers from the Chicago crowd, but he didn't care because he still had the belt. His promo was interrupted by Triple H. He underestimated Cena at Wrestlemania, but he wouldn't a second time. Edge then came out with Lita in tow. He said that Triple H didn't deserve a second chance, because while he lost the night before Edge was victorious and in a hardcore match against Mick Foley no less. Edge and Hunter went back and forth with Cena suggesting the two have a number one contender's match. Edge had a better idea in him teaming up with Triple H to face Cena in a handicap match. In the match Cena would dodge a spear to let Edge hit Triple H. This caused Triple H to turn on Edge, but when Cena went for the Five Knuckle Shuffle Hunter turned on him to hit the Pedigree for the win. On April 10th Edge opened the show to pat himself on the back for not losing last week on RAW or at Wrestlemania. Cena then entered to chide Edge on his glorious two week title reign. Triple H came out to run down both men and announce that this week Cena and he would team against Edge. In that match Triple H would try to steal Cena's thunder by pulling Edge out of the FU to hit the Pedgiree. Cena took out Triple H and then made Edge tap to the STFU. The next week on April 17th Vince McMahon, mad from being super kicked by Shawn Michaels, decided to complete the triangle by having Edge and Cena team to face Triple H. Hunter took out Cena with his sledgehammer, but that left him vulnerable for the spear from Edge. Edge won. This allowed him to open the April 24th RAW to brag. Triple H interrupted, followed by Cena. They argued until a surprise interruption by the Spirit Squad. They announced that the five of them would face the three feuding main eventers. Edge left his partners to turn on each other and laughed as Cena and Triple H brawled with each other to have the match end in a no contest.
Match Up: All three men know each other very well and have experience in multi-man matches. The problem is that all three have shown tremendous ego and a knack for underestimating the other two. The winner will be the one who gives both the devil's they do and wrestles a tight, smart match. As Triple H did in the handicap match a few weeks ago, the right move might be to hang back and let two of them go at it then swoop in to steal the win. With three men in the ring a ref bump is very possible. Triple is the man to orchestrate that and then take advantage of it. As the crafty vet he might have the advantage. Edge always has Lita on the outside. Cena has shown time and again he can be over his head and still somehow find the way to win.
Outcome: It doesn't make sense to have Triple H tap out at Wrestlemania to win at Backlash. It doesn't make sense to have Edge hold the WWE Title for two weeks at the first of the year, fade out and come back to win it now. There is just a feel that Cena will retain. The fans want to turn Cena heel, but he's hanging on to face status. With Rob Van Dam possibly waiting in the wings, turning Cena full blown heel might be the way to go. With Triple H getting a face pop and him cutting killer promos on Edge and Lita having them feud out of this also seems a good way to go. Look for Edge and Triple H to screw each other somehow and Cena to squeak it out.
