Keys to the Game 5.05.07: Backlash: The WrestleMania Hangover
Posted by Joe Estee on 05.05.2007
Unlike a peg-legged hooker, neither Backlash nor this article lived up to expectations. But hey... there's a poll at the end.
Have you ever wondered why the Undertaker's eyes roll up in his head? Well maybe, just maybe, he watched Backlash last Sunday.
With several WrestleMania matches being rehashed, I was particularly interested with how the individual adjustments would help garnish victory. Sadly, almost all participants entered into their matches with little to no pre-game preparation leading to an overall lackluster competition.
United States Championship Match
Winner Chris Benoit
Key Apprehension
Last month on Keys to the Game, we discussed how, while failing to capture the United States title, MVP managed to control the majority of his WrestleMania match with Chris Benoit, prompting us to look forward to a continued rivalry
Although MVP continued to impose his athleticism and technical skills, even challenging Benoit with submissions of his own, his trepidation to engage with Benoit in the center of the ring seemed to handcuff the offense that appeared so fluent during their WrestleMania encounter.
MVP, cautious of Benoit's submission prowess, remained in close proximity to the ropes throughout the contest. While this tactic served Porter well at times, allowing him to break multiple submissions holds, MVP's tempo stagnated to the extent that he was unable to press any advantage, and allowed Benoit openings to retake control of situations. Benoit ended up executing more Germans than Bruce Willis in Die Hard, placing MVP in an exhausted condition, allowing Benoit the opportunity to pick up the victory.
WWE Woman's Championship Match
Winner Melina
Key Aggression
Not since the departure of Trish Stratus has there been a Woman's title match that has warranted additional commentary beyond the end result. However, last Sunday at Backlash, Mickie James and Melina competed in perhaps the most enjoyable contest of the night.
While both competitors displayed considerable as well as surprising wrestling competency, the one factor that tipped the scales on this night was Melina's unrelenting offensive mind-set. From the moment the bell rang, Melina's intensity saturated the contest. Mickie James, despite being the challenger, was considered by many to be favored to recapture the championship yet had few opportunities to exert her will for more than a few moments.
Melina blended her aggressive nature with a solid technical onslaught, utilizing five counts and breaking holds with forceful intention. This strategy eventually led to a fatigued Mickie James that was unable to counter a reverse DDT that closed out the match.
While Mickie did perform well, her intensity hardly matched the determination of the champion that was required to rest the title away.
With an impressive and clean victory for Melina against arguably the only legitimate challenger in the Woman's division, a prosperous title reign could be in the forecast for Melina.
ECW World Championship (Handicap) Match
Winner Vince McMahon
Key Cooperation
Finally we come to a match where pre-match preparations were not only crafted, but executed to excellence.
Under typical conditions, "Team McMahon" should have walked away from Backlash with victory. Umaga has proven to be on the same level as ECW Champion Bobby Lashley. Inserting two teammates, even those of questionable in-ring competency, should have resulted in victory.
The issue in question, however, was that of solidarity. Could Umaga coexist with Wrestling's First Family, when the McMahons' ability to work together has been historically unstable?
Pre-match strategy involved settling on who would pick up the pin fall, thus appropriating the ECW World Championship. While Vince initially suggested that his son should have the honor, Shane insisted that Vince deserved victory. Umaga, apparently having no championship aspirations for himself, seemed content to be a weapon against his recent nemesis.
While Lashley's performance was solid, Team McMahon was steadfast in their resolve to achieve retribution. The numbers game eventually wore down Lashley when he was caught unawares by a shot to the head with the ECW belt. This swung momentum and led to a massive assault delivered by Umaga and Vince McMahon capturing the ECW World Heavyweight Championship.
World Heavyweight Championship (Last Man Standing) Match
Winner Draw
Key Unprepared
The only way to obtain victory in a Last Man Standing Match is via knockout. That is, a competitor must be rendered unable to answer the referee's count of ten for a winner to be declared. Insert into the mix two individuals that not only have the ability to dish out but to absorb mass amounts of punishment, and you have a recipe for well a draw
Both The Undertaker and Batista seemed to enter this World Heavyweight Championship match ego first, leaving behind any real sense of strategy to accomplish the daunting task at hand.
When both Batista's and The Undertaker's finishers failed to secure victory, there seemed to be mutual confusion as to how to advance into the endgame. Batista, perhaps calling back to his time with Evolution, knew enough at the very least to employ the benefits of a ringside steel chair. The fight was eventually taken up the ramp where both men were put down for the count after half the entryway collapsing onto them.
In hindsight, the last man standing match itself seemed to be destined for this result. Neither Taker nor Batista have ever been put down decisively enough in the past for either to have a reasonable expectation for victory. Undertaker, who has never been defeated in a Last Man Standing Match, may have entered into this contest to conclude this rivalry through his experience. Batista, on the other hand, may have had ambitions of reclaiming a measure of reverence after his defeat at WrestleMania.
Ultimately though, Batista may turn out to be the real beneficiary of this match as Taker suffered a torn bicep during the contest. Latest rumors have him requiring surgery and missing the next 6-8 months.
WWE Championship (Fatal Four Way) Match
Winner John Cena
Key Fortune
Dear Make a Wish Foundation,
I have a wish. A simple wish. I wish that, like John Cena, I too could have been unconscious by the end of this match.
For nineteen minutes, all four participants utilized the shot gun approach to wrestling, which is to say they attempted a variety of team ups, none of them hitting the mark. These mini-alliances accomplished very little as did the match itself. The Cena-Michaels rivalry reached no resolution. On the contrary, the controversial finish may serve to compound the tension between the two superstars even more.
The end saw a flurry of signatures closers creating a state of mayhem that resulted in Sweet Chin Music being played to the tune of John Cena's jaw. Unfortunately for The Heartbreak Kid but much to the delight of Randy Orton's video collection, Cena collapsed onto a prone Orton where he would pick up the victory unconscious.
In a post match interview, Cena reiterated his earlier apprehension about defending his title in multi-competitor matches and would not surrender to the ideal that Michaels deserved victory on that night.
"Guys have snuck victories out of these things, and I hate these matches. There's people coming from every angle, you don't have a friend in the world, and anyone can score a quick three-count at any time. I won the match knocked out; you have to know what you're getting into. That's the nature of the beast, and HBK knows better than that."
