5 Surprising Moments from WWE WrestleMania Backlash 2022

At WrestleMania Backlash, The Bloodline won….again. That is a surprise in itself.

This year's Backlash was a fun night of professional wrestling. It certainly didn’t have a lot of hype going into the show, but it was a strong night of in-ring action.

The WWE Universe was treated to a great title change, another classic match between Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins and an entertaining six-man tag main event. WrestleMania Backlash is proof that the company can put on solid programs if its talented roster is given the chance to do so.

As we try to figure out why only one title was defended on Sunday night, let's explore the top five most surprising moments of WWE WrestleMania Backlash 2022.

#5. WrestleMania Rematches are all improvements at WWE WrestleMania Backlash 2022

One of many wonderful rematches on Sunday night.

At WrestleMania Backlash, four of the six bouts were rematches from WrestleMania itself. Could the sequels surpass the originals? Surprisingly, the answer seems to be yes.

Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins easily matched or surpassed their classic from WrestleMania. Omos and Bobby Lashley had a smoother bout the 2nd time around. Edge and AJ Styles had a fast-paced rematch. And Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair produced a more physical brawl after a sloppy first round at WrestleMania.

It seems that more time working together benefits the talented roster. Do we need to see a third match in most of these rivalries? It is hard to say, but it seems likely that is the direction we are going for WWE Hell in a Cell.

#4. Cody Rhodes defeats Seth Rollins yet again at WWE WrestleMania Backlash 2022

Seth Rollins attempts to put away The American Nightmare

On Sunday night, we had one of the most anticipated rematches in a long time: Cody Rhodes vs. Seth Rollins. Was the rematch better than the original? That is certainly a matter of opinion, but they produced another great bout on Sunday night.

It was an outstanding match between two of the best in WWE. For over 20 minutes, Rhodes and Rollins produced nail-biting nearfalls and excellent counters. But it was the finish that will go down as the most memorable moment and easily the most surprising.

Rollins was attempting a rollup cover while holding Rhodes’ tights. But Cody was able to reverse the cover and use the tights himself to win. It was a cheap victory for the American Nightmare - not something anyone would have expected going into Sunday night.

It seems possible that the controversial result will set up a future third match between Rollins and Rhodes. After the first two epic matches, it seems unlikely WWE fans will be disappointed by that possibly. Might we solve this in a Hell in a Cell?

#3. Rhea Ripley joins Judgment Day at WWE WrestleMania Backlash 2022

Rhea joins Edge on Sunday night at WWE WrestleMania Backlash.

At WrestleMania Backlash, Edge fought AJ Styles in a 16-minute improvement over their WrestleMania match. It helped it was shorter and worked at a better pace. But like Seth vs. Cody, the finish will be what's remembered about this match.

Damien Priest was banned from ringside, but that didn’t prevent him from standing in the aisle and trying to be a distraction. Finn Balor took care of Priest, but as Styles got to the top rope, the previous distraction allowed another masked talent to trip AJ. This interference allowed Edge to put on the submission and win the match.

One of the best surprises of the night was the reveal of Rhea Ripley as the newest member of Judgment Day. At just 25 years old, Ripley is a very talented competitor. Having her ally herself with WWE Hall of Famer Edge can only benefit her and the talented Women’s Division in the months and years to come.

#2. Ronda Rousey wins the Smackdown Women’s Championship clean at WWE WrestleMania Backlash 2022

Heading into WrestleMania Backlash, the feud between Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey has had a mix of uncomfortable promos and attacks on Drew Gulak.

Still, Flair and Rousey are two of the best female wrestlers in the world. If given the chance to showcase their skills in the ring, the two are more than capable of putting on an excellent match. And that's what we got on Sunday night.

For nearly 17 minutes, Rousey and Flair battered each other in a very physical “I Quit” Match. They used chairs, kendo sticks and even the announce table. It seemed neither competitor was willing to quit despite the punishment they took. Until the end, that is.

Flair was nice enough to wish Ronda Rousey a “Happy Mother’s Day” before she attempted to batter her with a steel chair. But this opening was enough for Rousey to lock in an armbar, wrapping the chair around Flair’s head. After some time, Charlotte Flair tapped out.

It was a rare clean loss for Charlotte. Rousey is the new Smackdown Women’s Champion. It will be interesting to see where the division goes next with Ronda in charge.

#1. The Bloodline wins clean at WWE WrestleMania Backlash 2022

At WrestleMania Backlash, we had a rare six-man main event. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to build popular stars Randy Orton, Riddle or Drew McIntyre for future World Title shots. Instead, Roman Reigns picked up a clean victory over Riddle. It was a surprising choice to say the least.

The 22-minute match was arguably the best of the night. It went at a fast pace and allowed all the competitors to get in memorable moments. They even built up the few times McIntyre and Reigns were in the ring as “big moments”. However, it was Riddle that was pinned cleanly by Reigns for the victory.

It's surprising because Reigns didn’t really need another victory. He has won pretty much everything for two years. If the goal was to build a competitor for the future, that didn’t occur on Sunday night. We have many summer months to do so, but Backlash now seems like a wasted opportunity.