The 2007 Backlash was the ninth Backlash

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program g ...

(PPV)

event Event may refer to: Gatherings of people * Ceremony, an event of ritual significance, performed on a special occasion * Convention (meeting), a gathering of individuals engaged in some common interest * Event management, the organization of ev ...

produced by

World Wrestling Entertainment World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...

(WWE). It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown!, and ECW brand divisions. The event took place on April 29, 2007, at the

Philips Arena State Farm Arena (formerly Philips Arena) is a multi-purpose arena located in Atlanta, Georgia. The arena serves as the home venue for the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s Atlanta Hawks. It also served as home to the National Hockey Le ...

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital city, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georgia, Fulton County, the mos ...

. It was WWE's first monthly PPV held to feature all three brands after the company discontinued brand-exclusive PPVs. The concept of the pay-per-view was based around the backlash from

WrestleMania 23 WrestleMania 23 was the 23rd annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown!, and ECW brand divisions. The eve ...

. The main match on the Raw brand was a fatal four-way match for the

WWE Championship The WWE Championship is a World championship (professional wrestling), world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, representing the Raw (WWE brand), Raw WWE brand extension, brand di ...

involving champion

John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena ( ; born April 23, 1977) is an American part-time professional wrestler, actor, and former rapper. He is currently signed to WWE. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, he is tied ...

Randy Orton Randal Keith Orton (born April 1, 1980) is an American professional wrestler and actor who is signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand but is currently out of action due to a back injury. He is widely regarded as one of the grea ...

Edge Edge or EDGE may refer to: Technology Computing * Edge computing, a network load-balancing system * Edge device, an entry point to a computer network * Adobe Edge, a graphical development application * Microsoft Edge, a web browser developed ...

, and

Shawn Michaels Michael Shawn Hickenbottom (born July 22, 1965), better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American retired professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE as Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative. Widely regarded as one ...

. Cena won the match and retained the championship after pinning Orton. The primary match on the SmackDown! brand was a Last Man Standing match for the World Heavyweight Championship between

The Undertaker Mark William Calaway (born March 24, 1965), better known by the ring name The Undertaker, is an American retired professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Calaway spent the vast majorit ...

and Batista, which ended in a no-contest after both men failed get to their feet before the referee counted to ten. The featured match on the ECW brand was

Bobby Lashley Franklin Roberto Lashley (born July 16, 1976) is an American professional wrestler, mixed martial artist and bodybuilder. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand. He is an eight-time world champion, having been a two-t ...

versus Team McMahon ( Umaga,

Vince Vince is a given name, it is the anglicisation and shortened form of the name Vincent, as well as a surname. It may refer to: Given name People * Vince Agnew (born 1987), American football player * Vince Cable (born 1943), British politician ...

and

Shane McMahon Shane Brandon McMahon (; born January 15, 1970) is an American businessman and professional wrestler. He is best known for his tenure in WWE, where he was a wrestler, producer and minority owner. He is the founder and executive chairman of Idean ...

) in a

handicap match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

for the

ECW World Championship The ECW World Heavyweight Championship was a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship originally used in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and later, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was the original world title of the ECW ...

. Vince won the title and the match for his team after pinning Lashley.

Production

Background

Backlash is a

(PPV) event that was established by

(WWE) in 1999. The concept of the pay-per-view was based around the backlash from WWE's flagship event,

WrestleMania WrestleMania is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event held annually between mid-March and mid-April by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Since premiering in 1985, 37 editions followed, mos ...

. The 2007 event was the ninth event in the Backlash chronology and featured the backlash from

. It was scheduled to take place on April 29, 2007, at the

. From 2004 to 2006, Backlash was held exclusively for the Raw

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

, but following WrestleMania 23, WWE discontinued brand-exclusive PPVs. The 2007 Backlash was the first PPV held following this change and thus featured wrestlers from Raw, SmackDown!, and ECW.

Storylines

The

main event In sports, a card lists the matches taking place in a title match combat-sport event. Cards include a main event match and the undercard listing the rest of the matches. The undercard may be divided into a midcard and a lower card, according to ...

scripted into Backlash on the Raw

was a fatal four-way match for the

, a standard match involving four wrestlers between

and

. At the

Royal Rumble The Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming List of WWE pay-per-view and WWE Network events, event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. It is named afte ...

in January, Michaels was one of the final two participants in the

Royal Rumble match The Royal Rumble match is a professional wrestling match based on the classic Battle Royal match in which a number of wrestlers (traditionally 30) aim at eliminating their competitors by tossing them over the top rope, with both feet touching the ...

before being eliminated by

. On the February 5, 2007 episode of ''Raw'', Michaels earned the right to become the number-one contender for the WWE Championship at

after defeating Orton and Edge in a

triple threat match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or " gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

. At WrestleMania, Cena defeated Michaels to retain the WWE Championship after forcing Michaels to submit to the STFU. On the April 9 episode of ''Raw'', a number one contender's match between Michaels and Orton for the WWE Championship ended in a

no contest ' is a legal term that comes from the Latin phrase for "I do not wish to contend". It is also referred to as a plea of no contest or no defense. In criminal trials in certain United States jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant ne ...

after both men's shoulders were on the mat while they were pinning one another. Later that night, during Edge's talk show, "The Cutting Edge", Edge claimed that Raw General Manager

Jonathan Coachman Jonathan William Coachman (born August 12, 1973), also known as "The Coach", is an American sports analyst and former professional wrestling personality currently signed to WWE and XFL. Early life Before embarking on an announcing career in p ...

had named him the number-one contender to the WWE title. Honorary General Manager Michael Pena, from the

Make-a-Wish Foundation The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in the United States that helps fulfill the wishes of children with a critical illness between the ages of and 18 years old. Make-A-Wish was founded in 1980 and headquart ...

, however, announced that Michaels, Orton, and Edge would face Cena for the title at Backlash in a fatal four-way match. Bobby Lashley - ECW Champion

The main rivalry on the SmackDown! brand was between The Undertaker and Batista over the World Heavyweight Championship. At the Royal Rumble, Undertaker won the 2007 Royal Rumble match. As a result, he was given the right to a world title match at WrestleMania for any of WWE's three major championships ( ECW World, World Heavyweight, or WWE) at WrestleMania 23. On the February 5 episode of ''Raw'', Undertaker teased all three respective World Champions (Bobby Lashley, Batista, and John Cena) before choosing Batista as his opponent to face at WrestleMania. At WrestleMania, Undertaker defeated Batista to win the World Heavyweight Championship to extend his WrestleMania undefeated streak to 15–0. Their rivalry, however, did not end, as SmackDown! General Manager Theodore Long booked a Last Man Standing match between Undertaker and Batista at Backlash. The main rivalry on the ECW brand was between

and Team McMahon ( Umaga,

and

), in which Lashley and Vince were feuding over the ECW World Championship. The rivalry started on the February 26 episode of ''Raw'', when Lashley was selected by

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

to compete at WrestleMania 23. Lashley was selected to compete against Vince's representative, Umaga, in

Hair vs. Hair match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

, a match in which the loser's representative would have to get his head shaved bald. At WrestleMania, Lashley defeated Umaga, and after the match, Trump and Lashley shaved Vince's head bald. On the April 9 episode of ''Raw'', Shane challenged Lashley to a Hair vs. Title match for the ECW World Championship. Shane got himself intentionally disqualified, but did not get his head shaved. After the match, Umaga and Vince and Shane attacked Lashley. After the beating, Vince announced that Lashley would have to defend the ECW World Championship against Team McMahon at Backlash in a three-on-one

Event

Preliminary matches

Before the event aired

live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film *'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD) Music * Live (band), American alternative rock band * List of album ...

on pay-per-view, Carlito defeated Johnny Nitro in a

dark match Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence o ...

. The first match of the event was

The Hardys The Hardys, also known as The Hardy Boyz, are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of real-life brothers Matt and Jeff Hardy, who are currently appearing in All Elite Wrestling (AEW). The team is currently inactive due to Jeff ...

( Matt and

Jeff Jeff is a masculine name, often a short form ( hypocorism) of the English given name Jefferson or Jeffrey, which comes from a medieval variant of Geoffrey. Music * DJ Jazzy Jeff, American DJ/turntablist record producer Jeffrey Allen Townes ...

) versus Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch for the

World Tag Team Championship The world tag team championship is the name usually given to the primary tag team championship (professional wrestling), championships in professional wrestling Professional wrestling promotions, promotions. Nomenclature The name of the promo ...

. Cade and Murdoch controlled a majority of the match; however, The Hardys won the bout when Matt pinned Murdoch after a Twist Of Fate, which was followed by Jeff's

Swanton Bomb Aerial techniques, also known as "high-flying moves" are maneuvers in professional wrestling using the ring's posts and ropes as aids, in many cases to demonstrate the speed and agility of smaller, nimble and acrobatically inclined wrestlers prefe ...

. The match that followed was Melina versus

Mickie James Mickie Laree James (born August 31, 1979) Additional January 6, 2017. is an American Professional wrestling, professional wrestler and Country music, country singer. She is currently signed to Impact Wrestling. She has also had tenures in WWE a ...

for the WWE Women's Championship. The match was short lived, as Melina performed an Inverted DDT on Mickie James and pinned her to retain the WWE Women's Championship. The third match was between

Chris Benoit Christopher Michael Benoit (; May 21, 1967 – June 24, 2007) was a Canadian professional wrestler. He worked for various pro-wrestling promotions during his 22-year career including most notably the World Wrestling Federation/World Wrestlin ...

and

Montel Vontavious Porter Hassan Hamin Assad (born Alvin Antonio Burke Jr.; October 28, 1973) is an American professional wrestler and manager currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the Raw brand under the ring name MVP (standing for Montel Vontavious Porter) a ...

for the

WWE United States Championship The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship promoted by the American promotion WWE, currently defended on the Raw brand division. It is one of two secondary championships for WWE's main roster, along with the ...

. Benoit and MVP struggled throughout the match, attempting to gain the upper hand. In the end, Benoit pinned MVP with a

small package In wrestling, a pin is achieved by holding an opponent's shoulders to the mat for a three count. Pinfall is the term used in professional wrestling which is a way to win the match for that person or team. Background A pinfall is a victory condi ...

to retain the WWE United States Championship.

Main event matches

The three-on-one Handicap

match between champion

and Team McMahon ( Umaga,

and

) was next. Shane struck Lashley with the ECW World Championship belt and Umaga executed a

diving splash Aerial techniques, also known as "high-flying moves" are maneuvers in professional wrestling using the ring's posts and ropes as aids, in many cases to demonstrate the speed and agility of smaller, nimble and acrobatically inclined wrestlers prefer ...

on Lashley. Umaga then

tagged Tagged may refer to: * Tagged (website), a social discovery website * Tagged (web series), an American teen psychological thriller web series {{disambiguation ...

in Vince, who scored a near-fall. Vince then tagged in Umaga, who executed a second diving splash on Lashley. After being tagged in again, Vince pinned Lashley to win the ECW World Championship and the match for his team. The next match was

against Batista in a Last Man Standing Match for the World Heavyweight Championship. At one

spot Spot or SPOT may refer to: Places * Spot, North Carolina, a community in the United States * The Spot, New South Wales, a locality in Sydney, Australia * South Pole Traverse, sometimes called the South Pole Overland Traverse People * Spot (produ ...

, Undertaker executed a

leg drop A leg drop or legdrop refers to an attack used in professional wrestling in which an attacking wrestler will jump and land his leg across a fallen opponent's chest, throat, face or head or in some cases, the groin/lower-abdominal area. The mov ...

through an announce table on Batista. Towards the end, the two fought up the entrance ramp, where Batista executed a

spear A spear is a pole weapon consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable material fastene ...

to The Undertaker off the stage. Neither man could get to their feet before the referee's count of ten; in result, the match ended in a draw. Due to WWE regulations, titles can't change hands in a Last Man Standing match by a draw, so The Undertaker remained champion. The main event was

against

, and

in a fatal four-way match for the

. During the match, Michaels performed a

moonsault A moonsault, moonsault press, or back flip splash is a professional wrestling aerial technique. It was innovated by Mando Guerrero. Much of its popularity in both Japanese and American wrestling is attributed to The Great Muta, despite it being ...

onto Cena, Edge, and Orton on the floor. Edge performed a

on Orton. Cena then performed an FU to Edge. Michaels executed

Sweet Chin Music Strikes are offensive moves in professional wrestling, that can sometimes be used to set up an opponent for a hold or for a throw. There are a wide variety of strikes in pro wrestling, and many are known by several different names. Professional wre ...

on Cena, who fell on Orton for the pinfall victory, retaining the title.

Aftermath

Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch continued their rivalry with The Hardys until the two teams had a rematch at Judgment Day for the World Tag Team Championship, which The Hardys won. Chris Benoit and Montel Vontavious Porter also continued their rivalry for the WWE United States Championship, which led to a best 2 out of 3 falls match at

Judgment Day The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...

, which MVP won. On the May 11 episode of ''SmackDown!'', The Undertaker defended the World Heavyweight Championship against Batista in a

Steel cage match Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...

. Both men escaped the steel cage at the same time, and The Undertaker was therefore declared still the champion. After the match,

Mark Henry Mark Jerrold Henry (born June 12, 1971) is an American former powerlifter, Olympic weightlifter, strongman, and professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a commentator/analyst, coach, and talent scout. He is b ...

returned and attacked The Undertaker. Edge, who defeated Mr. Kennedy on the May 7 episode of ''Raw'' to win the Money in the Bank contract, cashed in his opportunity and defeated The Undertaker to win the World Heavyweight Championship. Team McMahon's feud with Bobby Lashley continued as Mr. McMahon gave Lashley a rematch at Judgment Day, which was another three-on-one Handicap match for the ECW World Championship. At Judgment Day, Lashley won the match, but Vince said that Lashley had not beaten him, as Lashley had pinned Shane instead, so Lashley was not awarded the belt. The rivalry continued until

One Night Stand A one-night stand or one-night sex is a single sexual encounter in which there is an expectation that there shall be no further relations between the sexual participants. It draws its name from the common practice of a one-night stand, a single ...

, where Lashley challenged Vince to a street fight. Lashley won the match and the ECW World Championship, and their rivalry ended. This was the last Backlash ever to be in 4:3 format until January 2008 when it went to high definition.

Results

References

External links

Backlash 2007 official website
{{WWEPPV, Backlash 2007 in Georgia (U.S. state) Events in Atlanta

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...

Professional wrestling in Atlanta 2007 WWE pay-per-view events April 2007 events in the United States