Kalisto vs. Ryback: Winner and Reaction from WWE Payback 2016

In a rematch from WrestleMania 32 on April 3, United States champion Kalisto defeated Ryback on Sunday night on WWE Payback's Kickoff show.

WWE provided the finish to what ended up being a much more exciting match than Kalisto's and Ryback's WrestleMania 32 bout:   

The WWE Universe shared Kalisto's celebration:  

Both Bleacher Report's Dan Pecoraro and Black Sports Online provided their initial takes on the match: 

Ryback set his sights on Kalisto during the road to WrestleMania and claimed that a good big guy beats a good little guy every time. He then seemingly entered the showcase of immortals as the favorite, playing the role of Goliath to Kalisto's David.

The Big Guy looked dominant for portions of the WrestleMania Kickoff match. But Kalisto managed to pull off the upset victory in the end, and the masked Superstar retained the U.S. title in the process.

Despite Kalisto's win, his rivalry with Ryback was far from over, as the Human Wrecking Ball beat the King of Flight in a non-title match on an episode of SmackDown to earn another crack at the strap.

While a triumph over Ryback made it seem as though Kalisto was in line for a big push following WrestleMania, that wasn't the case in the weeks leading up to Payback.

Rather than focusing on the United States Championship, Kalisto was paired back up with Sin Cara as the Lucha Dragons and placed in the tournament to determine new No. 1 contenders for the WWE Tag Team Championships.

The Dudley Boyz quickly ousted the Lucha Dragons, who also lost a match to the Vaudevillains on SmackDown, hurting Kalisto's momentum significantly.

That booking philosophy was a microcosm of Kalisto's run as United States champion, as his opportunities to make the title seem meaningful were few and far between after taking it from Alberto Del Rio for the second time at Royal Rumble.

Even though Ryback beat Kalisto on SmackDown, there was little buildup toward their rematch at Payback. They had no interactions on Raw, and aside from the non-title match, they didn't do anything to add any heat to their rivalry.

That set the stage for a match without much backstory, which is likely why WWE relegated it to the preshow once again.

Kalisto and Ryback put on another solid bout, and the dynamic between them in terms of size differential made for some entertaining moments.

Ryback came out on the losing end for the second consecutive pay-per-view, which likely means the angle has reached its conclusion.

While defeating Ryback again is an accomplishment that should lead to a bigger push and a higher profile for Kalisto, the creative team must prove it is committed to making the United States Championship important, much like it was during John Cena's reign last year.

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