Austin Theory Retains WWE United States Title vs. Bobby Lashley, Reed at Backlash

Austin Theory defeated Bobby Lashley and Bronson Reed in a Triple Threat match at WWE Backlash on Saturday to retain the United States Championship.

The fast-paced bout came to an end with Theory stealing the pin on Reed, who missed a top-rope moonsault on the titleholder and ate a spear from Lashley.

Theory immediately recovered to throw The All Mighty out of the ring and jump on Reed to get the three-count.

After winning the biggest contest of his career at WrestleMania 39 by beating legendary Superstar and future WWE Hall of Famer John Cena, Theory was faced with one of the toughest challenges of his reign in Puerto Rico.

On the April 17 episode of Raw, A-Town renewed his rivalry with Lashley, but there was no decisive finish to their match due to interference from Reed, who hit The All Mighty with a big splash in the corner.

Lashley and Reed had been embroiled in a feud that started on the SmackDown before WrestleMania when they were the final two participants in the Andre the Giant Battle Royal.

The Australian came close to winning on a couple of occasions, but The All Mighty managed to toss him over the top rope and take home the trophy.

They then did battle in a hard-hitting singles match on an episode of Raw, in which they took the fight to each other in one of the most physical WWE matches in recent memory.

They ended up fighting to a draw, as they threw hands outside the ring and were both counted out by the official.

With the issues between Lashley and Reed crossing over into the U.S. title scene, both of them were given the opportunity to challenge Theory for the championship in San Juan.

While The All Mighty is a former U.S. and WWE champion, Reed entered Backlash looking to win his first title of any kind on the main roster.

Despite the huge threat they posed, Theory managed to retain against Lashley and Reed, and he extended a title reign that has now lasted more than five months.

---

Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below.