Randy Orton's Loss and Best, Worst Booking Decisions of WWE Backlash 2025 Results

WWE Backlash 2025 looked to deliver a quality follow-up to WrestleMania 41 from the Enterprise Center in St. Louis.

It was a night of highs and lows, particularly starting with the strongest action of the premium live event.

Former New Japan Pro-Wrestling world television champion Jeff Cobb made his WWE debut to help Jacob Fatu retain his United States Championship by pinning LA Knight.

Lyra Valkyria outwrestled Becky Lynch and caught her with a roll-up to retain the Women's Intercontinental Championship.

Dominik Mysterio found an ally in El Grande Americano to help him retain the men's intercontinental title by defeating Penta.

Gunther put down Pat McAfee despite the commentator's best efforts in his return to the ring as well as the support of Michael Cole.

John Cena found a way to survive Randy Orton and continue his reign of terror as undisputed WWE champion.

What were the best booking decisions from this show? And what were the worst?

Worst: Jeff Cobb Debuts as Solo Sikoa's New Second

For those not aware of who Jeff Cobb is, he is an Olympic wrestler who represented Guam in the 2004 Summer Games.

His most famous work in professional wrestling started in 2017 when he started working for New Japan Pro-Wrestling. He worked with the company until last month.

During his time as one of the top pure powerhouses in NJPW, he won the IWGP Tag Team Championships three times as well as the NEVER Openweight Championship and NJPW World Television Championship.

The 42-year-old was not going to come into WWE with immediate familiarity for a United States audience, even with his few appearances on AEW television.

Still, he has the look and talent to stand out on his own. But he has been thrown into the same role as Tama Tonga and Tonga Loa with a similar NJPW pedigree.

Unlike the brothers, though, Cobb has no family connection to The Bloodline, unless WWE manufactures one.

It seems likely he was thrown into this role due to the injuries to Tonga, Loa and even Bronson Reed, and he will look awkward in that spot within six months.

The Bloodline angle already feels played out, and Cobb could go down with a ship he was thrown onto at the last minute. He can be more than just a replacement star.

As an experienced wrestler just starting with WWE, Cobb's time in the company as a potential top player is limited and should not be wasted.

Best: Continuing to Build Animosity Between Drew McIntyre and Damian Priest

While the United States Championship match started out as a Fatal 4-Way, Drew McIntyre and Damian Priest eliminated each other from the action down the stretch.

The brawl built up to a wild finish where Priest sent The Scottish Warrior through a table in the crowd with South of Heaven.

It was never the right spot or time for McIntyre or Priest to win the U.S. title, but the end of the match sold why this needed to happen.

Once again, Priest got in McIntyre's way to success, and even their brutal Street Fight at WrestleMania was not enough to settle the score.

WWE should keep this angle rolling until SummerSlam, with both men continuing to cost each other big opportunities like Money in the Bank in the meantime.

Best: Lyra Valkyria Remains Becky Lynch's Achilles' Heel

While Becky Lynch defeating Lyra Valkyria to win the Women's Intercontinental Championship would have made sense, the story that played out in the ring was a massive success.

Throughout this technical contest, The Valkyrie had The Man's number. Lynch stated repeatedly before this match that she is the best in the world, yet Valkyria outwrestled her.

Lynch has put over many stars over the years. This may be the best work of her career in elevating a star.

In just one month post-WrestleMania, Valkyria went from a solid midcard champion to a star who can challenge anyone in the company.

Lynch's vicious attempt to break the arm of Valkyria after the result sets the stage for exciting follow-up in the months to come.

Even if The Man ultimately defeats Valkyria in a rematch, The Valkyrie will have still beaten her clean when they were both wrestling at their best.

Worst: El Grande Americano Ruins More Lucha Libre Action

WWE has received criticism in the past for limited representation of luchadores over the years.

After the success of Rey Mysterio, all future luchadores have been compared to The Master of the 619 and often aligned with him.

Mysterio's LWO rebirth only furthered that concern as he brought in Dragon Lee as his heir apparent and struggled to elevate Joaquin Wilde and Cruz Del Toro.

The arrival of Penta and Rey Fenix set the stage for WWE to tell stories with top luchadores outside the shadow of Mysterio.

Instead, WWE decided to introduce El Grande Americano, a joke luchador character that ruins the matches of every luchador.

Penta's story with The Judgment Day did not need to intersect with El Grande Americano at this stage when he is already feuding with Dragon and Fenix.

Dominik Mysterio already had plenty of help and should have been allowed to finish his story with Penta without Americano's interference.

With the recent acquisition by WWE of Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide, there is little reason at all to keep this Americano gimmick for much longer as its negatives far outweigh the positives.

Worst: Pat McAfee Lasts Too Long Against Gunther

While Pat McAfee has wrestled multiple times for WWE, he was fully established as a commentator far past his prime in the buildup to Backlash.

Despite this story, WWE treated him like one of the toughest men in all of WWE, surviving many of the best shots The Ring General could throw at him.

Both men worked this contest too soft for the promise of the battle. In particular, McAfee's offense never looked believable.

Even if Gunther was looking to punish rather than win first and foremost, there is little reason a 38-year-old man with seven career matches should have been able to keep fighting The Ring General as long as he did.

Moreover, McAfee's refusal to tap out after mocking Gunther for weeks for giving up at WrestleMania puts over the non-wrestler against the established wrestler for no reason.

This did not hurt Gunther as much as it just felt like a waste of time. This spot should have gone to other stars who could have used the spotlight like The Street Profits or Iyo Sky.

Best: John Cena Defeats Randy Orton In Their Final Match

John Cena and Randy Orton defined WWE for 20 years, winning 31 world championships between them in that time.

They have battled numerous times, creating a lasting legacy as rivalries, even if their matches were more spectacle than great in-ring action.

In all that time, though, fans had never seen The Real Last Champion as the heel against a babyface Viper. Cena got to work a different style as the bad guy throughout.

In Orton's hometown of St. Louis, he was the clear fan favorite while Cena received a mixed reaction though still receiving support from some fans.

If the world title was not on the line, this could have gone either way, but Cena needed to win here no matter what. In his final year, it should feel nearly impossible to defeat The Last Real Champion.

In a match that was up to the usual expectations for Cena vs. Orton for better and worse, this played out the way it needed to do. The Last Real Champion survived with a few cheap tricks and referee bumps to help.

A younger star needs to be the one to find a way to overcome this dastardly version of Cena, even if it is the same man Cena defeated at WrestleMania: Cody Rhodes.

In the next few years, Orton could want his own retirement tour, and he should look just as dominant in his final run.

This was just never going to be his night.