WWE Backlash 2016 Winners: Biggest Stars of the Night

WWE Backlash 2016 is in the books.

SmackDown had the pressure of running the first pay-per-view after SummerSlam, and they had a truncated amount of time to build their major feuds. Sunday night, the main event between AJ Styles and Dean Ambrose was predictably solid, but the show was also filled with meaningful individual contributions from supporting players.

Here are the biggest stars of the evening, most of whom rarely got to shine prior to the brand split. These WWE Superstars showed that given the tools and means to succeed, they would seize their moment and lunge for the brass ring. What an unexpected, welcome breath of fresh air.

Baron Corbin

Baron Corbin and Apollo Crews had the right idea. They took their pre-show match and turned it into a showdown that would have been right at home on the main card. In fact, it should have been moved to the main show as soon as WWE officials knew that Orton wasn't cleared to compete. Instead, we had to watch Kane vs. Bray Wyatt, where Wyatt had to suffer the indignity of losing, yet again, to a more established guy on the roster.

Corbin continues to dominate in his matches and cultivate his lone-wolf persona. It's difficult to get legitimately booed when everyone is smart to the business, but Corbin is special; he gives off an aura of smugness that is simply infuriating. He deserves to move up in the pecking order, and because he's so physically dominant and aggressive, it's only a matter of time.

Alexa Bliss

Credit: WWE.com

The common post-draft perception was that SmackDown had gotten the short shrift of the women's division. Sunday's women's championship match fought that perception; the fight was an entertaining, engrossing opener to Backlash. Without a doubt, it was a better outing than what Sasha Banks and Charlotte managed to put together at SummerSlam.

Most Six-Pack matches quickly devolve into a mess. But on Sunday, all six women were in clear communication with one another. There was one notable botch by Naomi, but for the most part all of the women hit their spots. Their transitions were seamless, and they rolled in and out of the ring to ensure that everyone got their moment.

Becky Lynch won the match, but Alexa Bliss was the most impressive competitor. She sauntered to the ring in a Harley Quinn outfit and channeled that level of intensity and unhinged craziness all night. It's unfortunate that Bliss is so tiny; that makes it difficult to book her as a credible threat to the other women. But as long as WWE keeps her heel (which will allow her to cheat), Bliss shouldn't have to worry too much. She's definitely a future women's champion in the making.

The Usos

The Usos were the clear standouts of Sunday's tag team matches; they were fully committed to their new heel personas. They no longer recite their family chant. They no longer paint their faces. They no longer set off pyros during their entrance. They no longer high-five the crowd.

Instead, they walk to the ring with a menacing swagger, and Jimmy has adopted a toothy, joyless smile to scare the kids. The Usos even have a brand-new, leg-targeted tag finisher, which reinforces their heel turn against American Alpha earlier this week.

To make fans hate him, a babyface-turned-heel must eliminate everything that fans liked about him. That can't be an easy choice; it's hard enough to get fans to cheer in the first place, only to throw it all away. The Usos are doing all the right things to draw heat, and they're being excellent team players rather than going into business for themselves.

The Miz

Wow. What a match The Miz had versus Dolph Ziggler.

Miz showed off his aggressive, angry side. He used wrestling moves that we've never seen him perform. He was nailing dropkicks, pulling off pin combinations and even executed a sitout powerbomb. He sold some of the hardest back bumps we've seen him do in years.

Miz's worked shoot on Talking Smack ignited a wonderful late-career revival that almost no one saw coming. Hopefully we'll see The A-Lister continue to diversify his moveset in the coming months. There is a middle ground between Miz and Daniel Bryan where a wrestler can take calculated risks and not risk ending up in a wheelchair. Based on tonight's outing—which was actually the best match of the evening—Miz is trying and succeeding to find that sweet spot.

Dean Ambrose

Despite being the WWE champion, Dean Ambrose has been somewhat rudderless for the past few months. He rehashed old feuds with former Shield teammates and Authority members rather than shining on his own, and that comfort made him complacent. Ambrose fought his brothers so many times that his matches took on a sameness, right down to their outside spots and comebacks.

Ambrose lost Sunday night, but at least he looked great doing it. He pushed himself out of his comfort zone; rather than brawling from bell-to-bell, Ambrose worked in arm drags, pin combinations and a diverse collection of grapple moves. Ambrose also played up his lunatic persona, which contrasted well with AJ Styles' scheming intensity.

AJ Styles

Out of all the matches on the card, Styles vs. Ambrose was the most predictable. As expected, Styles clinched the title after a long, physical, hard-fought match. It was a lot better than one might have expected; there was little personal history between the two men, and it wasn't apparent that they would mesh well as opponents. But the match, though a little spot-heavy, was a solid effort. Styles took the win after kicking Ambrose below the belt, and the dirty finish keeps Ambrose looking strong going into the inevitable rematch.

Styles has been in WWE since the Royal Rumble and is finally in the position that he's supposed to be in. Styles has the ability, charisma and mic skills that WWE can build a division around, and contrary to "business as usual," WWE is taking a chance on a nonhomegrown star. Let's hope that the brand-new Face that Runs the Place has a long, decorated run and creates a solid precedent for other wrestlers who arrive in WWE after establishing their careers elsewhere.