Backlash(2017)

Backlash(2017) was a pay-per-view that took place on May 21st, 2017, live from Chicago, Illinois. The event featured the SmackDown brand, and the main event saw AJ Styles face Brock Lesnar for the WWE Championship.



Background
This was the first pay-per-view of the series to bear the Backlash name, and the third SmackDown exclusive pay-per-view. It was the second event since the 2017 WWE Draft, and the first SmackDown pay-per-view of Season 3. The official theme song for the show was "Highway" by Bleeker.

Following his victory at WrestleMania, AJ Styles battled Intercontinental Champion Randy Orton just over a week later. After picking up the win, he was attacked by new SmackDown roster member Brock Lesnar. The Beast Incarnate would wreak havoc on SmackDown Live, later attacking both Cesaro and Roman Reigns, before defeating both men in a triple threat match to become number one contender. Lesnar then took on AJ's cronies, Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows, in a handicap match. Brock won by disqualification after Anderson attacked him with a chair, before Reigns and Cesaro brawled with The Club. Lesnar and Styles would both be involved in a fatal four way match, where Brock pinned the champion with a F-5. After attacking Gallows and Anderson, Reigns and Cesaro, former rivals, teamed up to defeat The Vaudevillains. Afterward, Karl Anderson issued the challenge for a tag team match at the show.

After his loss to AJ Styles, Randy Orton's next title defense would come against Tyson Kidd. Orton won the match, then went for a punt kick afterward, only for Sami Zayn to pull Kidd to safety. Sami would go on to become number one contender to the Intercontinental Championshiplast eliminating The Miz to win a battle royal. Orton and Zayn would be involved in the fatal four way with Lesnar and Styles, during which Sami laid the champion out with a tornado DDT. After being drafted to the blue brand, Enzo and Big Cass would make an immediate impact, defeating The Club in their debut. They made their intentions known, going after the Wyatt Family and their SmackDown Tag Team Championships. Enzo and Cass would suffer a loss to The Usos, who would then loss to the Wyatts in a non-title match. Six days before the show, Big Cass got momentum back for the challengers, defeating Erick Rowan. Fomer SmackDown Women's Champion Alexa Bliss began a road back to the title following WrestleMania, picking up a big win over Nia Jax. Jax did not take this loss lying down, costing Bliss her rematch against Charlotte. After going back and forth for weeks, it was announced that the two women would meet in a No Holds Barred match. During this time, Jax would suffer another loss, this time to Nikki Bella, who became the number one contender to Charlotte's championship.

Event
The Wyatt Family would continue their reign as champions to open the show, with Bray getting the win with a Sister Abigail. Alexa Bliss tried almost everything to keep Nia Jax down, but the Female Destroyer perservered, delivering two big leg drops for the win. In an impressive showing, Cesaro and Roman Reigns downed The Club after a Giant Swing/dropkick combo.

Charlotte retained her championship over Nikki Bella with a Natural Selection, busting Nikki open with the championship afterward. Although Sami Zayn came out of the blocks firing, it was Randy Orton who stood tall, retaining the Intercontinental Championship. Against all the odds, AJ Styles would defeat Brock Lesnar in the main event, surviving two F-5s to continue his reign as WWE Champion.