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Backlash (2008)
Encyclopedia
Backlash was the tenth annual Backlash
professional wrestling
pay-per-view
(PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment
(WWE). It took place on April 27, 2008 at the 1st Mariner Arena
in Baltimore, Maryland
. The event starred wrestlers from the Raw
, SmackDown, and ECW brands
.
Eight professional wrestling matches
were scheduled on the event's card
, which featured a supercard, a scheduling of more than one main event. The first was a Fatal Four-Way Elimination for the WWE Championship
match featuring wrestlers from the Raw brand, in which all four men fought in the ring at the same time, with competitors being eliminated by pinfall or submission. Triple H
defeated WWE Champion Randy Orton
, John Cena
, and John "Bradshaw" Layfield
to win the championship. The other main event featured wrestlers from the SmackDown brand, in which defending World Heavyweight Champion
The Undertaker defeated challenger Edge in a standard wrestling match, also known as a singles match. The main event from the ECW brand was a standard match in which defending ECW Champion Kane
defeated challenger Chavo Guerrero
. In addition, a featured bout was scheduled on the undercard, in which Shawn Michaels
defeated Batista in a standard match.
Backlash (2008) had an attendance of approximately 11,277 and received 200,000 buys, more than the previous year's event
. When the event was released on DVD
, it reached a peak position of second on Billboard
s Recreational Sports DVD Sales Chart.
The event featured seven professional wrestling matches
with outcomes predetermined by WWE script writers. The matches featured wrestlers portraying their characters in planned storylines that took place before, during and after the event. All wrestlers were from one of the WWE's brands – SmackDown, Raw
, or ECW – the three storyline divisions
in which WWE assigned its employees.
Wrestlers from the Raw brand were featured in the main event at Backlash: a Fatal-Four Way Elimination match, in which four men wrestled each other and could be eliminated only by pinfall or submission. The match was contested for the WWE Championship
, and featured the champion, Randy Orton
, defending against Triple H
, John Cena
, and John "Bradshaw" Layfield
(JBL). The build up to the match began at WrestleMania XXIV
, where Randy Orton defended his title against Triple H and John Cena in a Triple Threat match, in which the three men competed against each other, and the first man to score a pinfall or submission would win. Orton won the match and retained his title after pinning Cena. On the following night's edition of Raw, with the WWE Championship shining on his shoulder, Randy Orton crowed about defeating both Triple H and John Cena at WrestleMania, declaring his reign as champion the “Age of Orton.” But John “Bradshaw” Layfield had other ideas, telling Orton that he deserved a title match as a reward for proving that he was the toughest Superstar on Raw in his Belfast Brawl
victory over Finlay
also at WrestleMania. On the following week's edition of Raw, WWE Champion Randy Orton began the night believing he would go one-on-one with JBL at Backlash, but the tide quickly turned on him. Due to Triple H's complaint about himself being kicked in the head by Orton when he was about to pin Cena to win the WWE title at Wrestlemania, Raw
General Manager William Regal
placed Triple H into a Handicap match against Orton & JBL, and when Triple H won, Regal made the Triple Threat match for the title. Not to be outdone, John Cena also pleaded his case to Regal, who gave him the same Handicap Match ultimatum. After Orton’s intended interference failed, Cena pulled out the win, thus, the championship match at Backlash is now a Fatal Four Way starring three former WWE Champions challenging Orton. On the following week's edition of Raw, after his victory over William Regal, Orton felt compelled to meddle in the bout between Triple H and JBL. In an attempt at eliminating Triple H from Backlash, Orton ran in and nearly took off Triple H’s head. He administered an RKO before then teaming with JBL against him. As Orton was set to punt Triple H’s noggin again, however, JBL turned on him and laid him out with a vicious Clothesline From Hell.
The main feud
heading into Backlash on the SmackDown brand
was between The Undertaker and Edge, over the World Heavyweight Championship
. In February, at No Way Out
, Undertaker won an Elimination Chamber
match to become the number one contender to the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XXIV
. At WrestleMania, Undertaker defeated Edge to win the World Heavyweight Championship and extend his WrestleMania undefeated streak to 16-0. On the April 4, 2008 episode of SmackDown, SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero
booked a WrestleMania rematch between Undertaker and Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship at Backlash.
The primary feud on the ECW brand was between Kane
and Chavo Guerrero
, with the two battling over the ECW Championship. Before WrestleMania XXIV aired live on pay-per-view, Kane won a 24-Man
Battle Royal
to earn an ECW Championship match against Chavo Guerrero later that night. Kane would go on to defeat Guerrero and become the new ECW Champion. On the April 4, 2008 edition of SmackDown!, SmackDown! General Manager Vickie Guerrero booked Kane to defend the ECW Championship against Chavo Guerrero at Backlash. The feud intensified on the April 8, 2008 edition of ECW, where during a contract signing for Backlash, Guerrero, with assistance from Bam Neeley
, Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
, delivered a Frog splash on Kane through a table
. Two weeks later on April 22, 2008, the feud again intensified during an edition of the Cutting Edge, in which Edge, Hawkins, Ryder, and Neeley ganged up against Kane. The gang-up allowed Guerrero to attack Kane with a steel chair
.
Another feud leading up to Backlash was between Shawn Michaels
and Batista. Upset over the retirement of Ric Flair
at the hands of Michaels at WrestleMania XXIV, Batista interrupted Michaels' address on the April 4, 2008 edition of SmackDown! and called him a "selfish" person for what he did at WrestleMania. Batista blamed Michaels for not laying down for Flair and thus protecting his career instead of retiring him. Michaels defended his actions by saying Flair had called upon him to bring his best to WrestleMania, which he did. The conflict continued on an edition of Chris Jericho
's "Highlight Reel" interview segment that featured both men on the April 7, 2008 edition of Raw. Following another tense verbal standoff, Batista left the ring saying he had something in store for Michaels. Moments later, Raw General Manager William Regal said he had confirmed a match with SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero between Michaels and Batista at Backlash. In addition, the following week Jericho had a confrontation with Shawn Michaels who ended up kicking Jericho in the face. Frustrated, Jericho went to Regal in an effort to possibly add himself to the match. Regal did indeed add Jericho to the match, but not as a competitor. Instead he announced Jericho as a Special Guest Referee for the match.
Before the event began and aired live
on pay-per-view
, a dark match was featured in which WWE Tag Team Champions John Morrison and The Miz
defeated Jimmy Wang Yang
and Shannon Moore
.
, in which the champion, Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) defended his title against Matt Hardy
. Throughout the match, both Hardy and MVP performed a number of offensive maneuvers on each other, but Hardy eventually gained the advantage when MVP charged Hardy and Hardy dodged him, followed by Hardy performing a front facelock dropped into a cutter, a move Hardy refers to as the Twist of Fate, on MVP. He followed this with a cover for a successful pinfall, giving Hardy the victory and the championship.
The second bout was a standard match for the ECW Championship, in which the champion, Kane
defended his title against Chavo Guerrero
, who was accompanied by Bam Neely
. Guerrero spent much of the match attacking Kane's leg, and toward the end of the match he performed a body splash, or Frog Splash, on Kane. Before he could cover Kane for a pinfall, however, Kane grabbed Guerrero by the throat, and lifted him to slam him to the mat
, a move called a chokeslam. Kane then covered Guerrero for a pinfall, thus retaining his championship.
The following contest featured The Big Show
against The Great Khali in a standard match. Both men wrestled inconclusively until The Big Show performed a body slam onto Khali, after which Khali attempted to perform a two handed chokeslam on The Big Show. The Big Show countered, however, and delivered a chokeslam to Khali. He then covered him for a successful pinfall, winning the match.
The fourth match was a standard match between Batista and Shawn Michaels
, with Chris Jericho
as a special guest referee. The men performed a number of offensive moves on one another throughout the match, including Shawn Michaels locking his hands together and pulling back on the face of Batista, a hold commonly known as a crossface. The match also briefly went to the ringside area, where the ringpost was used as a weapon by Michaels. The end of the match came when Batista lifted Michaels in the air as a setup to his signature move
, a powerbomb
, referred to by Batista as the Batista Bomb. The maneuver sees Batista lift his opponent and then slam them back first onto the mat. Michaels, however, escaped from the hold in the air, and when he fell, suffered a storyline
knee injury, which caused Jericho to check on Michaels and stop Batista from acting. Michaels eventually got to his feet, and used Sweet Chin Music on Batista. Michaels then covered Batista for a successful pinfall, winning the match. Afterward, Michaels returned to the backstage area while limping heavily, making his injury appear realistic.
The next contest was a twelve-Diva
tag team match featuring the team of Beth Phoenix
, Melina
, Natayla
, Victoria
, Layla
, and Jillian Hall
against the team of Mickie James
, Ashley
, Maria
, Michelle McCool
, Kelly Kelly, and Cherry
. The match began with Michelle McCool against Beth Phoenix, and over the course of the match, all of the women participated in the contest. The end of the match came when Beth Phoenix performed a fisherman suplex on Ashley, and then covered her for a successful pin, giving her team the victory.
, in which the champion, The Undertaker, defended his title against Edge. The match was contested back and forth between the two men, with the early portions of the match featuring The Undertaker controlling much of the action. Edge eventually took an advantage when he exposed the turnbuckle in the corner, and The Undertaker ran head first into it. Curt Hawkins
then struck The Undertaker with the World Heavyweight Championship belt, which was followed by an unsuccessful cover by Edge. Edge then attempted to drive his shoulder into the Undertaker and tackle him to the mat, a move called a Spear, but The Undertaker countered the maneuver by grabbing Edge's head and falling backward to drive his head into the mat
, a move referred to as a DDT. Zack Ryder
then attempted to interfere on behalf of Edge, but The Undertaker threw Edge into Ryder and then caught Edge in an attempted Tombstone Piledriver, in which The Undertaker would have held Edge upside down and knelt, driving Edge's head into the mat. Edge countered the move, however, by flipping The Undertaker over and attempting to pin him, a move known as a sunset flip. While Edge was pinning The Undertaker, however, The Undertaker performed a gogoplata
submission hold, which caused Edge to submit, giving The Undertaker the victory. The Undertaker continued to apply the hold after the match ended, injuring (in storyline) Edge. Edge was removed from the ring on a stretcher by medics, making his injury appear realistic.
The main event was a Fatal Four-Way Elimination match for the WWE Championship
, in which the champion, Randy Orton
, defended his title against Triple H
, John Cena
, and John "Bradshaw" Layfield
(JBL). The match began with Orton attempting to attack JBL, but JBL countered and threw Orton out of the ring. JBL then attacked Cena, before being attacked by Triple H. Cena then attempted to swing Triple H by the arm into the corner, but Triple H reversed the move and sent Cena outside of the ring. Triple H and JBL then fought in the ring, while Cena and Orton fought outside. Cena was later sent off the ring apron into the Raw announcer's table, and Orton and JBL teamed up to attack Triple H in the ring. Triple H eventually struck both of them with his forearms, and JBL went to the outside of the ring while Triple H and Orton fought inside. Triple H later went outside of the ring and fought with JBL, while Cena returned to the ring and fought with Orton. After the men fought each other for several minutes, Cena wrapped his arm around the neck of JBL in a sleeper hold, a submission referred to as an STFU. This caused JBL to submit, eliminating him from the match. Immediately following JBL's submission, Orton kicked Cena in the head, which he followed with a cover for a pinfall, eliminating Cena from the match. Triple H and Orton then began to fight on the outside of the ring, with Orton taking control and sending Triple H back into the ring, where he dominated Triple H with a series of maneuvers for several minutes before Triple H struck Orton with his knee. The men fought outside the ring again, and when they returned, they fought for several more minutes until Orton performed a jumping cutter, or RKO, on Triple H. He covered Triple H but was unable to pin him. Orton then attempted to kick Triple H in the head, but Triple H dodged the maneuver and performed a double underhook facebuster, or Pedigree, on Orton, followed by a cover and successful pinfall. Triple H thus won the match and became a world champion for the twelfth time.
and Randy Orton
continued. On the April 28 edition of Raw, Orton challenged Triple H for the WWE Championship
later on in the night. William Regal
stopped the match midway through, however, and later booked the two in a Steel Cage match for the title at Judgment Day
.
On the May 2 edition of SmackDown, Vickie Guerrero
cancelled a scheduled World Title match between Undertaker and The Great Khali and stripped The Undertaker of the World Heavyweight Championship
, and Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
stole the physical belt and handed it to Guerrero. The next week on SmackDown, Guerrero booked a "Championship Chase" where the winner would face the Undertaker for the vacant World Championship at Judgment Day. Batista originally won, but his victory was cut short after Guerrero came out and announced that Edge had been medically cleared and would be able to compete. Thus, the match continued, and Edge defeated Batista, gaining the championship match at Judgment Day.
' s professional wrestling section rated the entire event a 6 out of 10 stars. The Fatal Four-Way main event match from the Raw brand was rated a 6 out of 10 stars, while the SmackDown brand's main event, a standard match for the World Heavyweight Championship, was rated an 8 out of 10 stars. The event was released on DVD
on May 27, 2008 by Sony Music Entertainment
. The DVD reached second on Billboard
s DVD Sales Chart for recreational sports during the week of June 21, 2008, and remained on the chart until the week of July 26, 2008, when it ranked 13.
WWE Backlash
Backlash was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event, produced every April by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. The event was created in 1999, with its inaugural event produced as an In Your House event in April of that year. The event in 2000 was rebranded as an...
professional wrestling
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
(PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(WWE). It took place on April 27, 2008 at the 1st Mariner Arena
1st Mariner Arena
1st Mariner Arena is an arena located in Baltimore, Maryland. In 2003, it was renamed by 1st Mariner Bank, which purchased naming rights to the arena for 10 years. It was reported that 1st Mariner Bank will need to pay the city $75,000 for the next ten years to keep the naming rights to the complex...
in Baltimore, Maryland
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
. The event starred wrestlers from the Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
, SmackDown, and ECW brands
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
.
Eight professional wrestling matches
Mock combat
Mock combat involves the execution of combative actions without intent to harm. Participants can engage in such sparring for ritual, training, recreational or performance reasons...
were scheduled on the event's card
Card (sports)
In sports, a card comprises a listing of the matches taking place in a title-match combat-sport event. Organizers divide overall cards into a main-event match and the undercard, which encompasses the rest of the matches. One can also further subdivide the undercard into midcard and lower card,...
, which featured a supercard, a scheduling of more than one main event. The first was a Fatal Four-Way Elimination for the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
match featuring wrestlers from the Raw brand, in which all four men fought in the ring at the same time, with competitors being eliminated by pinfall or submission. Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
defeated WWE Champion Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
, John Cena
John Cena
John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand....
, and John "Bradshaw" Layfield
John Layfield
John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News...
to win the championship. The other main event featured wrestlers from the SmackDown brand, in which defending World Heavyweight Champion
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
The Undertaker defeated challenger Edge in a standard wrestling match, also known as a singles match. The main event from the ECW brand was a standard match in which defending ECW Champion Kane
Kane (wrestler)
Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury....
defeated challenger Chavo Guerrero
Chavo Guerrero, Jr.
Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling...
. In addition, a featured bout was scheduled on the undercard, in which Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
defeated Batista in a standard match.
Backlash (2008) had an attendance of approximately 11,277 and received 200,000 buys, more than the previous year's event
Backlash (2007)
Backlash was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on April 29, 2007 at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Following WrestleMania, all pay-per-views became tri-branded...
. When the event was released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
, it reached a peak position of second on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s Recreational Sports DVD Sales Chart.
Background
Mock combat
Mock combat involves the execution of combative actions without intent to harm. Participants can engage in such sparring for ritual, training, recreational or performance reasons...
with outcomes predetermined by WWE script writers. The matches featured wrestlers portraying their characters in planned storylines that took place before, during and after the event. All wrestlers were from one of the WWE's brands – SmackDown, Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
, or ECW – the three storyline divisions
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
in which WWE assigned its employees.
Wrestlers from the Raw brand were featured in the main event at Backlash: a Fatal-Four Way Elimination match, in which four men wrestled each other and could be eliminated only by pinfall or submission. The match was contested for the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
, and featured the champion, Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
, defending against Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, John Cena
John Cena
John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand....
, and John "Bradshaw" Layfield
John Layfield
John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News...
(JBL). The build up to the match began at WrestleMania XXIV
WrestleMania XXIV
WrestleMania XXIV was the twenty-fourth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . The event took place on March 30, 2008, at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida and was the first WrestleMania to be held in the state of Florida...
, where Randy Orton defended his title against Triple H and John Cena in a Triple Threat match, in which the three men competed against each other, and the first man to score a pinfall or submission would win. Orton won the match and retained his title after pinning Cena. On the following night's edition of Raw, with the WWE Championship shining on his shoulder, Randy Orton crowed about defeating both Triple H and John Cena at WrestleMania, declaring his reign as champion the “Age of Orton.” But John “Bradshaw” Layfield had other ideas, telling Orton that he deserved a title match as a reward for proving that he was the toughest Superstar on Raw in his Belfast Brawl
Hardcore wrestling
Hardcore wrestling is a form of professional wrestling that eschews traditional concepts of match rules in favor of matches that take place in unusual environments, using foreign objects that are not normally permitted...
victory over Finlay
Dave Finlay
David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent...
also at WrestleMania. On the following week's edition of Raw, WWE Champion Randy Orton began the night believing he would go one-on-one with JBL at Backlash, but the tide quickly turned on him. Due to Triple H's complaint about himself being kicked in the head by Orton when he was about to pin Cena to win the WWE title at Wrestlemania, Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
General Manager William Regal
Darren Matthews
Darren Kenneth Matthews , is an English professional wrestler, author and color commentator currently signed to WWE and competing on the SmackDown brand under the ring name William Regal. He is also known for his time in World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Steven Regal...
placed Triple H into a Handicap match against Orton & JBL, and when Triple H won, Regal made the Triple Threat match for the title. Not to be outdone, John Cena also pleaded his case to Regal, who gave him the same Handicap Match ultimatum. After Orton’s intended interference failed, Cena pulled out the win, thus, the championship match at Backlash is now a Fatal Four Way starring three former WWE Champions challenging Orton. On the following week's edition of Raw, after his victory over William Regal, Orton felt compelled to meddle in the bout between Triple H and JBL. In an attempt at eliminating Triple H from Backlash, Orton ran in and nearly took off Triple H’s head. He administered an RKO before then teaming with JBL against him. As Orton was set to punt Triple H’s noggin again, however, JBL turned on him and laid him out with a vicious Clothesline From Hell.
The main feud
Feud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
heading into Backlash on the SmackDown brand
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
was between The Undertaker and Edge, over the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
. In February, at No Way Out
No Way Out (2008)
No Way Out was the ninth annual No Way Out professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on February 17, 2008 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada...
, Undertaker won an Elimination Chamber
Elimination Chamber
The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE promotion. It features a large chain-linked circular steel structure or "chamber" which encloses the ring. The chamber's floor is platformed over the ringside area which elevates it to ring level and within...
match to become the number one contender to the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XXIV
WrestleMania XXIV
WrestleMania XXIV was the twenty-fourth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . The event took place on March 30, 2008, at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida and was the first WrestleMania to be held in the state of Florida...
. At WrestleMania, Undertaker defeated Edge to win the World Heavyweight Championship and extend his WrestleMania undefeated streak to 16-0. On the April 4, 2008 episode of SmackDown, SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero
Vickie Guerrero
Vickie Lynn Guerrero is an American professional wrestling personality, manager, shifting authority figure and occasional wrestler. She is the widow of professional wrestler Eddie Guerrero, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand...
booked a WrestleMania rematch between Undertaker and Edge for the World Heavyweight Championship at Backlash.
Kane (wrestler)
Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury....
and Chavo Guerrero
Chavo Guerrero, Jr.
Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling...
, with the two battling over the ECW Championship. Before WrestleMania XXIV aired live on pay-per-view, Kane won a 24-Man
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
Battle Royal
Battle royal (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a battle royal is a multi-competitor match type in which wrestlers are eliminated until one is left and declared winner...
to earn an ECW Championship match against Chavo Guerrero later that night. Kane would go on to defeat Guerrero and become the new ECW Champion. On the April 4, 2008 edition of SmackDown!, SmackDown! General Manager Vickie Guerrero booked Kane to defend the ECW Championship against Chavo Guerrero at Backlash. The feud intensified on the April 8, 2008 edition of ECW, where during a contract signing for Backlash, Guerrero, with assistance from Bam Neeley
Justin LaRouche
Justin Bruce Rocheleau is an American professional wrestler, who worked on World Wrestling Entertainment's ECW brand under the name Bam Neely...
, Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder were a American professional wrestling tag team who appeared on the independent circuit and WWE under a variety of evolving names....
, delivered a Frog splash on Kane through a table
Table (furniture)
A table is a form of furniture with a flat and satisfactory horizontal upper surface used to support objects of interest, for storage, show, and/or manipulation...
. Two weeks later on April 22, 2008, the feud again intensified during an edition of the Cutting Edge, in which Edge, Hawkins, Ryder, and Neeley ganged up against Kane. The gang-up allowed Guerrero to attack Kane with a steel chair
Folding chair
A folding chair is a light, portable chair that that folds flat, and can be stored in a stack, row, or on a cart.-Uses:Folding chairs are generally used for seating in areas where permanent seating is not possible or practical. This includes outdoor and indoor events such as funerals, college...
.
Another feud leading up to Backlash was between Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
and Batista. Upset over the retirement of Ric Flair
Ric Flair
Richard Morgan Fliehr is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Ric Flair. Also known as "The Nature Boy", Flair is one of the most well-known professional wrestlers in the world....
at the hands of Michaels at WrestleMania XXIV, Batista interrupted Michaels' address on the April 4, 2008 edition of SmackDown! and called him a "selfish" person for what he did at WrestleMania. Batista blamed Michaels for not laying down for Flair and thus protecting his career instead of retiring him. Michaels defended his actions by saying Flair had called upon him to bring his best to WrestleMania, which he did. The conflict continued on an edition of Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
's "Highlight Reel" interview segment that featured both men on the April 7, 2008 edition of Raw. Following another tense verbal standoff, Batista left the ring saying he had something in store for Michaels. Moments later, Raw General Manager William Regal said he had confirmed a match with SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero between Michaels and Batista at Backlash. In addition, the following week Jericho had a confrontation with Shawn Michaels who ended up kicking Jericho in the face. Frustrated, Jericho went to Regal in an effort to possibly add himself to the match. Regal did indeed add Jericho to the match, but not as a competitor. Instead he announced Jericho as a Special Guest Referee for the match.
Event
| Role: | Name: |
|---|---|
| Commentator | Mick Foley Mick Foley Michael Francis "Mick" Foley, Sr. is an American semi-retired professional wrestler, author, comedian, actor, voice actor and former color commentator. He has worked for many wrestling promotions, including WWE, WCW, ECW and TNA. He is often referred to as "The Hardcore Legend", a nickname he... |
| Michael Cole Michael Cole Michael Sean Coulthard , better known by his ring name Michael Cole, is an American professional wrestling commentator, currently signed to WWE on both its Rawand SmackDown brands. Coulthard is a former news journalist.... |
|
| Jerry Lawler Jerry Lawler Jerry O'Neil Lawler is an American professional wrestler, wrestling commentator, musician, businessman, commercial artist and film actor, known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry "The King" Lawler. He is currently signed to WWE, working on its Raw brand as the color commentator and occasional... |
|
| Jim Ross Jim Ross James William "Jim" Ross is a professional wrestling commentator, former professional wrestling referee, restaurateur, occasional wrestler, and former company executive of WWE, where he currently works as a commentator on the WWE Raw brand... |
|
| Mike Adamle Mike Adamle Michael David "Mike" Adamle is a sports personality and former National Football League player. He is best known as the co-host of American Gladiators series for seven years.... |
|
| Tazz Tazz Peter Senerchia is a retired American professional wrestler and current color commentator best known by his ring name Tazz, originally Tazmaniac and later shortened to simply Taz... |
|
| Carlos Cabrera Carlos Cabrera Carlos Rodrigo Cabrera is a former newsman and currently employed with WWE, where he is one half of the company's Spanish announce team in which he is the play-by-play announcer. His longtime broadcast partner was the former Ecuadorian professional wrestler Hugo Savinovich, who was the color... |
|
| Hugo Savinovich Hugo Savinovich Hugo Savinovich is a former Ecuadorian professional wrestler, formerly employed with WWE, where he was one half of the Spanish announce team for the company's TV shows and pay-per-view events. He was a color commentator and partner of Carlos Cabrera and occasionally Marcelo Rodríguez. When he... |
|
| Interviewer | Eve Torres Eve Torres Eve Marie Torres is an American dancer, model, and professional wrestler. She is working for WWE on Raw brand. She is a two time WWE Divas Champion.Torres began her career as a model and dancer... |
| Todd Grisham Todd Grisham Todd Grisham is an American presenter/announcer who is best known for his time in the WWE as a backstage interviewer, play-by-play commentator and occasional ring announcer... |
|
| Ring announcer | Tony Chimel Tony Chimel Anthony "Tony" Chimel is an American professional wrestling ring announcer, currently employed by WWE working as the ring announcer for SmackDown brand.-WWE :... |
| Lilian Garcia Lilian Garcia Lilian Annette García , is a Spanish-American singer. She is best known as the former ring announcer for WWE's Raw brand. During her time in WWE, she became the first Diva to remain with the promotion for ten years.-Early life and career:... |
|
| Justin Roberts Justin Roberts Justin Jason Roberts is an American professional wrestling ring announcer, currently working for WWE appearing on its Raw brand.-Career:... |
|
| Referee | Mickie Henson |
| Mike Posey | |
| Mike Chioda Mike Chioda Michael Joseph "Mike" Chioda, is a senior referee who is currently signed to WWE. While not refereeing, Chioda, as well as the other referees in WWE, help set up the arena before shows, constructing the ring and stage areas.-WWF:... |
|
| Jack Doan Jack Doan John Michael "Jack" Doan is a veteran professional wrestling referee currently signed with WWE.-Career:Doan joined WWE in October 1991 as a truck driver. From there, he took robes from Superstars at ringside, played music at shows, worked as part of the ring crew, and continued to drive the... |
|
| Jim Korderas Jim Korderas __FORCETOC__Demetrius Korderas , better known by his referee name, Jim "Jimmy" Korderas is a Canadian professional wrestling referee who worked for World Wrestling Entertainment for over 22 years.-Early career:... |
|
| Charles Robinson |
Before the event began and aired live
Live television
Live television refers to a television production broadcast in real-time, as events happen, in the present. From the early days of television until about 1958, live television was used heavily, except for filmed shows such as I Love Lucy and Gunsmoke. Video tape did not exist until 1957...
on pay-per-view
Pay-per-view
Pay-per-view provides a service by which a television audience can purchase events to view via private telecast. The broadcaster shows the event at the same time to everyone ordering it...
, a dark match was featured in which WWE Tag Team Champions John Morrison and The Miz
John Morrison and The Miz
John Morrison and The Miz were a professional wrestling tag team and former WWE Tough Enough contestants. The team worked for World Wrestling Entertainment on its ECW brand, but also appeared on the SmackDown and Raw brands due to ECW's talent exchanges with those brands during their tenure as a team...
defeated Jimmy Wang Yang
James Yun
James Carson Yun is an American professional wrestler and actor, best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Jimmy Wang Yang, in World Championship Wrestling as one-third of the Jung Dragons as Yang, and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and the independent circuit...
and Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore
Shannon Moore is an American professional wrestler, who is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment for several years in the 2000s.Moore befriended Matt and Jeff Hardy...
.
Preliminary matches
Following the dark match, the pay-per-view event began with a standard match for the WWE United States ChampionshipWWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
, in which the champion, Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) defended his title against Matt Hardy
Matt Hardy
Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
. Throughout the match, both Hardy and MVP performed a number of offensive maneuvers on each other, but Hardy eventually gained the advantage when MVP charged Hardy and Hardy dodged him, followed by Hardy performing a front facelock dropped into a cutter, a move Hardy refers to as the Twist of Fate, on MVP. He followed this with a cover for a successful pinfall, giving Hardy the victory and the championship.
The second bout was a standard match for the ECW Championship, in which the champion, Kane
Kane (wrestler)
Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury....
defended his title against Chavo Guerrero
Chavo Guerrero, Jr.
Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling...
, who was accompanied by Bam Neely
Justin LaRouche
Justin Bruce Rocheleau is an American professional wrestler, who worked on World Wrestling Entertainment's ECW brand under the name Bam Neely...
. Guerrero spent much of the match attacking Kane's leg, and toward the end of the match he performed a body splash, or Frog Splash, on Kane. Before he could cover Kane for a pinfall, however, Kane grabbed Guerrero by the throat, and lifted him to slam him to the mat
Chokeslam
A chokeslam refers to a type of body slam in professional wrestling in which the wrestler grasps their opponent's neck, lifts them up, and slams them to the mat. It is common in televised wrestling because it is simple and relatively safe, yet looks powerful on camera...
, a move called a chokeslam. Kane then covered Guerrero for a pinfall, thus retaining his championship.
Paul Wight
Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand....
against The Great Khali in a standard match. Both men wrestled inconclusively until The Big Show performed a body slam onto Khali, after which Khali attempted to perform a two handed chokeslam on The Big Show. The Big Show countered, however, and delivered a chokeslam to Khali. He then covered him for a successful pinfall, winning the match.
The fourth match was a standard match between Batista and Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
, with Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
as a special guest referee. The men performed a number of offensive moves on one another throughout the match, including Shawn Michaels locking his hands together and pulling back on the face of Batista, a hold commonly known as a crossface. The match also briefly went to the ringside area, where the ringpost was used as a weapon by Michaels. The end of the match came when Batista lifted Michaels in the air as a setup to his signature move
Signature move
A signature move is a move or ability that is almost analogous to the person or character that uses it. This may infer that the move is usually a staple of the user's repertoire, and on most occasions was invented by the performer.-Usage:...
, a powerbomb
Powerbomb
A powerbomb is a professional wrestling throw in which an opponent is lifted up and then slammed back-first down to the mat. The standard powerbomb sees an opponent first placed in a standing headscissors position...
, referred to by Batista as the Batista Bomb. The maneuver sees Batista lift his opponent and then slam them back first onto the mat. Michaels, however, escaped from the hold in the air, and when he fell, suffered a storyline
Kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe is the portrayal of events within the industry as "real" or "true". Specifically, the portrayal of professional wrestling, in particular the competition and rivalries between participants, as being genuine or not of a worked nature...
knee injury, which caused Jericho to check on Michaels and stop Batista from acting. Michaels eventually got to his feet, and used Sweet Chin Music on Batista. Michaels then covered Batista for a successful pinfall, winning the match. Afterward, Michaels returned to the backstage area while limping heavily, making his injury appear realistic.
WWE Diva
Diva is a term used by World Wrestling Entertainment , an American professional wrestling promotion, to refer to its female talent. The term is applied to women who appear as wrestlers, managers or valets, backstage interviewers, or ring announcers....
tag team match featuring the team of Beth Phoenix
Beth Phoenix
Elizabeth Kocianski is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE where she wrestles on the Raw brand under the ring name Beth Phoenix, where she is the reigning WWE Divas Champion....
, Melina
Melina Perez
Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina....
, Natayla
Nattie Neidhart
Natalie "Nattie" Katherine Neidhart is a Canadian professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE on its SmackDown brand under the ring name Natalya....
, Victoria
Lisa Marie Varon
Lisa Marie Varon , is an American professional wrestler, bodybuilder and fitness competitor of Puerto Rican and Turkish descent...
, Layla
Layla El
Layla El is an English dancer, model and professional wrestler of Moroccan and Spanish descent. She is employed by WWE as a WWE Diva and appears on the SmackDown brand as Layla...
, and Jillian Hall
Jillian Hall
Jillian Faye Fletcher is an American professional wrestler who is currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is also known for her tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Jillian Hall or simply Jillian...
against the team of Mickie James
Mickie James
Mickie Laree James , better known simply as Mickie James, is an American professional wrestler and singer of mixed Native American-Caucasian descent, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is a former two-time TNA Women's Knockout Champion.James began her professional...
, Ashley
Ashley Massaro
Ashley Marie Massaro is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to World Independent Ladies Division Wrestling. She is best known for her work with World Wrestling Entertainment and her appearance on Survivor: China....
, Maria
Maria Kanellis
Maria Louise Kanellis, , or simply Maria, is a singer-songwriter, actress, model, and professional wrestler, best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment. Kanellis's career began as a contestant on the reality show Outback Jack in 2004...
, Michelle McCool
Michelle McCool
Michelle Leigh McCool , is a retired American professional wrestler who is best known for her time in WWE.McCool originally worked as a middle school teacher in Palatka, Florida. She joined WWE in 2004 after participating in the 2004 WWE Diva Search. In her initial on-screen role, she acted...
, Kelly Kelly, and Cherry
Kara Drew
Kara Elizabeth Drew is a former American professional wrestler and valet, better known by her ring name Cherry. She is best known for working in World Wrestling Entertainment as the manager of former Tag Team Champions, Deuce 'n Domino, and as a performer for its SmackDown brand.After becoming...
. The match began with Michelle McCool against Beth Phoenix, and over the course of the match, all of the women participated in the contest. The end of the match came when Beth Phoenix performed a fisherman suplex on Ashley, and then covered her for a successful pin, giving her team the victory.
Main event matches
The sixth match of the event was a standard match for the World Heavyweight ChampionshipWorld Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
, in which the champion, The Undertaker, defended his title against Edge. The match was contested back and forth between the two men, with the early portions of the match featuring The Undertaker controlling much of the action. Edge eventually took an advantage when he exposed the turnbuckle in the corner, and The Undertaker ran head first into it. Curt Hawkins
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder were a American professional wrestling tag team who appeared on the independent circuit and WWE under a variety of evolving names....
then struck The Undertaker with the World Heavyweight Championship belt, which was followed by an unsuccessful cover by Edge. Edge then attempted to drive his shoulder into the Undertaker and tackle him to the mat, a move called a Spear, but The Undertaker countered the maneuver by grabbing Edge's head and falling backward to drive his head into the mat
DDT (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling a DDT is any move in which the wrestler has the opponent in a front facelock, and falls down or backwards to drive the opponent's head into the mat...
, a move referred to as a DDT. Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder were a American professional wrestling tag team who appeared on the independent circuit and WWE under a variety of evolving names....
then attempted to interfere on behalf of Edge, but The Undertaker threw Edge into Ryder and then caught Edge in an attempted Tombstone Piledriver, in which The Undertaker would have held Edge upside down and knelt, driving Edge's head into the mat. Edge countered the move, however, by flipping The Undertaker over and attempting to pin him, a move known as a sunset flip. While Edge was pinning The Undertaker, however, The Undertaker performed a gogoplata
Gogoplata
A gogoplata is a type of chokehold also called Kagato-Jime in Judo, that is used in grappling and was popularised by practitioners of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.-Execution:...
submission hold, which caused Edge to submit, giving The Undertaker the victory. The Undertaker continued to apply the hold after the match ended, injuring (in storyline) Edge. Edge was removed from the ring on a stretcher by medics, making his injury appear realistic.
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
, in which the champion, Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
, defended his title against Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, John Cena
John Cena
John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand....
, and John "Bradshaw" Layfield
John Layfield
John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News...
(JBL). The match began with Orton attempting to attack JBL, but JBL countered and threw Orton out of the ring. JBL then attacked Cena, before being attacked by Triple H. Cena then attempted to swing Triple H by the arm into the corner, but Triple H reversed the move and sent Cena outside of the ring. Triple H and JBL then fought in the ring, while Cena and Orton fought outside. Cena was later sent off the ring apron into the Raw announcer's table, and Orton and JBL teamed up to attack Triple H in the ring. Triple H eventually struck both of them with his forearms, and JBL went to the outside of the ring while Triple H and Orton fought inside. Triple H later went outside of the ring and fought with JBL, while Cena returned to the ring and fought with Orton. After the men fought each other for several minutes, Cena wrapped his arm around the neck of JBL in a sleeper hold, a submission referred to as an STFU. This caused JBL to submit, eliminating him from the match. Immediately following JBL's submission, Orton kicked Cena in the head, which he followed with a cover for a pinfall, eliminating Cena from the match. Triple H and Orton then began to fight on the outside of the ring, with Orton taking control and sending Triple H back into the ring, where he dominated Triple H with a series of maneuvers for several minutes before Triple H struck Orton with his knee. The men fought outside the ring again, and when they returned, they fought for several more minutes until Orton performed a jumping cutter, or RKO, on Triple H. He covered Triple H but was unable to pin him. Orton then attempted to kick Triple H in the head, but Triple H dodged the maneuver and performed a double underhook facebuster, or Pedigree, on Orton, followed by a cover and successful pinfall. Triple H thus won the match and became a world champion for the twelfth time.
Aftermath
The feud between Triple HTriple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
and Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
continued. On the April 28 edition of Raw, Orton challenged Triple H for the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
later on in the night. William Regal
Darren Matthews
Darren Kenneth Matthews , is an English professional wrestler, author and color commentator currently signed to WWE and competing on the SmackDown brand under the ring name William Regal. He is also known for his time in World Championship Wrestling under the ring name Steven Regal...
stopped the match midway through, however, and later booked the two in a Steel Cage match for the title at Judgment Day
Judgment Day (2008)
Judgment Day was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on May 18, 2008 at the Qwest Center Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska...
.
On the May 2 edition of SmackDown, Vickie Guerrero
Vickie Guerrero
Vickie Lynn Guerrero is an American professional wrestling personality, manager, shifting authority figure and occasional wrestler. She is the widow of professional wrestler Eddie Guerrero, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand...
cancelled a scheduled World Title match between Undertaker and The Great Khali and stripped The Undertaker of the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
, and Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder were a American professional wrestling tag team who appeared on the independent circuit and WWE under a variety of evolving names....
stole the physical belt and handed it to Guerrero. The next week on SmackDown, Guerrero booked a "Championship Chase" where the winner would face the Undertaker for the vacant World Championship at Judgment Day. Batista originally won, but his victory was cut short after Guerrero came out and announced that Edge had been medically cleared and would be able to compete. Thus, the match continued, and Edge defeated Batista, gaining the championship match at Judgment Day.
Reception
The event had a final attendance of 11,277. Canadian Online ExplorerCanadian Online Explorer
Canadian Online Explorer is a bilingual online news and information site from Canada.A subsidiary of Quebecor Media, Canoe.ca is a leading local and national interactive media provider of news, entertainment and services, helping to inform and connect Canadians...
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
on May 27, 2008 by Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment ' is the second-largest global recorded music company of the "big four" record companies and is controlled by Sony Corporation of America, the United States subsidiary of Japan's Sony Corporation....
. The DVD reached second on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
s DVD Sales Chart for recreational sports during the week of June 21, 2008, and remained on the chart until the week of July 26, 2008, when it ranked 13.
Results
| # | Results | Stipulations | Times | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dark | John Morrison and The Miz John Morrison and The Miz John Morrison and The Miz were a professional wrestling tag team and former WWE Tough Enough contestants. The team worked for World Wrestling Entertainment on its ECW brand, but also appeared on the SmackDown and Raw brands due to ECW's talent exchanges with those brands during their tenure as a team... defeated Jimmy Wang Yang James Yun James Carson Yun is an American professional wrestler and actor, best known for his time in World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Jimmy Wang Yang, in World Championship Wrestling as one-third of the Jung Dragons as Yang, and in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling and the independent circuit... and Shannon Moore Shannon Moore Shannon Moore is an American professional wrestler, who is signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling . He is best known for his work with World Championship Wrestling between 1999 and 2001 and with World Wrestling Entertainment for several years in the 2000s.Moore befriended Matt and Jeff Hardy... . |
Tag team match Professional wrestling match types Many types of matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, can be found in the form of performing art that is professional wrestling.... |
||
| 1 | Matt Hardy Matt Hardy Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .... defeated Montel Vontavious Porter (c) |
Singles match for the WWE United States Championship WWE United States Championship The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand.... |
11:24 | |
| 2 | Kane Kane (wrestler) Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury.... (c) defeated Chavo Guerrero Chavo Guerrero, Jr. Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling... (with Bam Neely Justin LaRouche Justin Bruce Rocheleau is an American professional wrestler, who worked on World Wrestling Entertainment's ECW brand under the name Bam Neely... ) |
Singles match for the ECW Championship | 08:49 | |
| 3 | The Big Show Paul Wight Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand.... defeated The Great Khali |
Singles match | 08:05 | |
| 4 | Shawn Michaels Shawn Michaels Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December... defeated Batista |
Singles match with Chris Jericho Chris Jericho Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer... as Special guest referee |
14:59 | |
| 5 | Beth Phoenix Beth Phoenix Elizabeth Kocianski is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE where she wrestles on the Raw brand under the ring name Beth Phoenix, where she is the reigning WWE Divas Champion.... , Melina Melina Perez Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina.... , Layla Layla El Layla El is an English dancer, model and professional wrestler of Moroccan and Spanish descent. She is employed by WWE as a WWE Diva and appears on the SmackDown brand as Layla... , Jillian Hall Jillian Hall Jillian Faye Fletcher is an American professional wrestler who is currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is also known for her tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring name Jillian Hall or simply Jillian... , Victoria Lisa Marie Varon Lisa Marie Varon , is an American professional wrestler, bodybuilder and fitness competitor of Puerto Rican and Turkish descent... and Natalya Nattie Neidhart Natalie "Nattie" Katherine Neidhart is a Canadian professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE on its SmackDown brand under the ring name Natalya.... defeated Mickie James Mickie James Mickie Laree James , better known simply as Mickie James, is an American professional wrestler and singer of mixed Native American-Caucasian descent, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is a former two-time TNA Women's Knockout Champion.James began her professional... , Maria Maria Kanellis Maria Louise Kanellis, , or simply Maria, is a singer-songwriter, actress, model, and professional wrestler, best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment. Kanellis's career began as a contestant on the reality show Outback Jack in 2004... , Ashley Ashley Massaro Ashley Marie Massaro is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to World Independent Ladies Division Wrestling. She is best known for her work with World Wrestling Entertainment and her appearance on Survivor: China.... , Michelle McCool Michelle McCool Michelle Leigh McCool , is a retired American professional wrestler who is best known for her time in WWE.McCool originally worked as a middle school teacher in Palatka, Florida. She joined WWE in 2004 after participating in the 2004 WWE Diva Search. In her initial on-screen role, she acted... , Cherry Kara Drew Kara Elizabeth Drew is a former American professional wrestler and valet, better known by her ring name Cherry. She is best known for working in World Wrestling Entertainment as the manager of former Tag Team Champions, Deuce 'n Domino, and as a performer for its SmackDown brand.After becoming... and Kelly Kelly |
12-Diva Tag Team match | 06:31 | |
| 6 | The Undertaker (c) defeated Edge by submission | Singles match for the World Heavyweight Championship World Heavyweight Championship (WWE) The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand... |
18:23 | |
| 7 | Triple H Triple H Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley... defeated Randy Orton Randy Orton Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand... (c), John Cena John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand.... , and John "Bradshaw" Layfield John Layfield John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News... |
Fatal Four-Way Elimination for the WWE Championship WWE Championship The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963... |
28:11 | |
| Fatal Four-Way match eliminations | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elimination # | Wrestler | Eliminated by | Elimination move | Time |
| 1 | JBL | Cena | Submitted to the STFU | 10:29 |
| 2 | Cena | Orton | Pinned after a punt to the head | 10:41 |
| 3 | Orton | Triple H | Pinned after a Pedigree | 28:11 |
| 4 | Triple H | Winner | ||