{"id":161246,"date":"2026-05-09T04:54:58","date_gmt":"2026-05-09T08:54:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=161246"},"modified":"2026-05-09T04:56:20","modified_gmt":"2026-05-09T08:56:20","slug":"wwe-backlash-2026-4-major-surprises-that-can-happen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2026\/05\/09\/wwe-backlash-2026-4-major-surprises-that-can-happen\/","title":{"rendered":"WWE Backlash 2026: 4 Potential Major Surprises for the PLE"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2026\/05\/02\/wwe-backlash-2026-preview-match-card-5-9-26\/\" target=\"_self\">WWE Backlash 2026<\/a> will take over Tampa&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.benchmarkintlarena.com\/events\/detail\/wwe-backlash-2026\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Benchmark International Arena<\/a> this Saturday. As the first major Premium Live Event following an eventful WrestleMania 42, fans can expect some surprises. Furthermore, the company has put together a loaded star with top stars like Roman Reigns, Seth &#8220;Freakin&#8221; Rollins, and Bron Breakker in key roles.<\/p>\n<p>The World Heavyweight Championship will be up for grabs as Reigns, the champion, battles his little cousin, Jacob Fatu. Months of disdain and mind games will come to a head at Backlash 2026 when Rollins faces Breakker. The loveable IYO SKY will also go to war against her former mentor, Asuka.<\/p>\n<p>Let&#8217;s not forget that John Cena is also scheduled to make an announcement on the show. Thus, Backlash 2026 might turn out to be a gem filled with massive twists. On that note, let&#8217;s look at 4 surprises that can happen in Tampa this Saturday.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>#4. John Cena Announces the Official Date for the WWE Draft at Backlash 2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Despite retiring from in-ring competition at Saturday Night&#8217;s Main Event last December, John Cena has maintained a reasonable connection with WWE. The 17-time World Champion hosted WrestleMania 42 and is now preparing to make a surprise announcement at Backlash.<\/p>\n<p>Danhausen needs a partner to face The Miz and Kit Wilson. Given that Cena interacted with Danhausen at Mania, some feel that the Champ might be the mystery partner. However, Cena is enjoying retirement and has vowed to remain faithful to his word. Thus, it&#8217;s unlikely that he wrestles in Tampa.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: 610px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"8afcbf7a9ed3fd6bf7763b62addc7cf8\" image-id=\"3He6L4Keoskt\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 3590px; aspect-ratio: 3590\/2790;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<p>Nonetheless, he could still shake the foundation of WWE with the rumored important announcement. Fans have been demanding a shake-up of the main roster for a while. The last proper WWE Draft happened two years ago, following WrestleMania XL. While the company has swapped quite a few Superstars recently, a thorough shakeup is needed.<\/p>\n<p>Cena could announce the official date and location of the WWE Draft at Backlash 2026. The Champ has been involved in many such shakeups in the past. Thus, he would do a great job of hyping the concept.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Every pick of the 2024 WWE Draft: Raw highlights, April 29, 2024\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ubVboDCFNqQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<h2><strong>#3. Oba Femi Emerges as Danhausen&#8217;s Mystery Partner<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Danhausen may be very nice and very evil, but without a partner, he will be easy pickings for The Miz and Kit Wilson. Fortunately, the ultra-popular Superstar could enlist one of the most feared and powerful monsters in recent memory: Oba Femi. The Ruler has the wrestling world in the palm of his hand.<\/p>\n<p>After <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2026\/04\/19\/oba-femi-slays-the-beast-at-wrestlemania-42-brock-lesnar-seemingly-retires\/\" target=\"_self\">retiring Brock Lesnar<\/a> at WrestleMania 42, Femi has been treated like a special attraction with RAW featuring the &#8220;Oba Femi Open Challenge.&#8221; This past week, the former NXT Champion obliterated Otis with ease. The Ruler wants to add victims to his list, and he could add a couple more if he teams up with Danhausen.<\/p>\n<p>As fans will recall, Femi has destroyed Miz and Wilson in the past. Considering his appetite for competition, the Ruler would love to crush both arrogant stars in one match at Backlash 2026. This would be a smart move for Danhausen, as Femi could easily handle both men with ease.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Oba Femi dismantles The Miz: SmackDown highlights, Feb. 27, 2026\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/FxC7KfHEkik?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2><strong>#2. A Masked Man Helps Seth &#8220;Freakin&#8221; Rollins Defeat Bron Breakker at Backlash 2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The Vision storyline has relied heavily on masked figures. Austin Theory began his allegiance with the group as a masked assailant. Bron Breakker&#8217;s premature elimination from the 2026 Men&#8217;s Royal Rumble came courtesy of a mystery attacker. Seth &#8220;Freakin&#8221; Rollins also returned as the masked man at Elimination Chamber 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Following Breakker&#8217;s return at WrestleMania 42, the angle has shifted into the background. However, Rollins used the masked figures to great effect when he battled the Vision alone in the build-up to Mania 42.\u00a0 The Visionary has fallen victim to Breakker&#8217;s Spear multiple times in the last few weeks.<\/p>\n<p>Hence, he might resort to cheap tactics to outsmart his former mentee. A masked assailant could attack Breakker behind the referee&#8217;s back, allowing Rollins to stomp his opponent for the win. This finish would protect the Unbreakable Badass in defeat, prolong the feud, and add another twist to the tale.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Every appearance of the \u201cmasked man\u201d: WWE Playlist\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/vlyxk__RFYY?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<h2><strong>#1. Jacob Fatu Stuns Roman Reigns at WWE Backlash 2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Heading into Backlash 2026, many fans will be tempted to think that the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2026\/05\/08\/wwe-backlash-2026-4-potential-finishes-for-roman-reigns-vs-jacob-fatu\/\" target=\"_self\">result of Roman Reigns vs. Jacob Fatu <\/a>is a foregone conclusion. The OTC won the World Heavyweight Championship a few weeks ago at WrestleMania 42. As one of the most dominant Superstars of the modern era, Reigns is expected to have a lengthy run.<\/p>\n<p>However, one must not underestimate the Samoan Werewolf. Fatu is one of the most dangerous and unpredictable members of the Anoa&#8217;i Family. Now, he has also added the Tongan Death Grip to his impressive arsenal. Therefore, Reigns must take his little cousin seriously. Fatu is desperate to win the World Title and will do just about anything to end the OTC.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_160847\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-160847\" style=\"width: 960px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/05\/11-4.webp\" alt=\"WWE Backlash 2026 results graphic featuring World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns and Jacob Fatu.\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" class=\"size-full wp-image-160847\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/05\/11-4.webp 960w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2026\/05\/11-4-768x432.webp 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-160847\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Official WWE Backlash 2026 in Tampa, Florida poster featuring World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns and challenger Jacob Fatu. (Photo Credit: WWE)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Nonetheless, Reigns, with the experience and The Usos, is more likely to walk out of Backlash 2026 with the championship. But if Fatu does dethrone the OTC, it would alter the trajectory of RAW for the next few months, giving rise to intriguing television.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Jacob Fatu smashes Roman Reigns through a table with Tongan Death Grip: Raw highlights, May 4, 2026\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2_wYQe3lrUE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>WWE Backlash 2026 will take over Tampa&#8217;s Benchmark International Arena this Saturday. As the first major Premium Live Event following an eventful WrestleMania 42, fans can expect some surprises. Furthermore, the company has put together a loaded star with top stars like Roman Reigns, Seth &#8220;Freakin&#8221; Rollins, and Bron Breakker in key roles. The World [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5689,"featured_media":160848,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,2192,3],"tags":[5842,165,8734,9731],"class_list":["post-161246","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-wwe","category-wrestling","category-wwe-universe","tag-danhausen","tag-john-cena","tag-oba-femi","tag-wwe-backlash-2026"],"modified_by":"Michael Joseph Sugue, Manager","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161246","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5689"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=161246"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161246\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":161255,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/161246\/revisions\/161255"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/160848"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=161246"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=161246"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=161246"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}