WWE WrestleMania Backlash is shaping up to be a show fans can skip

The time coming out of WrestleMania is supposed to be filled with excitement for the WWE. The idea of new angles, transitioning storylines, and the development of new stars is key to building and retaining an interest in the product. Unfortunately, WWE’s continued practice of sticking to more of the same is one of the biggest issues with the product. That’s why WrestleMania Backlash feels like a show that fans can skip without the worry of missing anything truly new from the promotion.

With nearly two weeks left into the show on May 8, there are four matches listed on the card. Each one of them is a rematch between individuals that were locked into storylines at WrestleMania or faced each other recently. Charlotte Flair versus Ronda Rousey, Cody Rhodes versus Seth Rollins, and AJ Styles versus Edge all occurred less than a month ago. Team RK Bro and The Usos have battled multiple times in the past including Survivor Series and as recent as Monday Night Raw on March 28. None of this is new in any sense.

More matches are expected to be added to the card. Perhaps Sonya Deville challenging Bianca Belair for the WWE Raw Women’s Championship. But that match is scheduled to occur on an upcoming edition of Raw and will probably end in some sort of non-finish, continuing the angle through the PPV. Will Ricochet be on the card to defend the WWE Intercontinental Title? Perhaps, but he doesn’t have any distinct challengers at this time. Same with Roman Reigns, as he’s more focused on The Usos unifying the tag team titles for The Bloodline.

Outside of a potential matchup between Ezekiel and Kevin Owens, there’s little on this card to make fans say, “I’ve never seen this before.” That’s a problem when looking around the rest of the wrestling industry, there are a lot of developments leading toward historic firsts that command the attention, time, and money of fans.

As competition for attention continues to grow across many industries, WWE continues to lean on the practice of leveraging the same wrestlers at the top, the same matchups, and angles as the basis of their content. While they still have the largest viewership within the space, there’s no denying declining viewership and popularity trends over time. WrestleMania Backlash is yet another example of it and this entire show is shaping up to be one that can be missed without remorse.