Backlash: Randy Orton vs. JBL vs John Cena vs. Triple H

[A.J.]

Fatal 4 Way for the WWE Championship Match
Randy Orton(c) vs. JBL vs John Cena vs. Triple H​

If two’s company and three’s a crowd, then four, well, four can be downright fatal — especially when you combine the lethal elements of Randy Orton, Triple H, John Cena and JBL in a Fatal Four Way Title Match at Backlash.

The lethal wheels were set in motion the moment Raw General Manager William Regal arranged a Backlash title bout pitting Orton, the reigning WWE Champion, against media maven JBL. Triple H interrupted the GM to make the case that he should be given a title opportunity as well. An intrigued Regal then set a Handicap Match between Triple H and Orton & JBL. The Game emerged with the victory and an opportunity at the WWE gold.

Not to be outdone, Cena’s entrance music broke, and the leader of the Chain Gang pleaded his case with the Raw GM as well. Regal allowed Cena the same opportunity he afforded The Game — a Handicap Match, this time against JBL and Triple H himself.

While the Legend Killer hoped to better his odds and preserve the “Age of Orton,” he watched helplessly as, in one night on Raw, he saw the odds of preserving his reign dwindle to 25 percent against three former WWE Champions. It all started as the friction between Triple H and JBL came to a head, distracting from Cena. After inadvertently receiving a JBL punch to the face, Orton, in a fit of rage, leveled the media maven with an RKO. Cena quickly took advantage and covered JBL for the pinfall and a title opportunity at Backlash.

While Orton managed to scrape out a victory in his Triple Threat Match against Triple H and Cena at WrestleMania XXIV, can the Legend Killer possibly hope to overcome even stiffer odds with JBL in the mix? If not, which of the remaining competitors will survive the Fatal Four Way Title Match to lay claim to WWE gold?

Do I have to say that this was looking pretty obvious after last Monday on RAW? I don't think I do, but I did, Anyways, this match I am not really looking forward too as fatal 4 ways always have so much action going n that its hard to keep up with all the action going on in and out of the ring. Be interesting to see how JBL interacts with Orton/HHH/Cena as I thought at Mania that those three had some chemistry not great chemistry but some. I assume that this is the match that Orton pins Cena again to get him out the picture possibly? Then have a 3 way at Judgment Day between HHH/Orton/JBL though I doubt that. I hope the age of Orton continues on but I can see HHH reclaiming his spot as the man. Though I think they can push having Orton vs HHH one on one for the gold for awhile as that looks like the long term plan out of all this. SO be a good match at least I hope.

 

[Lil Wes]

Christ. These WWE championship feuds since Cena/Orton are so uninteresting it's ridiculous. Orton will end up carrying this match on his shoulders just like he did the Triple Threat and Fatal Four Way a year ago. Complete snoozer that will have some sort of goofy finish similar to last year probably.

I can see HHH taking the title here, but I still think WWE thinks they are onto something here with having Orton get major heat from stealing victories like this. All in all, I expect a average match. I'm not interested, I don't know who would be. These 4 feuding is just so bland.

What ever happened to the Wrestlemania 1 on 1 classics with the anticipated rematches? Instead we have that on the secondary show, that'll just end in a DQ anyways

 

[MrScott]

How the hell does JBL get in here?

tripple H's promo was actually kind of spot on, how does a guy whos been retired for 2 years and is an announcer and the only thing hes done since hes come back is beat a midgit, and finlay once, and that feud shouldn't even be over, so there seriously going to end it by having the dad loose on the biggest stage? (personally id like to see Finlay come out and screw JBL out of his chance to win this match)

oh and he was in a short feud with Y2J and judging by there last match he seemed to lose to Y2J, but then that was cut short to.

but i guess the real problem i have with it is this, how does he screw jericho out of the belt, jericho not get a rematch, and now jbl put into the title picture all randomly?


that out of the way, it does look like it could be quite the intresting match done right, and i really hope orton keeps the belt, as i would like to see a bit longer of a title run for him. i think hes doing a good job with it

 

[Alex(Killer Of Dreams & Legends)]

i see RKO coming out on top .... but i just wanna know how the hell did jbl get in the picture? i guess to fill it so it is not a wm rematch ... but any ways im looking for the feud between these four to be pretty decent , but i wanna see Triple h get the titleback ... maybe the ending could be a screwy one to vacant the title or to put HHH vs. RKO at judgement day .. and i pray that neither JBL or Cena walk out with the title that would make me turn off the wwe for a few months ..

 

[AnthonyMango/NoFate007]

50/50 shot that its either Orton or Triple H. Cena's filming his movie, so it'd be a stupid decision to give him the title, and JBL...give me a break.

If this was happening before that WM win from Orton, I'd give the edge to Triple H in a significant percentage spread. However, Orton's win signified a possible huge trust in him from the upper management, so I wouldn't be surprised at all to see Orton retain here. The only question is...who does he lose to? I sure as hell don't want to see Orton/Cena/HHH for months on end. Hopefully this is the end of it. I'd love to see him lose to HBK, but the chances of that are slim as Michaels doesn't want a title run. I DON'T want Orton to lose to CM Punk...so who is left if Jericho isn't going to receive the nod due to backstage politics? *Crosses his fingers for Kennedy, Edge, or Morrison lol*

 

[Montel_Vontavious_Porter]

This will be a good match. Either Randy Orton will pin JBL here, then having Triple H vs. Randy Orton one-on-one at Judgment Day, or Triple H will take the championship here.

But i think Randy Orton will retain, then have a HHH Vs. Orton at Judgment Day, were Triple H will take the title.

 

[Y 2 Jake]

I say put the title on JBL. He's the only one with an intresting character so why not. His matches suck. But so do HHH's. Orton & Cena are fine I guess. But a little dull. Considering this is the Raw title, and Raw is a talk show. Why not put the title on the best talker? His promos are more intresting and dynamic than anything any of the other threee have ever done. It's just makes sense.

I haven't see the Mania match. But I hear it was pretty good. I don't see why this won't be better. JBL is good a brawling. Which is exactly what this will become.

 

[Uncle Phatso]

I don't see orton caring the title much longer. I would love for wwe to focus on him more and more, But as usualy trips will prolly get the win. In my mindd jbl still has a little more to bring back to the table because for 2 years he didnt do shit but bore us on smackdown. And cena just needs to go film his movie, Hopefully he'll just turn into another rock so we can all shutup about him. I think the match will go well with trips winning it. I wont be happy but alot of people will.

 

[WWEFan2000]

It will be a decent match but I see Orton walking out as champ.

Heel champs always seem to retain in fatal 4 ways and if Orton didnt lose in a triple threat at wrestlemania, he wont lose in a fatal 4 way at Backlash. Orton will RKO JBL as JBL attempts a clothesline.

 

[Chevy88]

I see Orton winning this match as it would be another win to improve his title reign I think Triple H will wait until JD to take the title I also would like to see Orton or trips pin JBL seriously he does not belong in this match JBL has a good chracter and is the 3rd or 4th best promo guy in wwe but as good as his promos are his matches bore me and alot of fans to death

 

[Banes88]

What if this were to happen?

Randy Orton hits RKO on JBL, HHH hits Pedigree on Cena, they both cover, both get the 3 count, but really, there can only be one winner? So the WWE Champion is decided 1 on 1 at that next PPV...? Anyone?

 

[Bobby B]

I don't get the decision to include JBL either. I guess there trying to keep Triple H and John Cena in the main event view , but differentiate between the WM Main event. I don't expect the match to be particularly entertaining , just as a filler to get Cena out of the way. Although again I'd expect Orton to pin JBL / Cena , so that Triple H can again claim that Orton hasn't pinned him.

I'd have much rather seen Jericho in the mix instead of JBL.

 

[Romanista10]

Been waiting for 3 years to see Triple H back as WWE Champion (more than for 1 night) and have been disappointed to see him lose time and time again. I expect the trend to continue. Cena won't get the title back until SummerSlam as by then the filming of his movie will be over. Just about everyone expects Triple H to win (which everyone thought would happen at WM22, Backlash 2006, and WM24 and didn't) so he won't. JBL winning would be a travesty and thats what worries me as for the past few years it seems Vince deliberately gives the fans what they DON'T want.

IMO, Orton will retain and continue the ''Age of Orton" storyline.

 

[Slim Pickns]

This is exactly what happens when you don't build up new stars and have no challengers for the belt.

The announcement of JBL being no. 1 Contender and the handicap matches on RAW were WWE's way of trying to distract people from realizing this is the Mania match, plus the guy who bombed until beating up a midget. He may add something to the match, but this is hardly anything to get excited about.

I like Orton retaining or at least JBL winning. The WWE Title needs a long string of heel victories to keep people interested until someone else can step up as face and challenge them, HHH and Cena are not cutting it right now.

 

[Steamboat Ricky]

This match sucks. Backlash is shaping up to be a pretty horrible card, IMO, and pushing this as the main-event is just pathetic. The match flopped at Mania, and now by adding JBL, well, it still sucks, if not more.

Unless there is some major buildup in the next few weeks, I see Orton as retaining because the other three seem far less over at this point. I really don't see them putting the belt on JBL...there might be riots if they do. I don't think Cena is staying around after this match (movie/finish healing). And I think Trips isn't as over as Orton.

Hopefully, they will put Jeff back into the picture when he comes back. PLLLLLEASE.

 

[Cage917r]

I dont see why everyone thinks this match sucks, what did you want, HHH vs. Orton? Why so everybody would know that HHH was winning the title and the match would be overly predictable. At least having JBL in the match makes it different from the Mania' match and provides some hope that HHH doesn't walk out with the title. At least by having a fatal four way there are a number of possible outcomes, which makes the match interesting. Will HHH or Cena will, who will Orton pin if he retains, can JBL shock everybody, will it end in controversy, what happens after the PPV? This match provides us with all these questions and is not overly predictable, which makes it better than most give it credit for being. Here to hoping that Orton retains and the Orton Era lives on.

 

[Burngun]

I dont see why everyone thinks this match sucks, what did you want, HHH vs. Orton? Why so everybody would know that HHH was winning the title and the match would be overly predictable. At least having JBL in the match makes it different from the Mania' match and provides some hope that HHH doesn't walk out with the title. At least by having a fatal four way there are a number of possible outcomes, which makes the match interesting. Will HHH or Cena will, who will Orton pin if he retains, can JBL shock everybody, will it end in controversy, what happens after the PPV? This match provides us with all these questions and is not overly predictable, which makes it better than most give it credit for being. Here to hoping that Orton retains and the Orton Era lives on.

Got to disagree with you there. This Fatal Four Way match is going to be the most average match ever put on. Neither of the four are great wrestlers, and they've just been shunted together into a pointless match with little to no backstory at all. Champions tend to retain in Fatal Four Ways, simple because, if someone were to win the title from Orton, it wouldn't get them half as over as it would if they beat them one on one.

Randy Orton vs. Triple H on the other hand, would have abit of backstory. Triple H feels screwed after working so hard to get his Wrestlemania title shot, only for Orton to gain the cheap pinfall at the grandest stage of them all to retain. Atleast this match would last 20 minutes and would be a decent to good singles match, which would more easily then the fatal four way lead to a grudge, gimmick match at Judgment Day (e.g. Street Fight).

 

[Cage917r]

Got to disagree with you there. This Fatal Four Way match is going to be the most average match ever put on. Neither of the four are great wrestlers, and they've just been shunted together into a pointless match with little to no backstory at all. Champions tend to retain in Fatal Four Ways, simple because, if someone were to win the title from Orton, it wouldn't get them half as over as it would if they beat them one on one.

Randy Orton vs. Triple H on the other hand, would have abit of backstory. Triple H feels screwed after working so hard to get his Wrestlemania title shot, only for Orton to gain the cheap pinfall at the grandest stage of them all to retain. Atleast this match would last 20 minutes and would be a decent to good singles match, which would more easily then the fatal four way lead to a grudge, gimmick match at Judgment Day (e.g. Street Fight).

Yeah, but a HHH vs. Orton match wouldn't be very interesting to most wrestling fans because once HHH gets his title shot, one on one he is going to win it. So there really is no drama to the match at all. The fatal four way wont be the best wrestling match you have ever seen, but neither would a Orton vs. JBL, Orton vs. Cena, or Orton vs. HHH, because none of them are outstanding in the ring. If you want to see a good wresting match, you should look at Edge/Taker, that will be a good wrestling match. This match wont be great to watch, but it offers the possibility of a surprise, which is a good thing. A perfect example is the Mania' triple threat match, it wasn't a very good match, pretty sloppy to me, but it had a surprise at the end because nobody thought Orton would retain, so the surprise made it a pretty good match.

The opportunity for a surprise is what makes a match appealing to me because there are very few guys in the WWE who can put on a "great" wrestling match. At least this one offers some intrigue. Not to mention that most of the fueds on Raw are dry at this point, so until the draft, they really dont have anyone for any of these guys to face/fued with.

Of course if you are a HHH fan, you would much rather see a HHH vs. Orton match because you want HHH to win the title. I want Orton to retain, which is why I like this match, its just a matter of opinion.

 

[mattitude2007]

Is it just me or are Cena's pops kinda dying down? The squealing isn't as loud for him, but the boos seem to remain constant or getting louder....

Maybe the fabled heel turn for Cena will come soon?

Anyway I don't expect anyone other than Orton to win this match. Simply because after winning at Wrestlemania losing at Backlash would be anti-climactic.

 

[Sportsperson411]

Right now, I see Orton retaining and then after Cena is done with the movie, he will feud for the WWE title and the ratings will drop even further because WWE has failed to build new stars. What happened to Kennedy, Carlito, Y2J (Jeff Hardy is suspended), Shawn Michaels, and the other contenders on Raw? I mean the WWE needs to go back to one whole brand, because the storylines were more in depth here. I just hope for the sake that CM Punk cashes in the MITB and defeats Orton for the belt, however, I don't know if he really will do that. It is just getting repeating every week. Letting Booker T, Lashley, and Angle hurt the Raw main event, and without them, it is just repeating. I'm tired of seeing Cena, Orton, and HHH in the same storylines. I still think Y2J should give up the IC belt to Carlito or Kennedy or someone else in the lower card so he can move back up to the main event. I mean he got cheap shotted in the title match at Armageddon and never challenged for the belt again. Hopefully, the draft will bring better feuds, and not have any wrestlers leave like Booker, RVD, Angle, Benoit, and Lashley. It is too bad Jeff Hardy got suspended, because they were pushing him real hard, but to another wrestler being pushed, CM Punk, they are now starting to build him up as a possible main eventer, and while Punk has shown improvement, WWE still doesn't think he is ready, however, I could see Orton holding on to the belt until Summerslam which could be the time Punk cashes in the title against Orton and defeats him for the title, or cash it on HHH or Cena. I feel sorry sort of for the WWE for the WWE title being so darn "PREDICTABLE", I mean the Attitude era, you didn't know what to expect.

 

[TheOneBigWill]

I'd say this is going to be a pretty average Fatal Four Way and the reason most people aren't going to be happy with it, is because three of the four guys just fought at Wrestlemania, with the fourth guy being considerably average for this match.

Overall, I didn't think Randy Orton had a chance in hell to walk out of Wrestlemania with the Championship. Now I'm almost reversing my opinion saying I don't think theres a chance in hell he'll lose the Championship.

Its been known forever that people build multi-man matches as against the Champion, because they don't have to be pinned to lose the Championship. However its also been a very well known fact that more Champions retain their title in Triple Threat & Fatal Four Way matches then any other. So with that said, I say Orton gets the pin over J.B.L.

If the Championship does change hands, it wouldn't make a lot of sense to be perfectly honest, well short of J.B.L. being the guy to win it.

If John Cena wins it, everyone will be disgusted practically because hes taken up almost every Main Event this year (dispite not being the last match that is, on Pay Per Views) on each Pay Per View regarding the Raw Championship. So why wouldn't they of just gave it to him back at No Way Out, or even Wrestlemania?

The same fact goes to Triple H., who like Cena has been involved in every Main Event type match regarding the Championship this year and hes been focused just as heavily on. For the very same reasons it doesn't seem logical for Triple H. (such a high profile name) to win the Championship on such a 'B' p.p.v. I'd assume he would've won at Wrestlemania, and if not then.. then chances are not until either "Night of Champions" (formerly Vengeance, now renamed) or "Summerslam."

As far as J.B.L. goes, I see him having less than Orton's Mania chances of walking out with the Championship because of several reasons, but the most notably being hes simply not a Main Event quality player anymore. The guy JUST came out of retirement and has had two very short feuds that many people already bad mouth him for. Because of that, Randy Orton would be more qualified as the bigger heel. Which brings me to Orton...

It seems each year Backlash will start becoming the Triple Threat or Fatal Four Way p.p.v. for the Raw Championship. And if history repeats itself, then the Champion will retain in yet another fluke-ish fashion. Because of that, I definately see Randy Orton holding onto his Championship for another month at the very least. Infact, I'm now convinced Orton will hold the Championship until "Summerslam."

 

[Mighty NorCal]

Well. Not particularly sure how this one is gonna go, or how I feel about it. JBL sucks, and he and cena dont work well together at all. As if the triple threat wasnt disjontled enough, now we have JBL's pristine technical excellence added to the mix. They better keep this as a ridiculous brawl, becuase if not, its gonna be embarrassingly ugly. And im not sure if anyone should really be worried for Orton, as this is the perfect scenario for him to steal another win.

What would be VERY good, I think, is if Trips goes over here and faces a challenge from the newly turned heel BATISTA. A rehash of the first rivalry, with the roles reversed, and with Batista having improved working skills. This scenario could work with cena as well, but since coming back from injury, Cena just has seemed VERY off, and he would have to be the one carrying Batista in those matches, so I think the Triple H scenario would play out better. Also there would be the conflict of Batista beating down Trips's bro, HBK, and Batista questioning Trips loyalty to Flair. Lots of different ways that thing could go. DAMN I should book for WWE....

 

[god of thunder]

The WWE is obviously ready to put Triple H back on his "throne", but considering how they like to try and come up with unexpected twists to keep the fans guessing, it may not be this time around at Backlash. If you break it down by each performer, I think it's possible to get an idea of how it could work. First, it's possible that Cena could come away with it simply because he had to give up the title due to an injury, and from what we've seen with other champions who've relinquished belts for that reason (Batista & Undertaker) the WWE put the titles right back on them after their returns from their injuries. It would also make for an interesting showdown between HHH and Cena, the "legitimate" champion, at Vengeance, where I believe Triple H would finally take it. But there may be too much of a real "backlash" from the fans if Cena were to win the belt in the Fatal 4 Way, which is why I don't really see it happening. Orton keeping the title is very possible, but another cheap win by him might be too much. I can't really see the writers going that route again this time around. JBL would probably be the most unlikely winner, thereby giving the ending an unexpected twist, but then what? Can they really sell a JBL rematch of any kind at Vengeance with any of these other guys? A newly returned JBL just doesn't have the drawing power yet to sell PPV tickets in a 1 on 1. So I think it's more likely that Triple H should win it at Backlash, then successfully defend it at Vengeance. That would put him over as the solid champion, which is where this is all heading anyway. But, as I said earlier, there will probably be an unexpected twist to try and surprise everyone. Who knows?

 

[HBK-aholic]

I'm loving Orton as champion. He's a lot more entertaining than Cena, so he deserves a reign like his, if not better. Orton as champion, is refreshing. He's good at all aspects of wrestling and I love seeing him work.

If it's not Orton, i think JBL deserves a chance at proving something as champion. He's another that's entertaining, and I completely love his gimmick. He would be great as champion, I think people would love to see a new face in this, and the title run gets more interesting with him involved.

The match, I want to say will be good. And in some points it will be. However I aren't a fan of matches such as fatal 4 ways. A Triple Threat is just about pushing it. It's generally hard to catch all the action, and what the men can do doesn't seem to be as good as in singles matches.

I think it will basically be the same as the match we saw at Wrestlemania, but having JBL involved automatically spices it up and makes it more of an original match.

 

[Danmen001]

Orton being champion came as a big big shock to most when it came to him keeping it at mania. The actual chances of that happening were pretty damn unlikely, which is why, after that win I don't see him losing the belt just yet.

Orton will most likely lsat until Summerslam, if they want him to actually have a long run as the champ.

The fatal 4 way will probably be a 1v1 and 1v1, until they mix in the match a little bit with the ending. Orton, if he wins of course, will most likely get the pin over JBL because, JBL is just acting as a filler in the match and will be there so thet have a different match scenario.

Overall, a decent match with Orton winning.