WWE: Cody Rhodes keeps his story alive vs. Brock Lesnar at Backlash

Though some questioned its placement on the card, Cody Rhodes kept his story alive at Backlash with a cradled victory over Brock Lesnar.

In a somewhat curious decision, WWE decided to book Cody Rhodes versus Brock Lesnar – named a co-main event of Backlash before the show – as the final match at Backlash, with the San Juan Street Fight between Bad Bunny versus Damian Priest booked fifth, and Sami Zay, Kevin Owens and Matt Riddle versus The Bloodline sandwiched between them as the penultimate effort.

But why? Did the company want to guarantee that Bunny and Priest got their full time, with Rhodes and Lesnar able to shorten or lengthen their match if need be? Honestly, it's impossible to know, but on a card with huge spots, massive pops, and more than a few returning fan favorites from Puerto Rico, it's hard to imagine anything from this match having the same staying power as the lWo and company lifting up Bunito after a kitchen sink victory.

Attacking Lesnar before the bell even rang, Rhodes delivered arguably his hardest-hitting effort as a member of the WWE roster, especially this time around, throwing everything he had “The Beast's” way, including punching him in the face on multiple occasions after an exposed turnbuckle left Lesnar bleeding from the forehead. Though the match didn't have the best finish, with Lesnar locking his opponent in a Kimura before Rhodes was able to roll him up into a cradle, in the end, the match accomplished what Paul “Triple H” Levesque wanted it to do, continue the story and keep his chances of becoming a world champion, either the WWE World Heavyweight Champion or the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship, alive.

This is INTENSE between @CodyRhodes and @BrockLesnar at #WWEBacklash! pic.twitter.com/gmdz0TST1S

— WWE (@WWE) May 7, 2023