Roman Reigns didn’t look like a winner despite retaining the World Heavyweight Championship against Jacob Fatu at Backlash. Following a finish many deemed controversial, Reigns didn’t mince words during the post-show as he addressed Fatu’s post-match beating.
“This is why we should’ve never let Jacob in this company. You don’t belong here, Jacob,” said Reigns, his voice raspy as he continued selling the effects of the post-match assault. “There is no order with you. It’s your last night here.”
In the
closing moments of Saturday’s main event, Fatu trapped Reigns in the Tongan Death Grip. Desperate to escape, Reigns grabbed at anything within reach, including referee Shawn Bennett.
After Bennett broke free, Reigns got a hold of the turnbuckle pad, tearing it off as Fatu jerked him away. As they struggled toward the center of the ring, Reigns sent Fatu crashing into the exposed metal buckle and followed with a spear for the three count.
Fatu recovered shortly after and took out his frustrations on Reigns, as well as Raw GM Adam Pearce, whom Fatu tossed from the ring as Pearce and other officials tried to rein him in. He continued to go after Reigns with the Tongan Death Grip, leaving the OTC in a pool of his own drool as Backlash went off the air.
The Samoan Screwjob?
In his Backlash recap for Cageside Seats, Marcus Benjamin wrote that Roman Reigns screwed Jacob Fatu, citing the finish and Reigns twice using the referee to break free of Fatu’s grip.
“Roman f’d him over so (Fatu) had every right to react that way,” Benjamin wrote.
Additionally, fans at the AMC 18 in San Diego’s Fashion Valley Mall, where I watched the event, echoed that sentiment, accusing Reigns of cheating to retain.
Yet, Reigns doing whatever it took to win should come as no surprise to anyone — including Fatu, who said he himself was desperate and willing to do anything to win the world title. And it’s not like he wasn’t warned either, as The Usos told him several times what Reigns was capable of.
If anyone screwed Fatu, it was referee Bennett, who saw Reigns send Fatu into the exposed steel yet allowed the match to continue. That decision led to Fatu’s defeat, which resulted in Bennett’s destruction, as Fatu flattened him with a Samoan drop during the post-match chaos.
A Brilliant Finish
Was Fatu screwed, or was Reigns fighting fire with fire? That debate justifies a do-over, but the brilliance of the finish goes beyond setting up a sequel.
Fatu forced Reigns to dig deep into his bag of tricks to survive by the narrowest of margins — and by any means necessary — which kept Fatu strong in defeat. His post-match outburst also cemented him as a dangerous monster, bolstered by an unhinged tirade caught by WWE’s cameras.
“When’s the last time y’all seen somebody like me crash out on WWE? Nobody,” Fatu barked.
That volatility, amplified by a sketchy finish and strong performance, gives Fatu weight as a headliner, making an immediate rematch a necessity.
