Tonight, WWE will have its first premium live event since WrestleMania. Backlash will have two women’s matches and they are rather fresh match ups.
Bianca Belair (c) vs. IYO SKY – Raw Women’s Title
Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Zelina Vega – SmackDown Women’s Title
After this event Bianca, IYO, and Zelina will all be on SmackDown while Rhea will be on Raw.
Below are the predictions from the Diva Dirt staff-
Raw Women’s Title
COLBY – I’ve been patiently waiting for IYO to get a singles moment on the main roster, and here it is! Her run as NXT Women’s Champion was one of my favorites, and there’s no doubt SKY and Belair will tear the house down if given the time to do so. I would love to see IYO shock the world here, but I don’t think Belair’s reign is ending on this night. IYO’s moment is still coming, though.
WINNER – Bianca Belair
NICK – I think with Belair about to break a record it would be silly for her to lose here. I do think she will retain and then drop the belt in her next defense. Likely at the end of the month at Night of Champions.
WINNER – Bianca Belair
GARY – I am hoping for this to be the first match in a series for these women! I feel like Bianca has been subtly planting seeds in IYO’s head that will lead to her stepping away from Damage CTRL which may see that implosion continue over on to Smackdown. I do not expect IYO to win here, perhaps due to outside shenanigans backfiring and leading to a rematch with Damage CTRL banned from ringside down the line? Regardless, Belair gets the win and remains as the RAW Women’s Champion… on Smackdown. Hopefully that all gets cleared up soon too!
WINNER – Bianca Belair
SmackDown Women’s Title
COLBY – The women’s division hasn’t exactly been on fire since WrestleMania, but hopefully that changes following Backlash now that the draft is over. Despite those feelings, I am happy to see Zelina Vega getting a spotlight in Puerto Rico. She rarely challenges for a singles title and she can go in the ring with just about anyone. Also knowing that Ripley works well with smaller competitors helps reassure me that these two could blow us away with what they produce. I have no doubt Ripley will retain, but this should be fun.
WINNER – Rhea Ripley
NICK – I am going to go out on a limb and go with Zelina. Her winning the SD title and staying on SD just makes the most sense. Which is probably why it won’t happen. However, I can see Rhea then taking Bianca’s title off of her and that will fix the Raw and SD Title on the wrong brand issue.
WINNER – Zelina Vega
GARY – With Vega staying on Smackdown, the easiest way of handling the title situation would be to have her win here but there is no way Ripley loses the title this early after such an incredible showing at Wrestlemania. I expect/hope this will be a fantastic showing for Vega so she can remain in the championship conversation on Smackdown while Ripley goes in to the post draft RAW as champion and looking for a new challenger!
WINNER – Rhea Ripley
