WWE news: Five takeaways from Backlash 2026 as John Cena announces new tournament in Tampa

WWE Backlash 2026 kicked off the post-WrestleMania season this past weekend, and the Tampa event wasn’t short of headlines thanks to a stacked card.

All five matches were strong and John Cena even stopped by to announce a new tournament.

Here, Sports News Blitz writer Mosaddek Abu outlines five key takeaways from the latest edition of Backlash.

Bron Breakker is back on track

Bron Breakker and Seth Rollins started the night in Tampa, delivering a match with high energy and hard-hitting action.

There were a few botches, but fans ignored them because of how intense the story was.

Breakker eventually won after hitting Rollins mid-air with a spear to pick up one of the biggest victories of his WWE career so far.

Whilst the rivalry is likely to continue for a bit longer, it wasn’t a mistake for Breakker to win the match, especially given that his momentum had stalled before WrestleMania due to an injury.

A success heats him right back up and returns the 28-year-old to the main-event picture at a time when WWE Raw could do with as much fresh blood as possible.

Sami Zayn should continue heel arc

The change in character direction for Sami Zayn has been interesting to watch each week on WWE SmackDown.

The Canadian has gone from a lovable, babyface underdog to a frustrated individual who has spiralled over the last couple of months while trying to do things the honourable way.

Unfortunately, it has backfired on him each and every time.

On Saturday night, he employed desperate antics, pulling out all the stops by using the Gingerbread Man’s kendo stick as a weapon, but even that didn’t go his way as he suffered another loss to US champion Trick Williams.

Zayn’s current character is a desperate heel, questioning his morality and worthiness.

Now that fans are booing him, he should commit to this persona.

Indeed, his pursuit of a first World Championship against former friend Cody Rhodes promises compelling television and will no doubt attract viewers keen to see if he fully embraces his new attitude.

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Asuka vs Sky needed Kairi Sane

Asuka and Iyo Sky certainly captured the crowd’s attention in Tampa with their long-awaited singles match.

However, early in the match, the Florida crowd chanted “We want Kairi!” to remind everyone what this story could – and should – have been about.

The match-up needed a satisfying outcome to pay off the long-term story that has played out on Raw and is one of the longest-running feuds in the women’s division.

In the end, the Genius of the Sky earned a hard-fought victory in an excellent bout where both fighters were able to win over the crowd and stick the landing.

As nice a moment as it was, though, with the two embracing after the match, the story deserved more given the build-up.

Sane was a big part of this story, and the news of her release from the company meant we didn’t get the proper ending.

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John Cena Classic a great showcase

Saturday night saw John Cena make an appearance to announce a brand-new tournament in his name, one that shows just how much he cares about the future of WWE.

The John Cena Classic is set to feature current WWE stars facing off against NXT’s young stars, with fans voting for match winners – even if someone loses, they will still be a part of the fan vote as the WWE universe will ultimately decide who the tournament champion is.

Although there are flaws in the concept, it does allow the superstars of NXT to be showcased on a major stage in front of a large audience, much like Je’Von Evans, Sol Ruca, and Oba Femi were on Cena’s final show in mid-December.

Those fighters are now focal points on WWE TV.

Cena’s new tournament could therefore be a tremendous way to get eyes on WWE’s future talent and see who could become a consistent part of the main roster.

Title-chasing Fatu cements main-event status

Jacob Fatu may not have walked out with the title, but he sure did look like he belonged in the main-event spotlight this weekend.

He was a brutal, violent force that simply didn’t stay down – we hadn’t seen that side of Fatu since the night he debuted for the company back in 2024.

By all accounts, Fatu tore it up with Roman Reigns, even if he did lose after being hit on the exposed turnbuckle.

But Reigns wasn’t walking out on his own two feet either way as the Samoan Werewolf unleashed a post-match beatdown that left his opponent lying on the mat, with Fatu superkicking officials and tossing Adam Pearce outside the ring.

That is what someone at the top of the picture does, and Fatu looked like a million bucks doing it.

It shouldn’t be long now until he is holding a title.

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