#252: Seth Rollins vs. The Miz, WWE Backlash (5/6/2018).
This is for Rollins’ Intercontinental Championship.
At WrestleMania 34 in April, Rollins won the Intercontinental Championship from The Miz in a Triple Threat Match, which also involved Finn Balor. This is the rematch. This is an interpromotional match, as Rollins is apart of Raw, while Miz was recently sent to Smackdown via the Superstar Shake Up.
The bell sounds, and we are under way! The crowd are hot for Rollins right away. They lock up, and Rollins hammerlocks the arm right away. He has total control of the arm, and Miz is forced to grab the bottom rope. Miz kicks Rollins in the gut, and goes into stomping at Rollins’ body. He smashes Rollins’ head off the top turnbuckle a few times. He trash talks Rollins, who responds with a beautiful dropkick. Big chop by Rollins, and another in the corner. He irish whips Miz to the opposing corner, and hits a diving forearm.
Miz launches Rollins to the apron, and Rollins goes for an aerial attack, but Miz counters it and sends Rollins to the floor. Miz goes to the outside and sends Rollins head first off the announcer’s table. He then drives Rollins kidney first into the apron. Miz mocks the Stomp taunt, then kicks Rollins right in the face. He takes the chin lock next. Rollins escapes and lands a nice chop. Miz fires back with a knee to the midsection.
He then drives his knee into the spine a few times, then applies the chin lock once again. Rollins fights back to his feet, and pops off a roll up for 2. Miz blocks a superkick, and then hits a nice DDT out of nowhere, which gets him a nearfall. Miz continues his work on the back with some stomps. He punches Rollins, then chokes him against the middle rope with his knee. He follows that with a running knee to the back of the head.
Miz trash talks long enough for Rollins to fire back with strikes. X-Factor out of nowhere by Rollins. Rollins with a face plant into the middle turnbuckle, and a boot to the face. He misses a middle rope attack, but he hits the Sling Blade, Tanahashi style, and then he clotheslines Miz to the outside. Rollins runs the ropes, and hits the Tope to Miz on the outside! He brings Miz back into the ring, and springboards off the rope, but gets caught in a Skull Crushing Finale! He blocks it with a victory roll for 2.
Rollins hits the Blockbuster on Miz, and Miz is able to kick out. Rollins grabs the back, but Miz elbows his way free. Miz tries for the Figure Four, but Rollins kicks his way free. Rollins springboards off the ropes with a flying clothesline. Miz sends him to the apron, and he slides out of the ring to trip Rollins, causing him to land face first on the apron. Miz rolls Rollins back into the ring, and he comes off the top rope with a crossbody. Rollins catches him, and slams him to the mat. Miz kicks out.
Rollins goes to the top rope, and lands a nice Frog Splash, and Miz is able to kick out! Rollins is gearing up for the Stomp, but Miz wisely rolls out of the ring. Rollins follows him, and Miz returns to the ring. Rollins sends Miz over the top rope. Rollins runs the ropes, and Miz catches him with a right hand to the face. On the apron, Miz looks for a DDT, but Rollins blocks it. Miz boots him in the face, and Rollins responds with a chop and some forearms.
Rollins looks for the Ripcord Knee – definitely not Kenny Omega style – but Miz avoids it and Rollins’ knee lands directly on the ring post! The sound is sick. In the ring, Miz looks to take advantage with the Figure Four Leglock! Rollins tries to crawl towards the ropes, but Miz drags him back to the middle! Rollins has crazy eyes, and he goes to reverse the pressure. He’s able to do it, as the crowd pops big! Miz screams in agony, but he’s still able to turn it back over! Rollins quickly grabs the ropes to break the hold. Miz wisely goes for the Figure Four again, but Rollins blocks it. He throws a chop and some punches, and Miz does the same. Miz kicks the injured knee, and looks for Skull Crushing Finale, and Rollins blocks it. Enziguri by Rollins, and Miz looks for it again, and Rollins counters again, but his knee gives out, and Miz is able to hit the Skull Crushing Finale. He covers, and Rollins kicks out.
Miz rushes Rollins with a clothesline in the corner. Miz goes to the top rope, but Rollins cuts him off with a forearm, then joins him up there. He looks for a suplex, but Miz blocks it with some shots to the midsection. He kicks the injured knee out from under Rollins, but he’s back up to the top with a super plex, and he goes for the Falcon Arrow, but his knee gives out on him, and Miz is able to hit the Skull Crushing Finale again! Miz covers, and Rollins kicks out again! Commentary even said that no one survives Miz’s finisher, but Rollins did! And the crowd sure did bite on that nearfall. So did I!
Miz stays on Rollins, sending him into the corner, and placing him on the top rope. Miz looks for Skull Crushing Finale from the top, but Rollins is able to fight it off. With Miz down, Rollins hits a second rope Stomp, but Miz avoids it! He gets a victory roll off, but Rollins counters into one of his own! Nearfall, and Rollins is able to roll through and hit the Stomp, and that’s enough for the win to retain the Intercontinental Championship!
What a match! An exciting opening contest between two elite workers. Rollins in 2018 was on a whole different level, and this match is proof of that. He was not only exciting, but he also sold his knee extremely well as the match went on. Miz, meanwhile, may be the best WWE style wrestler of all time, and I do not mean that in a negative way. I think we can all agree that the WWE has their own special style of wrestling, or “sports entertainment.” And I personally think The Miz does it better than anyone.
He was fantastic here, and this may be his best singles match to date, right up there with the Dolph Ziggler match from the 2016 No Mercy event. He was a smart heel here, targeting the back and eventually the leg of Rollins all match long. His selling of the nearfalls in this match added so much to it, especially in that brilliant sequence where the Falcon Arrow was countered into a Skull Crushing Finale, which Rollins kicked out of for the SECOND time in the match.
How often do you see two finisher nearfalls in an opening match of a B-Show event?
Outstanding work from both men, and the hot crowd in Newark that night appreciated it all. You know what they didn’t appreciate? The rest of Backlash 2018, which ended up being one of the worst WWE shows of 2018, due to some poor matches, poorer booking decisions, and the choice to have a Roman Reigns/Samoa Joe match with no stakes main event the show, and go exactly how you’d expect a Roman Reigns match in 2018 to go. No wonder fans left the arena DURING THE MAIN EVENT.
Either way, check this match out. It’s so awesome!