Reigns vs Samoa Joe

[KaiserGlider]

I've been a little confused by why exactly this match is happening at Backlash, so a little help would be appreciated.

Joe returned on the Raw after Mania and said that he had a match with Reigns at Backlash, before proceeding to verbally mock Reigns for losing to Brock. Why did Joe get this match though? Is there some history between Reigns/Joe that I'm not aware of? Also this came after the Reigns vs Brock rematch in Saudi Arabia was already made official, and Joe himself said that if Reigns had won that match it would be Reigns vs Joe for the Universal Title at Backlash. Joe then got drafted to Smackdown, so essentially if Reigns had won the title, he would have defended it against an opponent that hadn't earned a title shot AND was on the opposite brand. Huh?

Anyway, Reigns didn't beat Brock but this match with Joe is still obviously on. I still don't know why it's happening though, cause the buildup has basically been Samoa Joe cutting promos on Roman while Roman doesn't care/is focused on Brock. I probably wouldn't care normally, but the thing is I think there's a chance this may actually main event Backlash over AJ/Nakamura.

[The Legend]

I actually think they've done an OK job of setting this feud up. I mean Joe returns from injury, he obviously needs an opponent, so he calls out Roman and gets a match from the RAW GM because he needs a match. Joe wants Roman because he feels that Roman was whining about Brock and still couldn't get the job done (kind of calling Roman out for everything that people critical of his feud with Brock were saying). Also, it's smart of Joe to call out a guy that has a chance to be the next champion.

As for the Greatest Rumble stuff, that show just got in the way of everything, and honestly I feel better just pretending it never existed. The same kind of applies to the shakeup. They did a horrible job explaining how the shakeup was decided and the rules and how it came about. As a result, half the time it felt like the GM's were working trades and knew what was happening and other times it felt like a surprise to everyone.

[Messiah]

Joe and Reigns were feuding before Joe got hurt.

[KaiserGlider]

Yup, Joe/Reigns main evented the PPV over AJ/Nakamura and ended with Reigns hulking up and beating Joe clean after Joe put in 90% of the work in the match. There were "beat the traffic" chants during the match and as soon as Roman got the pin they happened to cut to a section of the crowd who were getting out of their seats and walking away. lol.

[Messiah]

I understand that to enjoy wrestling, we need to suspend our beliefs sometimes. However, Joe choking Reigns out and then him miraculously waking up is so stupid. It's always been one of those wrestling things that I found dumb, but even more-so when the WWE chooses to take so many elements from MMA. It isn't just unrealistic, it is impossible. And the WWE wonders why they struggle to find support for Reigns.

[KaiserGlider]

Roman's next feud is Jinder Mahal.