Backlash 2003 Backlash 2003 was the fifth annual Backlash professional wrestling pay - per - view ( PPV ) event produced by the World Wrestling Entertainment ( WWE ) . It took place on April 27 , 2003 at the Worcester Centrum in Worcester , Massachusetts and starred talent from the promotion ' s Raw and SmackDown ! brands . The main event and featured match of the Raw brand was the encounter of Goldberg and The Rock , where Goldberg defeated Rock by pinfall , following a spear and a Jackhammer . The featured match on the undercard was a WWE Championship match from the SmackDown ! brand , between John Cena and the reigning champion , Brock Lesnar , where Lesnar defeated Cena by pinfall after an F - 5 . The other predominant match on the undercard was a six - man tag team match from the Raw brand , between the team of Triple H , Ric Flair , and Chris Jericho facing Shawn Michaels , Kevin Nash , and Booker T . Triple H , Flair , and Jericho won the match by pinfall , after Triple H hit Nash with a sledgehammer . The predominant undercard match from the SmackDown ! brand was the encounter of The Big Show and Rey Mysterio , where Big Show pinned Mysterio after a chokeslam . The event grossed $ 450 , 000 with 10 , 000 ticket sales and had a 0 . 67 buyrate . Following the event , Goldberg began a feud with Chris Jericho . At Bad Blood , Goldberg defeated Jericho via pinfall after a Jackhammer . Brock Lesnar began a storyline with The Big Show over the WWE Championship . At Judgment Day , Lesnar defeated The Big Show in a Stretcher match to retain the WWE Championship . Triple H engaged in a storyline with Kevin Nash over the World Heavyweight Championship . At Judgment Day , Nash defeated Triple H via disqualification ; due to WWE regulations , Triple H retained the championship . Background . The main event at Backlash was the encounter of Goldberg and The Rock ; the main feud from the Raw brand heading into the event . The feud began on the March 31 , 2003 episode of " Raw " , where The Rock held a segment entitled " The Rock Appreciation Night " , a segment intended to promote his win against Steve Austin at WrestleMania XIX . During the segment , The Rock discussed the list of people he has beaten in his career including Steve Austin , wondering who would challenge him next into a match . Goldberg then made his WWE debut , as he came down to the ring and stated that he would be The Rock ' s next challenge . After the confrontation , Goldberg speared The Rock . The following week on " Raw " , Goldberg and The Rock had another confrontation , where Goldberg provoked The Rock into answering his challenge , but The Rock refused . The Rock finally accepted Goldberg ' s challenge on the April 14 , 2003 episode of " Raw " via satellite . The week before Backlash , the feud intensified as The Rock held another segment entitled " The Rock Concert " , where he mocked Goldberg with Gillberg , a wrestler who ' s gimmick was to parody Goldberg . Later into the segment , Goldberg appeared from the audience and entered the ring , only to have The Rock execute a Rock Bottom on him . The predominant match at Backlash was a WWE Championship match between John Cena and the reigning champion , Brock Lesnar ; the main feud from the SmackDown ! brand heading into the event . Their feud began on February 13 on " SmackDown ! " , when Lesnar and Cena last fought , which ended with Lesnar almost ending Cena ' s career by using the F - 5 to propel his leg into a ring post . At WrestleMania XIX , Lesnar challenged for the WWE title held by then - champion Kurt Angle . Toward the end of the match , Lesnar botched a shooting star press but he overestimated the distance and under - rotated , slamming his head into Angle ' s side and ribcage . This stunned Lesnar and forced Angle to improvise the finish of the match . Lesnar then capitalized and regained the WWE title . On the April 3 , 2003 episode of " SmackDown ! " , then - General Manager , Stephanie McMahon announced a WWE Championship tournament , where the winner would receive a WWE Championship match at Backlash against Lesnar . John Cena was involved in the tournament , where he defeated Chris Benoit in the finals on the April 17 , 2003 episode of " SmackDown ! " to earn a WWE Championship match at Backlash . The week before Backlash , the feud intensified during a main event match involving Lesnar and A - Train , where Cena interfered by breaking a pinfall attempt by Lesnar . After the match , Cena hit Lesnar with his trademark chain and the WWE Championship title belt . The main match on the undercard from the Raw brand , was a Six - man tag team match involving the team of Triple H , Ric Flair , and Chris Jericho facing Shawn Michaels , Kevin Nash , and Booker T . The feud began on the March 31 , 2003 episode of " Raw " , in a backstage segment , where Booker T was being medically attended following his title match with Triple H at WrestleMania XIX , as Flair came into the scene to confront and taunt Booker T . Later that night , Jericho cut a promo , where he complained that he should have won his match against Michaels at WrestleMania XIX . After the promo , Booker T defeated Jericho via disqualification after Flair interfered in the match and attacked Booker T . Afterwards , Triple H came down to the ring , where he , Jericho , and Flair attacked Booker T simultaneously . The attack caused Michaels to come down to the ring to help Booker T to no avail , as Jericho locked Michaels in the Walls of Jericho and Triple H locked Booker T in an Indian deathlock . The following week on " Raw " , Nash entered the feud during a main event tag team match between the team of Triple H and Jericho facing Michaels and Booker T . After Booker T pinned Triple H to earn the victory for his team , Flair came into the ring and attacked Booker T , followed by Jericho attacking Michaels with a steel chair . The attack led to the return of Nash , who had been sidelined with an injury , who attacked Jericho and Flair . After the turn of events , Triple H prepared to hit Nash with a sledgehammer , only to retreat the ring soon afterwards . The feud intensified during the week before Backlash , during a main event World Heavyweight Championship match between Booker T , and the reigning champion , Triple H , with Michaels as the special guest referee . During the match , Michaels superkick ed Triple H , resulting in Flair and Jericho coming into the ring and attacking Michaels and Booker T . Nash then came down to the ring , where he dispersed Jericho and Flair . He also helped Michaels and Triple H back to their feet , only to receive a low blow by Triple H . The main match on the undercard from the SmackDown ! brand , was the encounter of The Big Show and Rey Mysterio . The feud began on the April 17 , 2003 episode of " SmackDown ! " , during a tag team match pitting Mysterio and Tajiri against The Big Show and A - Train . The Big Show and A - Train won the match via pinfall . After the match , however , Tajiri sprayed green mist into A - Train ' s face , while Mysterio delivered a 619 on The Big Show , which caused him to collapse onto the floor . After the match in a backstage segment , The Big Show appeared frustrated with Mysterio for being embarrassed by him . The feud escalated during the week before Backlash , during a match between The Big Show and Tajiri . After The Big Show performed a chokeslam on Tajiri , Mysterio came down to the ring and distracted The Big Show , which caused The Big Show to chase Mysterio at ringside , resulting in Tajiri winning the match via countout . Event . Before the event aired live on pay - per - view , Scott Steiner defeated Rico in a match on " Sunday Night Heat " , which aired on TNN . The first match of the event was a tag team match for the Tag Team Championship , between Los Guerreros ( Eddie and Chavo Guerrero ) and the reigning champions , Team Angle ( Shelton Benjamin and Charlie Haas ) . The match began as Team Angle gained early advantage over Los Guerreros , after they performed a leapfrog stun gun on Eddie . After the double team , Benjamin and Haas prevented Eddie from tagging Chavo into the match for a period of time , but Chavo was eventually tagged into the match , where he gained the advantage over Haas . While Chavo was the legal wrestler in the match , Eddie illegally entered the ring and hit a frog splash on Haas , only for an unsuccessful pin attempt by Chavo . After the pin attempt , Eddie and Benjamin fought onto ringside , where Benjamin tripped Chavo , who was in the ring about to perform a suplex on Haas . The situation caused Haas to land on Chavo into a pin cover . Benjamin held Chavo ' s leg down , preventing him from kicking out , allowing Team Angle to retain the Tag Team Championship . The second match of the event was Sean O ' Haire ( with Roddy Piper ) versus Rikishi . O ' Haire gained the early advantage , as he clotheslined Rikishi down to the ring mat . Soon afterwards , Rikishi was able to retaliate , as he attacked O ' Haire in the ring corner , which led to a stink face attempt . The turn of events led to the attempted interference of Piper , who tried to hit Rikishi with a coconut . Rikishi , however , grabbed the coconut and broke it over Piper ' s head . The distraction allowed O ' Haire to perform the Prophecy on Rikishi , into a pinfall . The next match was a Tag team match for the World Tag Team Championship between The Dudley Boyz ( Bubba Ray and D - Von Dudley ) and the reigning champions , Kane and Rob Van Dam , with Chief Morley as the special guest referee . The match began with Kane and Van Dam in control of the match , after Kane performed a spinebuster on Bubba Ray . D - Von , though , gained the advantage after delivering a sidewalk slam onto Van Dam . Later in the match , Kane regained control , which proceeded into a chokeslam attempt on Bubba Ray . Morley , however , gave Kane a low blow . Afterwards , Lance Storm attempted to interfere in the match on Kane and Van Dam ' s behalf , to no avail , which proceeded with a 3 - D from The Dudley Boyz onto Morley , thus knocking out the official of the match . The distraction by Morley and Storm allowed Kane to successfully deliver a chokeslam , followed by a Five - Star Frog Splash onto Bubba , into a pinfall officiated by a new referee . Therefore , Kane and Van Dam retained the World Tag Team Championship . The fourth match of the event was for the Women ' s Championship , where Jazz , who was accompanied by Theodore Long , faced the reigning champion , Trish Stratus . As a part of the storyline , Stratus came into the match with injured ribs and was advised not to wrestle by doctors , but was forced to wrestle by Raw General Manager , Eric Bischoff . Both women wrestled a back and forth match , until Stratus gained the advantage over Jazz by performing Stratusfaction ( springboard bulldog ) on her . During the pin attempt , Long threw his shoe onto Stratus ' s head , causing the pin to be broken . The interference allowed Jazz to roll - up Stratus into a pinfall to become the new Women ' s Champion . The following match was The Big Show versus Rey Mysterio . Throughout the match , Mysterio used his quickness against The Big Show ' s size advantage , including performing three 619s on The Big Show . During the third 619 , Mysterio attempted a West Coast Pop , yet , The Big Show was able to catch Mysterio in mid - air , reversing the move into a chokeslam and pinfall . After the match , Mysterio was placed on a stretcher by EMTs . The Big Show picked up the stretcher with Mysterio still on it and slammed it against the ring post , similar to swinging a baseball bat . The sixth match was for the WWE Championship between John Cena and the reigning champion , Brock Lesnar . Lesnar gained the early advantage over Cena by performing a suplex and hitting Cena ' s head on the commentators ' broadcast table . Cena , however , retaliated as he threw Lesnar into the steel ring steps , which caused him to bleed from the head . Lesnar then delivered a spinebuster onto Cena , regaining control of the match . After a spear from Lesnar which sent Cena into the ring corner , Cena attempted to push Lesnar into the referee to no avail . The distraction , however , allowed Cena to hit a low blow on Lesnar . Subsequently , Cena attempted to hit Lesnar with a steel chain , though , the referee confiscated the chain before he used it on Lesnar . The situation allowed Lesnar to perform the F - 5 on Cena into pinfall to retain the WWE Championship . The featured ( and final ) match on the undercard , was a six - man tag team match between the team of Triple H , Ric Flair , and Chris Jericho facing the team of Shawn Michaels , Kevin Nash , and Booker T . The team of Triple H took the early advantage , after Triple H illegally entered the ring and performed a Pedigree on Michaels . Michaels ' team , however , took control of the match when Nash was tagged in and attacked all three opposers . As Nash wrestled Jericho , Booker T performed the scissors kick on Flair , which proceeded into Nash and Triple H brawling at ringside , Jericho and Booker T brawling at ringside , and Flair and Michaels wrestling in the ring . As Flair and Michaels wrestled , Flair was able to lock in the figure - four leg lock , while Jericho illegally entered the match and performed a Lionsault on Michaels , who was locked in the hold . Nash , who continued to brawl with Triple H at ringside , noticed the turn of events and entered the ring where he delivered a Jackknife Powerbomb on Jericho and threw Flair onto the referee . As the referee was knocked down , Triple H hit Nash with a sledgehammer and pinned him , earning the victory for himself , Flair , and Jericho . The main event was Goldberg versus The Rock . Early into the match , The Rock taunted Goldberg at ringside to avoid wrestling him . As The Rock returned into the ring , Goldberg performed the Rock Bottom , The Rock ' s signature maneuver , on him , gaining the early advantage . Goldberg proceeded into hitting The Rock with a spear , but he dodged the spear , resulting in Goldberg hitting the steel ring post . The Rock took advantage over the situation , as he locked Goldberg in a sharpshooter . Goldberg broke the hold by grabbing the ring ropes and performed a successful spear on The Rock . The Rock , though , was able to perform a spinebuster , Rock Bottom , and People ' s Elbow on Goldberg into an unsuccessful pinfall attempt . Afterwards , Goldberg delivered two spears and a Jackhammer into a pinfall . Aftermath . After Backlash , The Rock left WWE to focus on his acting career , as he filmed " Walking Tall " , a film co - produced by WWE Films , released later in 2003 . As The Rock left WWE , Goldberg began a feud against Chris Jericho on the April 28 , 2003 episode of " Raw " , during Jericho ' s first episode of the " Highlight Reel " , an interview show , where Goldberg was the guest . During the segment , Jericho stated that no one wanted Goldberg in WWE , sparking a feud between the two wrestlers . Less than a month later , on the May 12 , 2003 episode of " Raw " , a mystery assailant attempted to run over Goldberg with a limousine . The following week on " Raw " , Co - Raw General Manager Steve Austin interrogated several Raw superstars to find out who was the assailant . One of the interrogated was Lance Storm , who admitted that he was guilty . Austin then forced Storm into a match with Goldberg , who defeated Storm via pinfall . After the match , Goldberg forced Storm to admit that Jericho was the superstar who conspired Storm into running him over . On the May 26 , 2003 episode of " Raw " , Goldberg yet again was a guest on the " Highlight Reel " , where Jericho and Goldberg agreed to a match at Bad Blood . At Bad Blood , Goldberg defeated Jericho via pinfall , after a Jackhammer . After defeating John Cena to retain his WWE Championship , Brock Lesnar engaged in a feud against The Big Show . The feud began on the May 1 , 2003 episode of " SmackDown ! " , where Lesnar cut an in - ring promo against Big Show , stating that he was a coward for defeating Rey Mysterio at Backlash . The Big Show later appeared on the stage , where he challenged Lesnar to a WWE Championship match . The following week on " SmackDown ! " , it was announced that The Big Show would face Lesnar for the WWE Championship at Judgment Day in a Stretcher match . Later that night , the feud escalated during a Handicap match between Chris Benoit and the team of The Big Show and A - Train . Benoit lost via pinfall ; after the match , Benoit was double - teamed by The Big Show and A - Train . The double - team caused Lesnar to come and assist Benoit to no avail , as The Big Show performed a chokeslam on Lesnar . At Judgment Day , Lesnar defeated Big Show in the Stretcher match to retain the WWE Championship after Rey Mysterio interfered . The aftermath of the six - man tag team match from Backlash was a feud over the World Heavyweight Championship between Kevin Nash and the reigning champion , Triple H . The feud began on the April 28 , 2003 episode of " Raw " , during a tag team match for the World Tag Team Championship involving Triple H and Ric Flair facing the reigning champions , Kane and Rob Van Dam . As Triple H attempted a pinfall on Rob Van Dam , Nash came down to the ring and chased Triple H to the backstage area with a sledgehammer . Triple H then ran towards a limousine , where Nash smashed the windows with the sledgehammer and threw it into the limousine , as it drove off with Triple H . The following week on " Raw " , Co - Raw General Managers , Austin and Eric Bischoff announced a World Heavyweight Championship match between Nash and Triple H at Judgment Day . At Judgment Day , Triple H was disqualified to retain the World Heavyweight Championship .