Payback 2023 was a professional wrestling pay-per-view and WWE Network event produced by WWE for their Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. It took place on September 2, 2023 at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the 7th event in the Payback chronology.
Production
Background
The first Payback event was held on June 16, 2013. The event would take place annually until 2017 before being discontinued. In 2020, the event was revived, but was once again discontinued. On June 16, 2023, WWE announced that Payback would be revived again, taking place on September 2 at the PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Storylines
On the July 28 episode of Raw, Santos Escobar faced Rey Mysterio in the final of the United States Championship Invitational Tournament. However, due to Rey suffering an injury during the match, Escobar won by referee stoppage. Escobar was scheduled to challenge United States Champion Austin Theory on the August 11 episode of SmackDown, but Theory attacked Escobar before the match, stopping him from competing. Instead, WWE official Adam Pearce agreed to allow Mysterio to take Escobar's place, with Mysterio beating Theory to win the title. The following week, Theory demanded that the title was returned to him because Mysterio was not schedulded to take part in the match. Adam Pearce would instead schedule a number one contenders match between LA Knight and Theory, which Theory won. It was later announced that Mysterio would defend the United States Championship against Theory at Payback.
At SummerSlam on August 5, LA Knight won a Battle Royal, eliminating The Miz on his path to victory. On the August 7 episode of Raw, The Miz opposed the attention that Knight had received and the disrespect he had been shown by him, which sparked a confrontation. The Miz and Knight would continue to trade words and interferences over the following weeks, leading to The Miz challenging Knight to a match, which was made official for Payback.
On the June 19 episode of Raw, Raquel Rodriguez called out Women's World Champion Rhea Ripley for attacking Natalya before a scheduled match. On the July 17 episode of Raw, Rodriguez and Liv Morgan, who had won the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship, engaged in a brawl with Ripley, which injured Rodriguez's knee. This would cost Rodriguez and Morgan their championship later in the night. Because Morgan attacked Ripley that night, the pair were scheduled to compete in a non-title match the following week, but the match did not start due to Ripley attacking and injuring Morgan. The July 31 episode of Raw, Rodriguez returned and attacked Ripley, only to be injured again. Later, WWE official Adam Pearce told Rodriguez she could face Ripley for her title when she was medically cleared. On the August 21 episode of Raw, Rodriguez announced she had been cleared and would face Ripley for the Women's World Championship at Payback.
Embroiled in a feud with The Judgment Day (Finn Bálor, Damian Priest, Dominik Mysterio, and Rhea Ripley), Raw and SmackDown Tag Team Champions Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn successfully defended their titles against Priest and Mysterio on the July 17 episode of Raw. The following week, Mysterio successfully defended the NXT North American Championship against Zayn while Priest and Ripley attacked Owens, injuring him. In Owen's absence, Zayn would continue feuding with The Judgment Day. Owens made his return on the August 21 episode of Raw, teaming with Zayn and Cody Rhodes to defeat Bálor, Priest, and Mysterio. The following week, Zayn and Owens announced they would defend the Raw and SmackDown Tag Team Championships against Bálor and Priest in a Steel City Street Fight at Payback.
At Night of Champions on May 27, Trish Stratus defeated Becky Lynch after interference from Zoey Stark, who was revealed to be Stratus' protégé. Stratus and Lynch both took part in the Women's Money in the Bank Ladder Match at Money in the Bank on July 1, where Stratus broke her nose as a result of Lynch. Stratus would later decline Lynch's request for a match because she was not medically cleared. On the July 10 episode of Raw, Lynch was defeated by Stark. The following week, Stratus announced that she would face Lynch if she could beat Stark. If not, Lynch would have to get a tattoo saying "Thank You Trish". Lynch would beat Stark on the July 24 episode of Raw, however, when Lynch and Stratus faced off the following week, the match quickly ended in a disqualification. A rematch, with Stark barred from ringside, took place on the August 14 episode of Raw, but ended in a double count out after Lynch and Stratus brawled throughout the arena. Later that night, WWE official Adam Pearce booked a Steel Cage Match for Lynch and Stratus, which was later schedulded for Payback.
On the August 7 episode of Raw, Shinsuke Nakamura requested to team up with Cody Rhodes and World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins, which Rollins accepted. Later that night, Rollins, Rhodes, and Nakamura defeated Dominik Mysterio, Damian Priest, and Finn Bálor. However, after the match, Nakamura would attack Rollins. The following week, Nakamura called out Rollins, who said that he would give Nakamura a title shot at any time. After, both men shook hands, only for Nakamura to attack Rollins again. The August 21 episode of Raw, it was announced that Rollins would defend the World Heavyweight Championship against Nakamura at Payback.
Match Preview
Results
- Numbers in parentheses indicate the length of the match.
- (c) refers to the champion(s) heading into the match.
- Becky Lynch defeated Trish Stratus in a Steel Cage match (20:02)
- LA Knight defeated The Miz (Special Guest Referee: John Cena) (15:46)
- Rey Mysterio (c) defeated Austin Theory to retain the WWE United States Championship (9:49)
- The Judgment Day (Damian Priest & Finn Bálor) defeated Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn (c) in a Steel City Street Fight to win the WWE Raw Tag Team Championship & WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship (20:44)
- Rhea Ripley (c) defeated Raquel Rodriguez to retain the Women's World Championship (17:22)
- Seth Rollins (c) defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to retain the World Heavyweight Championship (25:57)
Other on-screen talent
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See also
- List of WWE pay-per-view events
- World Wrestling Entertainment/Event history
- WWE Payback
- Event gallery
External links
Payback 2023 Official Website
Payback 2023 Kickoff Show on WWE Network- Payback 2023 on WWE Network
Payback 2023 at CAGEMATCH.net
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