The past few weeks have been a whirlwind for the entire wrestling community. Following the excitement and disappointment surrounding WrestleMania 42, the WWE locker room has faced two weeks’ worth of roster cuts. The initial cut saw over 20 WWE Superstars released. This weekend, The New Day and WWE mutually parted ways. Plus, two MFTs were let go, as WWE released JC Mateo and Tonga Loa. Both of these Bloodline members’ recent runs came at different Backlash events. In fact, they aren’t the only ones to come back to WWE at Backlash and get fired in the past year. Here’s the strange link between Backlash and WWE releases.
Tonga Loa
Tonga Loa was the first of the MFTs to have a WWE career. In fact, Tonga Loa entered WWE developmental in 2009. He debuted on the main roster as Camacho in 2011, the bodyguard for Hunico.
Many would say that Camacho wasn’t a natural. However, WWE kept Haku’s son around until 2014. Nobody expected he would ever come back. Yet, Tonga Loa re-debuted with WWE at Backlash: France.
The Tongan helped Solo Sikoa and Tama Tonga defeat Kevin Owens and Randy Orton in a Street Fight. During his run, Jacob Fatu would capture the Tag Team Titles with Tama Tonga. However, The Samoan Werewolf relinquished his Title to Tonga Loa. Therefore, Tonga Loa is recognized as a former WWE Tag Team Champion.
Tonga Loa missed a considerable amount of time in late 2024-2025. The former Guerrillas of Destiny member returned with little direction, being inserted into the MFTs group. His last appearance drew a lot of criticism. Jacob Fatu placed Tonga Loa onto the announce table during an episode of SmackDown.
Somehow, Tonga Loa slipped off the table, prompting many to point out that he has never improved. Now, Tonga Loa is the latest in the Backlash and WWE releases conspiracy. Tonga Loa was a victim, along with his teammate, JC Mateo.
JC Mateo
The man formerly known as Jeff Cobb made his long-awaited debut in WWE at Backlash 2025 in St. Louis. Backlash 2025’s opening contest saw Jacob Fatu defend the United States Championship in a Fatal Four-Way Match against LA Knight, Damian Priest, and Drew McIntyre.
As Fatu’s Title was slipping from his fingers, Jeff Cobb made his shocking debut by pulling The Bloodline member out of harm’s way when LA Knight went to flatten him with a Moonsault. This interference allowed Fatu to pin The Mega Star to retain the gold.
Ironically, Jacob Fatu decimated JC Mateo and Tonga Loa less than a year later. This attack would be the final appearance of both MFTs on WWE television.
Carlito
The dark cloud that connects Backlash and WWE releases goes all the way back to Backlash: Puerto Rico in 2023. That was the event where Carlito made his long-awaited WWE return. The Puerto Rican wrestling veteran made a surprise appearance at that year’s Royal Rumble.
Word spread quickly that WWE signed Carlito to a deal, but his debut kept getting stalled. Finally, Carlito came down to help even the odds in favor of Bad Bunny in a Street Fight against Damian Priest.
At Backlash, Carlito joined the LWO. This event also featured the return of Savio Vega, who would go on to become a valued AAA producer.
Nevertheless, Carlito eventually turned on the LWO to join The Judgment Day. He became a very popular character for his brief onscreen roles. Unfortunately, WWE fired R-Truth and Carlito in the same week, as part of TKO restructuring. While WWE caved and hired Ron Killings back, Carlito remains bitten by the Backlash and WWE release curse.
This isn’t the only strange correlation Carlito has with other unique records. See how Carlito and Judgment Day have a very odd connection to John Cena‘s milestones.
Current Backlash: Tampa Card
There isn’t much time between WrestleMania and Backlash. So, WWE is hard at work promoting this PLE, hailing from Tampa, Florida.
The current card is centered around the issues between Asuka and Iyo Sky. This match was rumored to take place at WrestleMania, and was pulled due to the ever-changing lineup and the injury bug plaguing the roster. However, there’s even more of a dark cloud over this match, as Kairi Sane was released last week.
Nonetheless, many stars who didn’t get WrestleMania matches will get a moment to shine at Backlash: Tampa, as the current card is:
It’s unknown if more matches will be added to the card. As of now, there isn’t an Undisputed WWE Championship Match on the card. Originally, Cody Rhodes was to team with Jelly Roll to take on Randy Orton and Pat McAfee. However, the backlash heading into WrestleMania 42 Saturday prompted Pat McAfee to pull out of plans.
With so much drama centering on Backlash and WWE releases, it might not be a good time to make a WWE debut. So, hopefully Danhausen’s partner won’t be cursed!