Gunther went off the rails on RAW after WrestleMania 41, attacking Michael Cole. McAfee stepped in and was quickly overpowered and put to sleep by The Ring General. Later, RAW General Manager Adam Pearce stepped in and suspended the star. However, Pat McAfee wanted retribution and challenged the Austrian to a match at Backlash.
In the most recent episode of The Wrestling Time Machine with host Mac Davis, Mantell said that WWE can possibly do a spot where McAfee gets hurt during the match, with The Ring General capitalizing on the opportunity. He felt Gunther was the overwhelming favorite to win this match This encounter will be McAfee’s first singles match since WWE WrestleMania 39. It will be interesting to see if he can stand up to the former World Heavyweight Champion in singles combat.