The night after WrestleMania on Monday Night RAW was from the same place as the night before, the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim. The first RAW after WrestleMania is held in high regard by the WWE, along with the Draft and the last Monday night show of the year. It is seen as the official end of WrestleMania Week, as many of the attendees from the pay-per-view are at RAW as well. Plus, big developments occur as well. The show kicked off with new WWE Champion Shawn Michaels, who soaked in the raucous cheers. HBK had beaten John Cena 24 hours ago in an epic match to win his first world championship. Michaels talked about how nine years of hard work finally was brought full-circle last night. He thanked Cena for putting on the best show of the card, and his loyal fans for never losing faith that he would become a champion. "Burn In My Light" by Mercy Drive started playing as Randy Orton interrupted The Showstopper. "Shawn, congratulations on doing nine years' worth of what took me eleven months to do: Destroy John Cena and win the WWE Championship. Now, in case you forgot, last night at WrestleMania, I beat Triple H. Not only did I end our rivalry, I saved my incredible wrestling career, and became the new #1 contender for that title (WWE Championship). Backlash is in just four weeks time, but don't think I'm not prepared to take back what's mine. Shawn Michaels, a kick to the skull is in order." HBK was about to speak, but he let Cena do that. The West Newbury native reminded Orton that he has a rematch clause that he's cashing in at Backlash. RAW General Manager Jonathan Coachman wasn't fooling around when he cited the possibility of a Triple Threat Match. The Legend Killer went for an RKO on the former champion, but he pushed him off into Sweet Chin Music. Cena then dusted Orton off with an FU. The two babyfaces stared each other down as Michaels raised up his new spinner hardware.
Later that night, Cena was shown being lifted onto a stretcher and being given a neck brace. Replays showed Orton brutally assaulting Cena with a steel chair, mostly working on the spine, and then punting him in the skull. According to Todd Grisham, Cena suffered a concussion and three herniated discs in his neck. It is highly unlikely that The Chain Gang Soldier will compete in the Triple Threat at Backlash. This was used as a way to write Cena off television. Although the concussion was kayfabe, the herniated discs were real. Cena suffered them at WrestleMania against Michaels, after taking a piledriver on the steel steps. However, Cena was going to drop the title anyway, and WWE management found out about his injury hours before RAW. At the show's closing, HBK called out Orton for a fight, angered he would try to take Cena out that way. Like the viper he is, Orton snuck up behind Michaels and hit him with an RKO. The St. Louis native trapped the WWE Champion's arm around the turnbuckle and locked in an armbar. Orton hit another RKO on the floor, and a third on the announce table. RAW ended with The Legend Killer stealing the WWE Championship belt, while Michaels lay motionless on the table. The next week, it was confirmed at the top of the show by Coachman that Cena will not compete in D.C. three weeks from now. In fact, to recover from the surgery he needed to repair the three discs, the Cenation leader will be inactive for four-to-six months. Orton's master plan was working perfectly. He said that nobody knows what he is capable of and he vows to become Michaels' worst nightmare. Later that night, HBK faced Brock Lesnar (with his new mentor Kurt Angle looking on) and "Burn In My Light" started playing. Michaels was distracted long enough for the Minneapolis native to nail the F-5 and get the three-count. After the match, Orton came out and raised up the stolen title. The next week, RAW was taped from London, England (as part of the WrestleMania Revenge Tour, which included stops all across Europe). It was shown at 9:00 pm EST on TNN, but recorded five hours earlier at 4:00 pm EST (it was 9:00 pm in London when taped). Throughout the night, Orton was shown taking the WWE Championship around various spots in the United Kingdom, including the London Eye, Big Ben, London Bridge, and Wembley Stadium. For the past two weeks, JR and King had to emphasize the fact that Orton is not the WWE Champion and he stole the title from Michaels.
Eventually, the St. Louis native's journey around London took him to the Wembley Arena where RAW was being held. "Shawn Michaels, I have made your life miserable since the night after WrestleMania. I've beaten you senseless, I've humiliated you, and I've taken your WWE Championship. How fitting is that? You spend nine years trying to become a world champion. You beat John Cena in the main event of WrestleMania, and now you can't even celebrate your reign as champion. But HBK, you're still the WWE Champion and I'm not. And even though we only have two weeks until my coronation at Backlash, I'm feeling generous tonight. So I'm giving you one last shot at getting your belt back. I'm doing what you did two weeks ago-challenging you to a fight, RIGHT NOW!" Michaels' music played, but he didn't come out. Orton said he knew HBK had too much pride to fight, because it would end the same way its always ended-with The Legend Killer on top. Just then, Orton felt the crack of a steel chair against his spine. It was Shawn Michaels, delivering an impassioned and vicious assault on his Backlash opponent. The WWE Champion went to town on Orton, delivering more than twenty chair shots across his head, neck, and spine, throwing him into the steel steps multiple times, and choking The Viper out with a steel chain. HBK handcuffed Orton to the red ropes, and took back his WWE Championship. Before he left, Michaels had a question for the number-one contender. "Randy, do you really think you can beat me at Backlash in two weeks?" Orton didn't answer, too bruised and broken to do so. HBK responded with, "Yeah, that's what I thought" and bashed The Legend Killer in the head with the spinner belt. RAW ended with Michaels embracing the London crowd. That same week was WWE's first-ever Saturday Night's Main Event on NBC. It was the first edition held since 1992. And unlike the WWF-banner events, this one was live. In the main event, Michaels fought Kurt Angle to a disqualification victory for the WWE Champion after Orton attacked him. The show ended after The Viper hit an RKO on a set-up steel chair. The final RAW before Backlash was in New York City, inside the world-famous Madison Square Garden.
Michaels and Orton were scheduled to have a contract signing, moderated by King. After the ink was put to paper, it was time for an exchanging of words. And none of it was pleasant.
Michaels said, "At this point, I want to kick your teeth down your throat and make sure you never compete again (cheering). But I'm going to wait until Backlash to do that. Randy, you are nothing more than an absolute waste of human skin. All you ever do is lurk in the shadows and pick the bones when you know your opponent can't do anything to help himself. When you won the WWE Championship at SummerSlam three years ago, it was because you got rid of Cena. You knew you couldn't beat him, so you took the easy way out and injured him. And every time Cena was close to winning back the title, you needed help from a referee and The Undertaker. When you won the ECW Championship at Survivor Series two years ago, it wasn't because you were better than The Undertaker. You needed my help to beat him. And I was helping myself a helluva lot more than I was helping you. And when you got a one-on-one match with me, you had to get rid of Cena again to do it. You can't achieve anything by yourself. And come Sunday, you're going to realize you're not half the champion you thought you were. You're just a loser (cheering)."
Orton responded with, "You don't think for one second my accomplishments mean anything? Look around, Shawn. I have that WWE Championship in my back pocket. It's only a matter of time. I did in eleven months what you couldn't do in nine years, and that's become a world champion. It took me only four months to win a Royal Rumble, and that also took you nine years. Once again, nine years to main-event WrestleMania, and it took me six months. I'm already a two-time world champion, and I main-evented WrestleMania for three straight years. I'm the man in this company. While you've failed at every possibility to win a world title, I've thrived. I injured Cena twice through strategy. I beat The Undertaker and won the ECW Championship because of strategy. And I'm going to beat you on Sunday because of strategy. I take advantage. I seize opportunities. I'm the REAL ultimate opportunist. Screw Edge, he can go buy Ramen noodles with his dead-end job. I win my matches, my championships, my contenderships because I'm THAT DAMN GOOD! I got rid of Triple H at WrestleMania. I got rid of Cena three weeks ago. And at Backlash, I'm getting rid of you. Prediction: RANDY ORTON KICKS SHAWN MICHAELS' HEAD OFF AND BECOMES THE NEW WWE CHAMPION!"
Michaels couldn't wait until Sunday. He had to get his hands on Orton right now. But the St. Louis native was prepared, and the brawl was on. JR said that it is going to be one hell of a slobberknocker at Backlash. Orton went for an RKO on the signing table, but the WWE Champion sent him into the turnbuckle. Michaels went for Sweet Chin Music, but the number-one contender rolled out of the ring and covered the side of his mouth. At Backlash, Shawn Michaels defends the WWE Championship against Randy Orton. Legitimacy, opportunity, and self-worth are on the line in this match. Can HBK make nine years of struggle worth it by turning away The Legend Killer's challenge? Or will the Age of Orton come again as the final step of the man's master plan takes place?