Last May, WWE held their Backlash PLE (Premium Live Event) in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The last time WWE held an event in Puerto Rico was in 2004 and, they haven’t returned to the island until this year.
Being born and raised in Puerto Rico, having this event there meant a lot to me. Though I wasn’t able to attend, my heart was, is, and still belongs to my island.
It began with Zelina’s gear, showing off the flag and carrying it during her entrance, causing an uproar in the venue. As she was introduced, the crowd yelled, “Yo soy Boricua pa’ que tu sepas.” (I am Puerto Rican, so you know it) which caused her to be emotional. She knew performing in front of the Puerto Rican crowd as a Puerto Rican herself would be meaningful to her but also for the crowd to be witnessing this historic moment too. I was an emotional mess witnessing it myself, it’s not often to see such a positive representation on my screen and one I could relate to. I knew I would begin to think how much it meant for Puerto Ricans to be able to witness this as well. Even though she didn’t win, Zelina did incredible and made us proud by showing her heritage and embracing it too.
Going to MY main event, Bad Bunny v Damian Priest, continued on my emotional mess. Beginning with the crowd reaction Bad Bunny received during his entrance, the crowd singing along to his song. Then having cameos by Savio Vega, the crowd continued their excitement when his music was playing. Also, it didn’t stop there, Carlito’s arrival as he’s wearing a Puerto Rican flag LWO shirt which caused a bigger uproar in the venue. Damian Priest, who usually has the flag on his gear, included on this one as well, isn’t the first time he highlights the culture and how proud he is of his heritage.
Even with everything that happened during this match, the nostalgia of having Carlito and Savio Vega involved in it, both arriving to be backup against Judgement Day (Finn Balor, Dominik Mysterio.) Bad Bunny has been one of the best celebrities to join WWE, giving it his all with his training and performances. He’s been able to captivate the crowd, leaving them wanting to see him more often. I am really glad he went from hosting the show to actually performing on the show and being one of the main events that night as well. During the press conference, Bad Bunny would tell the crowd to make some noise so they return again sooner. With the crowd reactions, the overall social media presence after the PLE, I hope WWE decides to return to the island sometime soon again rather than waiting so many years again. The fans truly showed how much they missed WWE having live shows there and I have hope they were able to see that too. This show meant so much to me being Puerto Rican, from beginning to end and I didn’t want the PLE to end, it felt as such a celebration of our heritage, our culture, our island.
