Set Number: X161332 TK1
After being out of action since May 2022 due to a back injury, 14-time world champion Randy Orton will make his return to WWE programming at Survivor Series WarGames.
Cody Rhodes announced the news at the end of WWE Raw on Monday:
Rhodes teased Orton as the fifth member earlier in the show:
Fans must now only wait a little longer to see the superstar in action.
Orton was last seen in WWE on the May 20, 2022, episode of SmackDown when he and Matt Riddle dropped the Raw Tag Team Championship to The Usos in a winner-take-all match for the Raw and SmackDown titles.
After The Usos’ victory, they put Orton through the announce table, and Riddle revealed on the ensuing episode of Raw that The Viper would be gone for a while due to a back ailment.
Fightful Select (h/t H Jenkins of Ringside News) reported in November that he underwent fusion surgery on his lower back. While no specific timeline was given for his return, it was noted that he would be out for “an extended period of time.”
Prior to getting injured, Orton was one half of RK-Bro with Riddle, and they were among the most popular acts in the entire company.
While The Viper was previously best known as a solo act who usually played a serious, villainous character, the fans got behind him showing off his more jovial side.
That further proved Orton’s ability to be an asset to WWE in myriad ways, as he can get consistent reactions as a heel or babyface, singles star or tag team wrestler, and in the main event or in the middle of the card.
At 43 years of age, Orton has seen and done it all in WWE, and he has little left to prove more than 20 years into his career.
Still, The Apex Predator is among the most popular and well-known performers in the business, and his presence figures to have a hugely positive impact for the company.
WWE already has a star-studded roster of male Superstars headlined by Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes, Seth Rollins and a host of others, and Orton should slot in among the very best once again now that he’s back.
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