Randy Orton is returning to WWE SmackDown.
Randy Orton had been out of action due to a back injury since May 2022, but he made his return at WWE Survivor Series on November 25. There, he joined forces with Seth Rollins, Codes, Sami Zayn, and Jey Uso to beat The Judgment Day in a WarGames Match. Orton then appeared on the November 27 episode of WWE RAW. “The Viper” was subsequently advertised for the December 1 episode of WWE SmackDown.
Near the beginning of the show, the broadcast team hyped up Randy Orton’s appearance and confirmed that he was not assigned to a brand. Orton is a free agent, so Orton can appear on any brand. SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis later said he wanted to sign Orton to an exclusive contract, but Adam Pearce revealed that he intended to do the same.
Randy Orton’s Decision
In the closing minutes of the show, Pearce and Aldis tried to recruit Orton to their respective brands. Aldis offered Orton the chance to get revenge on The Bloodline, who took him out in 2022. Paul Heyman interrupted and said The Bloodline would make Orton’s decision for him. Solo Sikoa and Jimmy Uso attacked Orton, and LA Knight came down to make the save.
After Orton dropped Uso with an RKO, he grabbed both a RAW contract and a SmackDown contract. He then put pen to paper and signed with SmackDown. Aldis tried to celebrate with Orton, but “The Viper” dropped him with an RKO to remind everyone that he is as unpredictable as ever.
Orton had been a member of the RAW roster prior to his absence. He held the RAW Tag Team Championship with Matt Riddle, and they lost the titles to The Usos on the May 20 episode of WWE SmackDown.
Catch up on our coverage of the December 1 episode of WWE SmackDown here.
