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Randy Orton was put on the shelf by Roman Reigns 18 months before WWE Survivor Series WarGames 2023. The Viper was brutally assaulted by The Bloodline after he and Matt Riddle lost the RAW Tag Team Championship to The Usos in a title unification match on the May 20, 2022, episode of SmackDown.
Orton went undrafted in the 2023 WWE Draft because he was out with his back injury at the time. This probably means he is still a free agent heading into the final month of 2023. This also implies that he can potentially show up either on RAW or SmackDown because of his free agency.
A move to the blue brand could allow The Viper to cross paths with the man who cost him more than a year of his career. Having said that, let’s take a look at three reasons why Randy Orton should challenge Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship after Survivor Series WarGames 2023.
#3. Randy Orton has unfinished business with Roman Reigns
Randy Orton seems to have forgiven Jey Uso for the assault 18 months ago, but he did tease a feud with the former Bloodline member at Survivor Series WarGames 2023. The duo might be on good terms, but that cannot possibly be said about Orton and Roman Reigns.
After all, The Tribal Chief was mainly responsible for costing RK-Bro their Winners Take All Match against The Usos on SmackDown last year. Orton needs to go Drew McIntyre's route and take his payback against The Bloodline or forgive and forget like the rest of the locker room.
#2. The stalled program for SummerSlam 2022
Roman Reigns headlined SummerSlam 2022 against Brock Lesnar, but that was not the original plan for the event. The Tribal Chief was originally set to work with Randy Orton at the Biggest Party of the Summer, but Orton’s injury forced WWE to change their plans.
Now that he is back, The Viper can kick off a feud with The Tribal Chief for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. This feud has the potential to sell out televised shows and premium live events. It remains to be seen if fans will get this match at a premium live event in 2024.
#1. No singles match has taken place between them for a title
This might be a surprise for the fans, but Randy Orton and Roman Reigns have never met in a singles match for a world title. Another interesting fact is that they have only had one singles match against each other, and that happened nearly a decade ago at SummerSlam 2014.
WWE has a huge opportunity to get two of its biggest stars to headline a premium live event in 2024. Reigns is expected to return to WWE on the Road to Royal Rumble 2024. It remains to be seen if he will cross paths with The Viper somewhere down the line.
Fans can check out WWE’s PLE schedule for 2024 here.
Do you want to see Randy Orton go one-on-one against Roman Reigns? Sound off in the comments section below!
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