Randy Orton gives props to former WWE Superstar; claims he saved his career

Randy Orton has given props to a former WWE Superstar for helping him during his career.

The Viper made his stunning return to WWE at Survivor Series on November 25. He returned during the Men's WarGames match and helped Cody Rhodes, Sami Zayn, Jey Uso, and World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins defeat The Judgment Day and Drew McIntyre in the bout. Orton has since officially signed with SmackDown to ensure that he gets revenge on The Bloodline for taking him out last year.

Before his return at Survivor Series, Randy Orton had been out of action since May 2022. He and former WWE Superstar Matt Riddle were in a tag team known as RK-Bro, and the unlikely duo lost a Winner's Take All match to The Usos.

After the match, The Bloodline unleashed a brutal attack on Randy Orton to write him off television as he dealt with his back injury. Matt Riddle was released by the promotion earlier this year following a bizarre incident at an airport.

Speaking on the ImPaulsive podcast with United States Champion Logan Paul, Orton credited Riddle for helping him remain active while dealing with his injury.

"Last year, before I had to leave because of the back, I was in a tag team with former WWE Superstar Matt Riddle. And I've got to give him props, because that year we tagged together, I was not able to be in that ring unless I was in there with someone like him. Because he was able to take the brunt of the physicality, he'd tag me at the end, I'd come in and do my s***, if it wasn't for him I wouldn't have made it that far," he said. [From 13:24 - 13:54]

WWE SmackDown star Randy Orton praises Logan Paul

Randy Orton praised United States Champion Logan Paul for his attitude backstage and his drive to become a WWE Superstar.

During the interview on ImPaulsive, Randy Orton stated that Logan Paul gave him a very good impression when he met him backstage. Orton added that he could tell that the United States Champion was "good to go" based on their brief interaction.

"When you came backstage the first time we met, you looked me in the eye. I could tell right away that you wanted to be there. I'm sure a lot of guys have talked about respect in our business, I saw who Logan Paul was in that split second and I was like 'Alright, he's good back here'. I could just tell. I could just tell by the way you (Logan Paul) shook my hand that you were good to go. And of course, as we were saying, you are getting better and better. And that is the way to go," he said. [From 08:49 - 09:18]

Logan Paul made his first appearance as United States Champion on SmackDown this past Friday night and announced a tournament to determine his next challenger. It will be interesting to see how long the popular YouTuber will be able to hold onto the title moving forward.

Would you like to see a rivalry between Randy Orton and Logan Paul on WWE television? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Impaulsive with an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.