Randy Orton's WWE career was self-admittedly rejuvenated when he began working with Matt Riddle in early 2021. The two are recognized today as one of the most entertaining acts of the last decade in professional wrestling, together known as RK-Bro.
Having worked together for a prolonged period, they have become good friends. This is evident in how they talk about each other. Orton credited the former United States Champion upon return in November last year for saving his career, two months after Riddle was released by WWE. The veteran had bulked up after recovering from injuries.
Speaking on Barstool Rasslin', Matt Riddle praised Randy Orton's new physique and called him a "good guy," but noted that The Viper will lose his cool if fans ask him for a picture at the airport:
"He's pretty cool man. He's a good guy. I'll say this. If you ask him for a picture in the airport, not gonna be that cool," Riddle said about Orton. [From 19:42 to 19:54]
New Champs in WWE! More RIGHT HERE
RK-Bro held the RAW Tag Team Championship twice between August 2021 to May 2022. Orton got sidelined owing to injuries immediately after they dropped the belts, while Riddle continued with their gimmick in the singles division until his release one year later.
Randy Orton credits Matt Riddle for saving his WWE career
Randy Orton discussed Matt Riddle during his appearance on ImPaulsive with Logan Paul.
The 14-time World Champion revealed that he was already injured prior to May 2022 but continued to perform in the tag team division anyway. This would not have been possible if The Original Bro did not carry the load, which allowed him to get the hot tag and clean house in the closing moments of any match:
"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.
On May 20, 2022, The Usos defeated RK-Bro to unify the tag team titles with help from Roman Reigns. The duo were left tatters at ringside. Randy Orton subsequently left to heal up.
If you use any of the quotes, please credit the original source and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.