Returning star could have been in Randy Orton's Bash in Berlin spot, ex-WWE writer thinks (Exclusive)

Randy Orton will challenge Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship at WWE Bash in Berlin on August 31. Vince Russo, WWE's head writer in the late 1990s, believes the company should have told a better story with Gunther's former ally Giovanni Vinci.

Vinci was a member of Gunther's Imperium faction for almost five years before being kicked out of the group in April. A week later, the Italian moved to SmackDown in the WWE Draft while his former stablemates Gunther and Ludwig Kaiser stayed on RAW. He recently returned to television in vignettes on SmackDown but has not wrestled in four months.

Russo appeared on Sportskeeda's The Wrestling Outlaws with host Dr. Chris Featherstone and NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion EC3. The veteran writer questioned why Vinci did not feud with Gunther. He also sarcastically implied that Orton's "predictable" match against The Ring General could receive five-star ratings:

"Chris, they could have made an opponent out of freaking that Da Vinci guy," Russo said. "They could have made an opponent out of him, but no, they beat the cr*p out of him and never saw him again. Okay, so now we've got Randy Orton in a very predictable match, but it's gonna be five stars!" [8:32 – 8:50]

Watch the video above to hear Russo's take on what the future could hold for Ludwig Kaiser on RAW.

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Giovanni Vinci's recent WWE SmackDown appearance

On August 9, a video package aired on SmackDown showing Giovanni Vinci flaunting his luxurious lifestyle. Speaking in his native Italian, the 34-year-old subtly referenced his Imperium separation by saying the past is behind him. He also claimed success is his destiny and he has become the man he wants to be.

Vinci won the NXT Tag Titles twice with Ludwig Kaiser before joining the main roster in 2022. He has not yet held any gold since he began appearing on RAW and SmackDown.

The European star's latest match took place on the April 22 episode of RAW. He teamed up with Kaiser one last time in a losing effort against Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods.

Do you think Giovanni Vinci should have feuded with Gunther ahead of Bash in Berlin? Hit the discuss button and let us know.

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