Randy Orton has detailed how he found out about CM Punk’s shock return to WWE.
Ahead of Survivor Series, Orton was all but announced to be a part of Cody Rhodes’ team for the WarGames match as Rhodes stated that his mystery 5th man would be an Apex Predator.
Having been sidelined for more than 18 months, Orton made his long-awaited return to the ring to a rapturous ovation from the Chicago crowd. However, less than an hour later, Orton’s return was eclipsed by the sound of “Cult of Personality” ringing through The Allstate Arena, signalling that CM Punk was back in WWE for the first time in nearly a decade. With everyone talking about Punk, Orton quickly became an immediate afterthought.
Orton has revealed how he was informed of Punk’s return in an interview with Sports Illustrated. Prior to his match, Triple H told Orton that Punk would be appearing at the show, to which Orton thought it was a rib:
“Triple H is like, ‘Hey Randy, I’ve got to talk to you for a second.’ I’m like, ‘Yeah, what’s up, man?’ So he told me a couple things. And then he went, ‘One more thing–Punk’s returning tonight.’
“I thought he was f*cking with me. I said, ‘You’re joking,’ and he was like, ‘No, I’m not. This is something that just happened in the last few days, yada yada yada.’”
Orton continued to address his mindset in 2023 about a Punk return and how it has differed. The 14-time World Champion noted that he was looking forward to the return and would have felt a lot differently in previous years:
“I was so excited for this surprise return,” said Orton. “That’s never really been the case. They’ve always kind of stooged off the fact I was returning; they wanted those views. So I’d never had that surprise return.
“I could have been really pissed, and old Randy would have been pissed. It was a defining moment for me. I went out there, we had a great WarGames match, everybody was excited that I returned, everybody was excited that Punk returned, and neither return stepped on each other. It was a testament to how much I’d grown. It would have been an issue only if I made it one, so I was proud of the way I handled it.”
Randy Orton Comments On Vince McMahon Allegations
The Sports Illustrated interview covered a variety of topics in relation to Orton’s career, including his relationship with Vince McMahon, who was recently accused of sex trafficking and sexual assault. During the same interview, Randy Orton gave his thoughts on the horrifying Vince McMahon allegations.