“I hear voices in my head. They counsel me. They understand. They talk to me.”
Randy Orton makes his way to the ring to a huge ovation. The 14-time World Champion is excited to be back on Raw. Orton has not appeared on Raw in 18 months since undergoing double-fusion spinal surgery. The Viper gets in the ring and climbs to the second rope to strike his trademark pose.
A loud “Randy” chant picks up. Orton is dressed in all black tonight. Orton looks moved by the ovation and shouts, “Thank you!” Orton says it sounds like maybe a few of them missed him. They cheer in the affirmative. Orton says he’s back for as long as he can stay here. Without any further adieu, he wants to cut right to it. Orton says, “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Monday Night Raw!”
Orton says he was gone awhile and chuckles. A “Welcome back” chant fires up. Orton thanks them. That whole time he was gone, it gave him plenty of time to think about all his accomplishments and accolades. They’ve heard all of them before and won’t bore them to death because there are quite a few. There is one thing Orton has never done, which is compete at WarGames. When his dear friend, “The American Nightmare” Cody Rhodes, gave him a call, he picked up the call and was in. There’s another reason why he wanted to be in the match. WarGames was invented by Cody’s father, the late and great “American Dream” Dusty Rhodes. It was about being part of wrestling history and making moments. Orton got to make a moment on Saturday.
Orton is also back because he has unfinished business to attend to. That unfinished business has to do with the Bloodline. Orton has made a career of putting guys on the shelf, sometimes permanently. Orton can forgive but not forget. Orton has a bagful of receipts for every single member of the Bloodline. When he says “every single member,” he means EVERY single member. Nashville knows what those receipts are going to come in the form of. They’re the three most dangerous letters in all of sports entertainment: R-K-O! The crowd chants, “RKO!”
“THIS IS MY BRUTALITY!”
Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley makes her way to the ring without The Judgment Day. The Eradicator gets in the ring with the Viper. Ripley sarcastically welcomes Orton back. She says she didn’t think he was someone who would do favors for others or team with someone who tried to end his career. She didn’t think he’d have his big return after a year and a half upstaged. The crowd lightly boos. Ripley says Orton looks more dangerous than ever. It would be a shame to have all of that wasted because Orton doesn’t seem to have realized that the landscape has changed. The Bloodline has fallen and the Judgment Day has risen to be the dominant force in WWE. When it comes to WarGames, that was just a bump in the road. The reality is, they’re all dripping in gold. She wiped the floor with Zoey Stark. Her Latino Heat “Dirty” Dom is your NXT North American Champion. When it comes to Finn Bálor and Damian Priest, they hold the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship that Orton nearly lost everything to get. If it weren’t for Orton, Damian Priest would be your World Heavyweight Champion. Orton has come in here and made a lot of enemies who can make his life a living nightmare. Orton needs to stop focusing on the Bloodline. Unlike the Bloodline, the Judgment Day gets the job done and will put him out permanently.
An “RKO” chant fires up. Orton looks knowingly out into the crowd. Orton says he stated that he kept in touch and watched the product while he was gone. Every week, it’s all about Rhea Ripley. Mami this and Mami that. Guess what? Daddy’s back. The crowd roars, and a”Daddy” chant fires up. Orton says a lot of things have changed, which is true… a “Who’s your Daddy” chant picks up. Orton says the one thing that hasn’t changed and never will as long as he is here is nobody tells Randy Orton what to do. Ripley laughs heartily. She sees that Orton made his bed. She tried to warn him and give him an out, but he has made the Judgment Day his enemy now.
JD McDonagh, in a neck brace, and “Dirty” Dominik Mysterio attack Orton from behind! They double-team him in the corner, but Orton fights out. Orton sends McDonagh shoulder-first into the ring post. Orton grabs Mysterio and swings him to the apron for a hanging DDT, but McDonagh cuts him off. Orton drops McDonagh with an RKO. Mysterio escapes the ring and runs to Ripley.
Orton tells Mysterio not to go far. As soon as he leaves this ring, he’s going to find Adam Pearce and make sure he gets Mysterio in the ring tonight!
The Judgment Day’s Locker Room
Finn Bálor comes in and says they cannot take the Creed Brothers lightly. Damian Priest isn’t listening, but he says he heard him. Priest says he can see on their faces that they appointed him the leader of WarGames, but they lost, and he let them down. Rhea Ripley says that Judgment Day is a family. They rise and fall together. Bálor says they’re still the Tag Team Champions. It’s all good. Ripley says just because they made Priest the leader of WarGames and it didn’t turn out in their favor, they’re not going to blame him. Priest says he appreciates it. Priest asks how JD McDonagh is doing. Bálor says he’s still being checked out and suggests they check on him. Priest agrees.
