SmackDown Ends on a Disappointing Note for Randy Orton After Drew McIntyre Ambush

Randy Orton headlined SmackDown with Aleister Black this Friday but ended up losing the match after Drew McIntyre took him out.

SmackDown Ends on a Disappointing Note for Randy Orton After Drew McIntyre Ambush

Randy Orton loses SmackDown main event after Drew McIntyre ambush [via- WWE]

Randy Orton registered a loss in the main event of this week’s SmackDown. ‘The Apex Predator’ succumbed to Aleister Black after Drew McIntyre smashed the Undisputed WWE title belt across Orton’s head at ringside while the referee was distracted.

It allowed Black to take down a near-unconscious Orton with his Black Mass finishing maneuver and pick up the biggest win of his WWE career. After McIntyre decked Orton with the title, Cody Rhodes tried chasing him down. But the Scot absconded from the scene.

‘The American Nightmare’ was helpless and could only watch his mentor-cum-friend fade to black from afar. One might wonder why McIntyre ambushed ‘The Viper’. It’s clear as daylight that ‘The Scottish Psychopath’ is taking out anyone and everyone that poses a threat to his world title reign.

Orton might end up being McIntyre’s challenger at WrestleMania 42 should he win the Elimination Chamber match next Saturday. The 14-time world champion qualified for his 10th Chamber match appearance by ousting Solo Sikoa and Aleister Black in a qualifying match.

Orton pinned Sikoa and not Black, and that’s something worthy of being taken into account, as WWE is explicitly flirting with the idea of an Orton/Black feud.

It has also led fans to wonder if this is going to be the direction for WrestleMania, which isn’t receiving rave reviews at the moment. ‘The Striking Man from Amsterdam’ might cost the St. Louis-born wrestling icon inside the Elimination Chamber next. If that does end up happening, there’d be a fairly good chance of this burgeoning rivalry between Black and Orton stretching out to ‘The Grandest Stage of Them All’.

A while ago, there were rumors of ‘The Viper’ being Jacob Fatu‘s mystery attacker, which could still end up being the case.

However, Fatu is currently focused on both McIntyre and Rhodes, making it seem more obvious that they’re headed for a triple-threat showdown at WrestleMania with the Undisputed WWE title on the line. ‘The Samoan Werewolf’ told GM Nick Aldis backstage that he’s not going to wait much longer to get his hands on McIntyre.

AJ Styles will be at this week’s Raw after confirmation on SmackDown

WWE will pay tribute to the legendary career of AJ Styles on this week’s Raw in Georgia. While it was previously unknown whether Styles would be physically present on the show or not, his appearance was officially confirmed on SmackDown by Joe Tessitore, who announced that ‘The Phenomenal One’ would address the WWE Universe this Monday one final time.

AJ Styles
AJ Styles’ role for his tribute show announced on SmackDown [via- Cageside Seats]

It was recently reported that a number of SmackDown stars are being flown in to Atlanta to be a part of Styles’ farewell night. For those hoping this tribute will end up as a ruse and a setup to bring ‘Mr. TNA’ out of retirement for him to ride off into the sunset only after competing at WrestleMania, it’s not going to happen.

WWE posted a vlog on YouTube centered around Styles’ farewell by documenting the entire turn of events from the Royal Rumble, where the 48-year-old lost to Gunther and had his WWE career ended. The former Bullet Club member revealed during the vlog that he initially planned on hanging up his wrestling boots at WrestleMania only.

Calling it a dream for every wrestler, Styles was going to take that route until that Lisfranc injury in October 2024 changed his mind. ‘The Phenomenal One’ returned in the Royal Rumble match in the beginning of February and said it didn’t feel right to him to just come back for a couple of months to retire. He extended his run by a year and thought it’d be poetic to go out on the same PLE he debuted on in 2016.

Also Read: