Randy Orton hears voices in his head, and they're telling him which night, either Saturday, April 19, or Sunday, April 20, he'll have the opportunity to get his hands on the ruthless Kevin Owens in their long-awaited grudge match at WrestleMania 41.
Following last night's "WWE SmackDown,""The Apex Predator" expressed his great hatred toward Owens in an exclusive clip on X [formerly known as Twitter]. Looking to keep his promise, Orton not only revealed the date of their violent dance but also provided a little tease as to what he would do to Owens and his head at their showdown in Las Vegas. "I was out four freakin months because Kevin Owens dropped me on my head: four months, no matches. For four months, the ring rust started to build up, but now, I'm out...The match is set: Owens/Orton WrestleMania, piledriver versus punt kick. He is just only going to nip, nip, nip, nip away at me until I kick him so hard come the day on WrestleMania, "The Grandest Stage of Them All," I'm going to send his head clear over the freakin roof. Just wait and watch. Night one, WrestleMania 4. Kevin Owens, your a** is mine."
What began as a solid partnership among Orton, Owens, and the Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes eroded more quickly than expected after Owens allowed his paranoia to overcome him, believing that "The Viper" and "The American Nightmare" had betrayed him. Owens' crusade has led him to some dark places lately, including violently tearing apart his former ally Sami Zayn and the incredible yet damaging showcase he had with Rhodes during their ladder match at this year's Royal Rumble. As Orton noted, Owens escalated their pre-brawl clash at Crown Jewel by attempting to incapacitate Orton, pushing him toward an unsuccessful early retirement just a few days after the event last November, when he drove Orton's head into the unforgiving ring canvas with a piledriver. Heading into "The Showcase of the Immortals," Orton maintains a 4-1 win/loss record against "The Prizefighter," with his most recent victory over Owens occurring in August 2020.
