Randy Orton Reportedly Could Be Sidelined Longer Than Expected

Randy Orton may be out with injury longer than expected. Fightful Select is reporting that Orton has been dealing with a back injury for a while now. The exact nature of his injury is unknown but it is something that Orton had to get worked on before doing the Tag Title Unification match with Riddle and the Usos. Whatever the injury is, it has progressively gotten worse for Orton and their sources fear he may have to undergo surgery. If that happens, the feeling is that Orton will be out for the remainder of 2022.

Orton was originally planned for a major role this summer, including reports of him headlining SummerSlam with Roman Reigns, but now Fightful is saying that he's currently not factored in to any creative plans. Orton has been out of action since that Title Unification match that took place back on the May 20 episode of "SmackDown."

A week after that went down, WWE released a statement updating the status of Orton, stating that he was "undergoing consultations with neurosurgeons and orthopedic spine surgeons to determine the extent of his injury," but some of that information could be storyline-based. After The Usos ended up the victors in that battle, Riddle has been involved in a feud with Roman Reigns, which was originally planned for Orton, according to Fightful. The two will have a match this Friday on "SmackDown." Per the stipulation, if Riddle loses he will not be able to challenge for the Unified WWE Universal Championship as long as Reigns holds the titles.

Orton's alliance with Riddle became a fan favorite storyline for WWE for the better part of last year as the two stars became unlikely allies as RK-Brok. Orton once again became one of the company's biggest babyfaces during their run as Raw Tag Team Champions.