Has Randy Orton ever fought The Rock in WWE?
Randy Orton made history at WWE Survivor Series 2021 by setting the record for having the most matches on WWE pay-per-views. The Viper has been a consistent force in the company ever since making his debut in 2002. It is a tremendous achievement by one of the greatest of all-time.
At the same pay-per-view, rumors were circulating that Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson would be appearing. Despite many backstage segments mentioning The Great One's name, an appearance in Brooklyn did not materialize. It was speculated the Hollywood superstar would return to set-up a blockbuster showdown with Roman Reigns.
That being said... Has Randy Orton ever fought The Rock in WWE?
The answer is yes. Orton and The Rock have appeared in two matches together. The first was a battle royal in February 2003 on RAW to be crowned the new No.1 contender for the World Heavyweight Championship.
The second was at WrestleMania 20 in a three-on-two handicap match between Evolution (Randy Orton, Batista and Ric Flair) and Rock N' Sock Connection (The Rock and Mick Foley). The pair have never faced each other one-on-one.
Mick Foley and The Rock vs. Dave Batista, Randy Orton and Ric Flair.
For The Handicap Match at Wrestlemania 20!
What A Great Tag Team! 🔥🔥🔥 https://t.co/xSguXcpMmu
In 2019, Randy Orton seemingly challenged The Rock to a one-one-one match at WrestleMania 36 via Twitter. It would have determined who the best third generation superstars was in WWE, and would have absolutely been a dream match for the WWE Universe.
The Rock, in true Brahma Bull fashion, responded to Orton's challenge via his Twitter account:
"U think Bob O Sr & Chief Maivia along with our pops' Bob Jr & the Soulman ran up and down those roads for decades taking bumps just so we can sell out WM36 so you can RKO my ass thru the earth. My body's still recovering from that Evolution beatdown you gave me at WM20." The Rock tweeted.
It is increasingly likely that we will never get to see Randy Orton vs. The Rock one-on-one. We have memories from their handicap match bout at WrestleMania 20 that we can hold onto to say that we got some taste of what it would have been like.
Did Evolution with Randy Orton defeat Rock N' Sock Connection at WrestleMania 20?
At number 16 is an underrated bout from WrestleMania 20, which featured The Rock n Sock Connection reuniting one last time to take on Evolution. This was Rock’s only match against Batista and Randy Orton, and it was also his original final match prior to his 2011 return. https://t.co/F9gHFDtj4T
Evolution were able to defeat the Rock N' Sock Connection at WrestleMania 20, which marked The Rock's last in-ring match before returning in 2011.
The match was won by Orton when he delivered an RKO to the hardcore legend, Mick Foley. The match continued the feud between Orton and Foley, which culminated at the Backlash pay-per-view the following month in an incredible Hardcore Match.