Randy Orton admits he no longer felt he belonged in a WWE ring
Randy Orton returned at WWE Survivor Series: WarGames 2023 after an 18-month absence from the ring. The 14-time World Champion recently revealed how he felt mentally after his comeback.
Orton was initially told to retire after undergoing back surgery in 2022. In his return match, the 44-year-old teamed with Cody Rhodes, Jey Uso, Sami Zayn, and Seth Rollins to defeat Drew McIntyre and The Judgment Day in a WarGames bout.
The Viper was a guest on the latest episode of Sheamus' Celtic Warrior Workouts YouTube series. He opened up about his loss of confidence and how he no longer felt like he belonged in the ring:
"Even when I came back at WarGames last year, 2023, my confidence level was maybe like at a three or a four out of 10," Orton said. "It took me another six months after that even to feel like I belonged." [From 05:55 – 06:15]
Orton is widely viewed as one of the greatest wrestlers of his generation. The SmackDown star made his main roster debut in 2002 and established himself as a top prospect after joining the Evolution faction in 2003. Two decades later, he only needs two more world title wins to match John Cena and Ric Flair's record of 16.
Randy Orton's WWE career since returning
After Survivor Series: WarGames 2023, Randy Orton began feuding with Roman Reigns and the rest of The Bloodline. He unsuccessfully challenged for Reigns' Undisputed WWE Championship and Logan Paul's United States Championship before forming an alliance with Kevin Owens.
In recent weeks, the unlikely tag team partnership has fallen apart after Owens attacked Orton on the October 11 episode of SmackDown. The two men will settle their rivalry on November 2 at the Crown Jewel premium live event in Saudi Arabia.
Orton also lost high-profile matches against World Heavyweight Champion Gunther in the King of the Ring final and at Bash in Berlin.
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Please credit Celtic Warrior Workouts and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.