Roman Reigns & 3 other WWE Superstars Randy Orton has had real-life heat with
Randy Orton has been out of action for over a year now due to a serious back injury. The WWE Superstar recently made quite the buzz, though, after he was spotted at the promotion's Performance Center pretty much suggesting that a long-awaited return is imminent.
Orton is one of the company’s biggest superstars and has been in a plethora of memorable matches and feuds over the years. However, there were moments in his career when he got involved in real-life altercations with fellow superstars. Whether these got resolved or not, here are just some of the superstars who at some point were at odds with The Viper.
#4. Roman Reigns
The Head of the Table, Roman Reigns, had some beef with Randy Orton during his stint as a member of the infamous wrestling trio known as The Shield, alongside current World Heavyweight Champion, Seth Rollins, and Dean Ambrose, (AEW star, Jon Moxley).
This happened back in 2013 during a WWE house show where the two superstars were pitted against each other in a tag match. Reports at the time suggested that both Reigns and Orton had botched a spot during the match, which resulted in a heated argument backstage.
This was eventually straightened out as they went on to feature a compelling in-ring feud after The Shield's disbandment. They may not be the best of pals outside the ring, but they sure did put up some awesome matches inside of it.
#3. Kofi Kingston
Another real-life feud that Randy Orton got into was with fellow WWE Superstar, Kofi Kingston. The feud between them was short-lived, though, having happened back in 2009.
Kingston and Orton had a feud at the time, as the former was heavily favored by the fans. At the Bragging Rights pay-per-view that year, Kingston interfered in the Iron Man match between Orton and John Cena. This resulted in Orton losing the match. This resulted in another encounter at Madison Square Garden, where Kingston performed a leg drop on The Viper, sending him through a table.
However, during the next episode of RAW, Cena, Orton and Kingston were scheduled to compete in a triple threat match. There was some miscommunication during the match as Kingston thought that the match was supposed to end with him getting an RKO from Orton and, as a result, kept getting up after every punt kick delivered to him.
Orton eventually performed his finisher to Kingston, though he was visibly upset. He could even be heard shouting out "stupid" at Kingston.
It is believed that the aforementioned blunder during the match caused Kingston’s push to diminish. Years passed, and the two superstars delved into another feuds. It was also during this time that Kingston may have hinted about their real-life heat in a 2009 tweet.
#2. Mr. Kennedy
Former WWE Superstar, Mr. Kennedy, made a name for himself in the company with his unique way of introducing himself before a match or promo. Just like Roman Reigns and Kofi Kingston, he too had real-life heat with Randy Orton.
This happened in 2009 during a match against Orton. Kennedy would deliver a Back Suplex to The Viper and the latter was seen in pain after the move.
On May 29, just four days after Kennedy returned to WWE (having been sidelined for three months due to an injury), he was let go from the promotion. He later revealed in an interview that his release from the company was due to Orton telling the higher-ups that he was being reckless inside the ring.
He would continue his pro wrestling career in various other promotions. One of them was TNA (now IMPACT) where he became a two-time TNA World Heavyweight Champion.
#1. The Rock also had a real-life heat with Randy Orton
Both The Rock and Randy Orton also had some real-life heat in the past. This happened before WrestleMania 27 in 2011.
Randy Orton revealed that he and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, though this didn’t end up in a physical altercation, had real-life heat between them.
In an interview with Phoenix-based radio station KUPD, Randy Orton stated that he didn’t believe The Rock when he said that he would never be leaving WWE again. Furthermore, he also revealed that former Head of Talent Relations, John Laurinaitis, informed him that Vince McMahon wasn't pleased about his comments about The Rock. This apparently resulted in The Rock calling the promotion and complaining about Orton burying him.