WWE News Roundup - Randy Orton's retirement, Top AEW star feels he will be "unstoppable" with Paul Heyman, Massive match for John Cena? (March 7th, 2022)
We're back with another edition of Sportskeeda Wrestling's daily WWE News Roundup. There is a lot of activity in the professional wrestling world as we are officially on the road to WrestleMania.
Randy Orton recently opened up about his legendary career and disclosed when he plans on retiring. A well-known AEW star also teased the possibility of working with Paul Heyman.
Roman Reigns reached another career milestone while John Cena recently got called out for a massive match. CM Punk also turned heads when he recently took a big shot at Goldberg after his win over MJF following Revolution.
As you might have figured out already, today's WWE News Roundup features talent from AEW, and on that note, let's get right down to the details:
#6. Randy Orton opens up about his WWE retirement
Randy Orton is presently one of the most experienced superstars in the WWE locker room, and he is showing no signs of stopping anytime soon.
Orton was recently asked about his retirement on Adam Apple's YouTube show, and The Apex Predator confirmed that he still has a decade of in-ring action left in him.
The multi-time world champion is in no hurry to hang up his boots as he still wishes to compete at the highest level for ten more years.
"I just turned 40 a year ago, you know, I have got another decade in me, you know. We'll see," said Randy Orton.
Unlike John Cena and The Rock, Randy Orton does not aspire to become a movie star as he doesn't feel that lifestyle would suit him after his retirement.
"You know, I'm a homebody. I don't think that would be the lifestyle for me. I like my schedule with the WWE right now. So, I see, right now before the sunset, still wearing my wrestling boots," added Randy.
Randy Orton's ongoing alliance with Riddle is expected to culminate in a high-profile feud that should be exciting to watch whenever WWE decides to pull the trigger on it somewhere down the line.
#5. AEW star Ricky Starks teases managerial partnership with Paul Heyman
Ricky Starks has been positioned as one of AEW's top talents, and rightfully so! The reigning FTW Champion appeared on Josh Martinez's Superstar Crossover show and opened up about possibly working with Paul Heyman.
Paul Heyman is one of the greatest managers of all time, and just like most wrestlers, even Ricky Starks won't miss out on the opportunity as he feels he could be unstoppable with Heyman by his side.
"Could you imagine if Paul Heyman got his hands on me? I would be freakin' unstoppable," said Ricky Starks. "I'm already on my way to being on stage. What I'm saying is I would have been there a lot quicker. So the personal situation with Paul Heyman is the fact that — what a missed opportunity between me and him, don't you think?"
Ricky Starks has heard nothing but good things about Paul Heyman from his friends and colleagues in the business. The AEW star also spoke about Heyman's phenomenal rise in professional wrestling and admitted that he would cherish the chance to pick the WWE personality's brain:
"Well, first off, I think the fact that Paul is going to acknowledge me is also a good start here," stated Starks. "But you know what it is, you know what I actually really like about Paul, is the fact that this dude worked his way up from one of the most famous clubs in New York as a photographer to where he is now. I admittedly, and selfishly, would have loved to have the chance to work with him. Because I know the benefits of working with somebody like Paul, even from the stories of my friends that used to work with him, just knowing that he sees only the positives and how to accentuate that. Bro, I am like a piece of clay right now." (H/T Fightful)
Could Ricky Starks and Paul Heyman share the same ring in the future? Only time will tell, but we're sure The Tribal Chief won't like the sound of Heyman managing Starks!
#4. Austin Theory wants to face John Cena
Austin Theory is being groomed for a main event spot in WWE as he has received a solid push under Vince McMahon's mentorship.
The 24-year-old superstar, however, has his eyes set on potentially facing John Cena. Austin Theory spoke about his dream match during an interview with WWE Deutschland and revealed that he is building himself up for the showdown.
Austin Theory has already worked with several established talents on RAW, but wrestling John Cena is his ultimate goal:
"John Cena. Every time, John Cena. You know what, I, I feel personally that I just got to keep building myself and keep climbing that ladder and keep, you know, just impressing. I felt like I kicked that off when I got drafted to Raw, taking out Jeff Hardy. You know, dealing with Rey Mysterio, Finn Balor, AJ Styles, all these names," said Austin Theory. (H/T WrestlingInc)
Austin Theory took a page out of John Cena's book and said that he wasn't willing to give up on his efforts in securing a match against the Cenation Leader.
The former NXT star thinks he is on the right path in WWE and that all roads will eventually lead to a mega match against John Cena.
"I want to give John something to compete with, you know?" continued Theory. "Because that's somebody I feel like has so many accomplishments, and it takes a lot to be on that level. And I just want to have something to offer and I feel like, you know, I'm on my way. So let's definitely make that happen, though, because I'm not going to say no to it. I'm not going to back down. I'm not going to give up."
Austin Theory is scheduled to face Pat McAfee at WrestleMania 38, while John Cena is widely rumored to miss this year's "Show of Shows" in Dallas, Texas.
#3. Roman Reigns has not been pinned for over 800 days
Roman Reigns' iconic run as the WWE Universal Champion just got even better recently as he completed 800 days without getting pinned in the WWE.
It should be noted that Reigns' mind-boggling streak started well before his Universal title reign. Roman Reigns' last pinfall loss came at the hands of Baron Corbin at the WWE TLC 2019.
As astonishing as it sounds, no superstar has been able to keep Reigns down for the three-count ever since, but could Brock Lesnar change the statistic at WrestleMania 38?
Roman Reigns has already held SmackDown's top belt for over 500 days, and he will put it on the line in a title unification match against WWE Champion Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 38.
Will Reigns' stunning run come to an end in a few weeks?
#2. CM Punk takes a massive shot at Goldberg
An emotional CM Punk took a massive shot at Goldberg during the recent media scrum following his win over MJF at AEW Revolution.
Punk outrightly stated that Bret Hart's career ended abruptly because of Goldberg and that "The Hitman" should have been the superstar making millions of dollars while wrestling in Saudi Arabia.
Here's what CM Punk had to say:
"I love Bret Hart. His career was cut short [by Goldberg], and it's a god damn tragedy because there are people who go over to Saudi Arabia and get paid millions of dollars… that should have been Bret."
Goldberg has often drawn criticism for ending Bret Hart's career, and it will be interesting to see if the former WWE Universal champion reacts to CM Punk's latest comments.
#1. Bryan Danielson on what he told Vince McMahon before leaving WWE
Bryan Danielson has been in fine form ever since he jumped ship to AEW as the 40-year-old star has showcased a more intense version of himself over the past few months.
The former WWE Champion revealed details of his conversation with Vince McMahon before leaving the company during his recent appearance on Wrestling Observer Radio.
Danielson admitted he wished to leave WWE as he wanted to bleed, and Vince McMahon wasn't willing to let the superstar have that in his product. Here's what the respected veteran stated about his talks with the WWE Chairman:
"I don't like to divulge my conversations with Vince at all because I know he's a very private person, but I will say this, one of the things….when I finally made my decision I'm like, 'Okay, I'm set on this decision,' and he was kind of asking me why (leaving WWE for AEW) and I said, 'You know, there's part of me too that just wants to be able to bleed' and he immediately said, 'Well, I'm sorry I'll never be able to give you that.' So yeah, it's not like I want to do it all the time. There's something, I don't know, incredibly life-affirming about it, as strange as that sounds," revealed Bryan Danielson. (H/T WrestlingNews.co)
Bryan Danielson left WWE on good terms, and as he has noted in the past, the former superstar still shares a great relationship with Vince McMahon and should eventually work with the company again in the future.
Until that happens, fans can hopefully continue to enjoy witnessing Bryan Danielson take his career to new heights in AEW.