AJ Styles officially challenged Randy Orton to a match at WrestleMania 35 on SmackDown Live this week after the two spent weeks trading verbal barbs backstage.
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Orton opened a segment on Tuesday night by saying Styles’ claim that the Blue Brand is “The House That AJ Styles Built” was false, given that he first debuted on SmackDown back in 2002. He directly referenced TNA Wrestling’s Dixie Carter, and poked fun at Styles’ career on the independent scene.
.@RandyOrton wants @AJStylesOrg to “pay rent,” well, he can take that check at #WrestleMania!
What do you say, Viper? #SDLive pic.twitter.com/324sESb8Fs
— WWE (@WWE) March 13, 2019
Styles came out to respond, saying he was proud to spend more than 15 years of his career as an indie wrestler and added that Orton never would’ve survived in his world with his “knock-off of the Diamond Cutter.”
Orton said Styles will be his next victim, saying he was SmackDown’s landlord and that rent is due. “The Phenomenal One” said he’d be happy to oblige and pointed at the WrestleMania sign, throwing down the challenge for April 7.
While Styles and Orton have crossed paths a few times in the ring since Styles joined SmackDown in 2016, the pair haven’t had any long-term feuds with each other up until this point. Over the past few weeks Orton repeatedly interrupted Styles’ backstage promos, making remarks about why it took Styles 15 years to get signed by the WWE.
During a segment at Fastlane on Sunday Orton snuck up and hit Elias with an RKO during the last of his multiple concert segments. Orton posed in the ring, only to get hit from behind by Styles with a Phenomenal Forearm.
Elsewhere on the show Shane McMahon announced that he would face The Miz at WrestleMania 35. The pair had been a tag team since late last year, but McMahon turned on Miz at Fastlane after the pair failed to win back the SmackDown Tag Team Championships from The Usos.
The show closed this week with Vince McMahon making an announcement that Kofi Kingston will get a shot at Daniel Bryan’s WWE Championship at WrestleMania, but only if he can beat Orton, Samoa Joe, Cesaro, Sheamus and Rowan in a gauntlet match next week.
Other WrestleMania 35 matches thus far include Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins, Raw Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair, Kurt Angle vs. TBD in a retirement match and Batista vs. Triple H in a No Holds Barred match.
