Randy Orton found himself trending on Monday, but not because of anything he had done on WWE TV (he reportedly isn’t backstage for this week’s Monday Night Raw despite local advertising claiming otherwise). Instead, “The Viper” was on so many fans’ minds because of a bizarre trend that had started forming recently. Beginning with Matt Hardy just before the COVID-19 pandemic began, a string of wrestlers who have been let go by the company all had their final appearance on WWE TV involve them getting attacked (either physically or verbally) by the former WWE Champion.
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That included Christian Cage, The Big Show, Mark Henry, Bray Wyatt (released this past weekend) and Ric Flair (who was granted his release on Monday). And as an extra twist, Hardy, Cage, Show and Henry have all wound up in All Elite Wrestling. You can see some of the fan reactions to this trend in the list below.
The Meme That Launched It
Randy Orton strikes again ๐ pic.twitter.com/995fYPFEuH
โ Pro Wrestling Finesse (@ProWFinesse) August 2, 2021
Reddit Noticed Too
He Called It
Randy Orton wasnโt playing around when he posted this. ๐ pic.twitter.com/eS3dwmRXCi
โ Fiending For Followers โผ๏ธ (@Fiend4FoIIows) August 2, 2021
Wow, Randy Orton has done it again. pic.twitter.com/Wx4VYij9He
โ Fiending For Followers โผ๏ธ (@Fiend4FoIIows) July 31, 2021
Run!
The next person who gotta feud with Randy Orton pic.twitter.com/fXsHsI5SyM
โ ๐๐ง๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ก๐๐ข๐๐ (@wrestlelamia) August 1, 2021
Except That It Kind of Is
This Randy Orton thing is no joke. ๐ฒ pic.twitter.com/LvZKXZpBuU
โ ChanMan (@ChandranTheMan) August 2, 2021
Living Up to the Name
Who else has Randy Orton beat up or insulted on TV in the past year? Christian, Big Show, Mark Henry, Bray Wyatt, now Flair, all gone from WWE. He truly is the legend killer. https://t.co/H03hcVtJhU
โ Jason Solomon (@solomonster) August 2, 2021
My Leg!
Nobody:
โ Public Enemies Podcast (@TheEnemiesPod) August 2, 2021
Randy Orton putting Big Show, Matt Hardy, Christian, Mark Henry, and Ric Flair outta WWE: pic.twitter.com/dkRTldjNPB
A Handshake Most Sinister
Vince: โIโll send more ppl over there, trust meโ
โ โ.๐น (@RhianRozek) August 2, 2021
*Calls Randy Ortonโ pic.twitter.com/F1FnLdIdaU
