WWE TLC's Randy Orton vs. Bray Wyatt Match Gets a Wild Stipulation

The Randy Orton vs. 'The Fiend' Bray Wyatt has been on the card for WWE's TLC pay-per-view for a [...]

By Connor Casey

The Randy Orton vs. "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt has been on the card for WWE's TLC pay-per-view for a couple of weeks, but WWE decided to add an extra wrinkle to the match on Thursday morning. The two will compete in the first-ever Firefly Inferno Match, which traces back to Orton's decision to burn down Sister Abigail's compound back in 2017. "The Viper" attempted to set Wyatt on fire during this week's Raw by trapping him inside of a wooden box, but The Fiend popped out of the box and locked the Mandible Claw onto Orton's jaw.

The announcement doesn't clarify if this will be just like a normal inferno match, where the sides of the ring are on fire and the only way to win is to set your opponent ablaze. The last time Wyatt competed in a match with "Firefly" in the title, he wound up making John Cena relive his greatest career failures before causing him to disappear at WrestleMania.

"Orton and Wyatt are no stranger to the destructive flames, as The Viper once sadistically burned down The Wyatt Family Compound," WWE.com's announcement read. "Last week, The Viper trapped Wyatt inside a burning box, but The Fiend emerged unscathed to punish Orton for his brutality. Now Orton will have to step inside The Fiend's twisted inferno, and HE never forgets."

WWE has only ever held five inferno matches, and this one will mark the first to not feature "The Big Red Monster" Kane as one of the competitors. Kane and The Undertaker met in the first one at the Unforgiven pay-per-view in 1998 as part of their iconic Attitude Era feud. The other installments include Undertaker vs. Kane in Feb. 1999, Triple H vs. Kane in Sept. 1999, Kane vs. MVP at the Armageddon pay-per-view in late 2006 and Wyatt (back when he debuted his Wyatt Family cult leader persona) vs. Kane at SummerSlam 2013 — though that one was listed as a 'Ring of Fire' Match.

Check out the full card for TLC below:

  • WWE Universal Championship: Roman Reigns vs. Kevin Owens (Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match)
  • WWE Championship: Drew McIntyre vs. AJ Styles (Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match)
  • SmackDown Women's Championship: Sasha Banks vs. Carmella
  • Firefly Inferno Match: "The Fiend" Bray Wyatt vs. Randy Orton
  • WWE Women's Tag Team Championships: Nia Jax & Shayna Baszler vs. Asuka & TBD
  • Raw Tag Team Championships: The New Day vs. The Hurt Business

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