Ahead of his highly anticipated WWE Backlash main event in his hometown of St. Louis, Randy Orton opened up to Billboard about the significance of his 20th WrestleMania appearance, his evolving role in WWE, and the backstage decisions that led to a surprise showdown with TNA World Heavyweight Champion Joe Hendry at WrestleMania 41.
Orton revealed that original plans had him facing Kevin Owens, but Owens was sidelined due to injury. That change forced WWE to quickly reconfigure the match card—and Orton was determined to make his milestone appearance count.
“There was a lot up in the air just a couple of things prior to Mania. Owens had the neck thing and it was starting to bug him. So once they took a closer look at that, the doctors said he was a no-go,” Orton explained.
With his opponent uncertain and his legacy top of mind, Orton took initiative behind the scenes:
“This one was important to me because it was my 20th, and I’m closer to the end of my career than the beginning. Getting these Manias in, and leaving as much of a legacy behind [as possible], is important.”
Faced with a short list of viable options, Orton pitched a name that raised some eyebrows—Joe Hendry.
“It kind of came down to, ‘OK. We need to get Orton an opponent. Who’s it gonna be?’ And there was a very short list of guys on our own roster, but we had some new guys coming in… It couldn’t be one of our new guys, because when we debut a new talent into the show [we couldn’t] have him start with a loss.
So we put our heads together and it was actually my idea [for it to be] Joe Hendry. I kept pushing for it, and a couple people were unsure, but I was able to talk everybody into it.”
Orton was thrilled with how it turned out:
“I’m really glad that they went with him. It was perfect. It was different from anything else on the card. It was a legitimate surprise, and we were able to keep it a surprise for the most part. We got that really cool, ‘Holy s–t’ moment when his music hit, and it was great. He was great.”
The moment also gave Orton a rare chance to enjoy WrestleMania without physical toll:
“It was actually a stress-free fun Mania for me, because I didn’t have this crazy 30 minutes balls-to-the-walls match with all this high-risk s–t. I had this cool little segment with Joe, and we didn’t have to do much to have fun out there. So I was really able to enjoy the week and just soak it all up.”
Looking ahead to this Saturday’s WWE Backlash in his hometown, Orton is set to face John Cena—but this time as the crowd favorite, a dynamic he’s not used to.
“It’s different, because I’m the good guy, and that’s never been the case before — so I don’t know what to expect,” Orton said.
Despite being a St. Louis native, Orton remains realistic:
“I’m very excited to see… They might love John. They might sh*t on me and be booing me. I’m a homebody… It’s not like everyone is going to love me necessarily. I’m very curious to see how Saturday goes.”
Orton vs. Cena headlines a stacked Backlash card, and the outcome could have major implications for both men as Cena continues his farewell tour and Orton inches closer to the twilight of a Hall of Fame career.
Stay tuned to PWMania.com for full WWE Backlash coverage, backstage updates, and exclusive insight from WWE’s biggest stars.
