Mark Henry recently shared his thoughts on Randy Orton turning heel ahead of his upcoming match with Cody Rhodes.
The moment occurred during the March 13, 2026 episode of WWE SmackDown, when Orton attacked Rhodes and fully embraced his darker “Viper” persona heading into their clash at WWE WrestleMania 42.
Speaking on Busted Open Radio, Henry praised the creative decision and said he was thrilled to see Orton return to the ruthless version of his character.
“I’m so damn happy right now that Randy Orton is back to being the Viper. Don’t trust him, fear him, and treat him like he’s gonna punch you at any moment. That’s what I want.”
Henry also suggested that many veteran wrestlers would appreciate the return of Orton’s more dangerous persona.
“But I’m gonna tell you — you know who’s loving this more than me? Bob Armstrong, Bob Orton Jr., the older guys. Jesse Ventura — I bet you he is laughing his ass off right now because they respect the gangster. They respect the guy that he knows he could be good, but he chooses to be bad.”
Henry then reflected on his own career, noting that some of his biggest success came when he embraced a more intimidating persona during his “Hall of Pain” run.
“Regardless of how nice I was, respectful, as much as I love being Sexual Chocolate, as much as I love being the World’s Strongest Man — you know where I made the most money? In the Hall of Pain.”
“The people wanted to see me kick people’s ass, run people through cages, whip people with belts.”
“That’s what I want from Randy.”
Orton’s heel turn has added significant intrigue to his upcoming championship match against Rhodes, which is expected to be one of the marquee bouts at WrestleMania 42.
"That's What I Want."@TheMarkHenry reacts to seeing 2009 @RandyOrton 🐍 Unleashed at #Smackdown on the #BustedOpen247 Podcast!
#ProWrestlingNation247 | @SiriusXMSports pic.twitter.com/1ewVXvwLfM— SiriusXM Busted Open (@BustedOpenRadio) March 14, 2026
