Welcome to an unique edition of our eWrestlingNews Interactive Question of the Day!
As sadly declared on SmackDown, Kevin Owens’ forthcoming neck surgery has resulted in him getting pulled from the WrestleMania 41 lineup. Consequently, his showdown with Randy Orton won’t be happening.
Without a doubt, everyone here at EWN is hoping for the best in terms of Owens’ well-being and safety. We extend our sincerest hopes for his swift and full recovery and look forward to seeing him step back in the ring as soon as he’s able.
However, this situation presents a challenge for WWE, as they’re now left to figure out how to position Randy Orton for WrestleMania given the now vacant match slot.
Our interactive question for this day is “If you were in the shoes of WWE Creative, what would be your contingency plan given the limited two-week window to develop it?”
We look forward to hearing your thoughts in the comments section below.
What I would propose
Given the constraints, the choices are scarce. That being said, I find WWE’s move to have Orton unexpectedly RKO Nick Aldis in frustration of his now cancelled WrestleMania match, quite intriguing.
The narrative could be an easy one: Orrington mentioned that Owens’ situation had again stirred the divisive voices in his mind, hence the impulsive action against Aldis. Outraged, Aldis could challenge Orton to face him at WrestleMania. This scenario not only gives Aldis a chance to have a match, but making his debut at WrestleMania would be a fantastic twist to the unfortunate circumstances, and also possibly the most fascinating match I can conceive given the circumstances.
Personally, I wouldn’t advocate for Solo Sikoa’s participation, considering bouts with Orton have been a frequent occurrence. Similarly, I feel integrating Orton into an existing feud this late wouldn’t be appropriate.
If ultimately WWE leans towards introducing Rey Fenix, I’d suggest Orton holds an open challenge prior to WrestleMania. That way, making a spontaneous storyline isn’t necessary, thus solving the problem instantly.
Finally, other potential outcomes that merit consideration include having an open challenge or having Aldis find a replacement to face Orton. The potential contenders could be Aleister Black or Rusev, should the rumors of Rusev signing back with WWE be correct.
Relying on the shock factor of unexpected returns without the need for a build-up, both matches could effectively spin the unfortunate Owens/Orton switch into a seemingly valuable substitute.
We’d love to hear your take on this. Share your thoughts below!