QUESTION - Does Randy Orton still have the potential to be a successful Number One Face in the WWE?
 

QUESTION - Does Randy Orton still have the potential to be a successful Number One Face in the WWE?



Call me crazy, but I think Randy Orton can still be a successful number one face for the company if they push him as a badass face. I think this whole 'RKO out of nowhere' thing can really catch on if the WWE play it right.


I would have Orton act exactly as he did between 2010 and 2013 (his last tenure as a face), but..........


1) He is at odds with The Authority and Seth Rollins
2) The WWE capitalizes on this 'RKO out of nowhere' thing by having Orton RKO random heels, etc., backstage.


Yes, it's no longer 2004 anymore, or even 2008 for that matter, but I think a badass main-event Face Orton still has potential. This whole 'RKO out of nowhere' thing just might be the 3rd wind that Randy needs for his career.

A face Orton is automatically #2 guy and leaps over everybody else

Face Randy Orton vs. Brock Lesnar would be pretty cool in my opinion.


Aside from that, the one thing that Orton has going for him, is that Triple H and John Cena have gone on record (during TV shows) stating that they think Orton is the most talented guy on the roster.


So basically - if the WWE were to push Orton and start giving him massive and convincing wins, it could easily be portrayed as, "Orton is finally starting to live up to his potential."


The other thing I like about Orton, is that he caters to an older demographic. As the WWE has been moving away from the PG era over the past few years, perhaps a guy like Orton, as opposed to Cena, might be a more appropriate 'face' of the WWE.............especially if the WWE are hell bent on NOT going "balls out" with Daniel Bryan, and if Roman Reigns' face run ultimately flops.

Agreed.


I'm even wondering if he can legitimately be accepted as the #1 guy in the company if the WWE push him right. Between Wrestlemania and Summerslam 2015 for instance, just have Orton steam roll through everyone. Rollins, Wyatt, and even a few faces such as Cena, Reigns, and Bryan. At Summerslam, Orton then defeats Lesnar.


Just really go 'balls out' with Orton. I'm wondering if the fans would accept it? Orton is an excellent wrestler and has the respect of the fans (unlike Reigns). Vince McMahon and company are also highly fond of Orton, and don't have any reservations about him being a top guy (unlike Daniel Bryan).

I don't mind him but feel like he's missing something. Maybe it's the thousand face and heel turns. Maybe he's just been doing the same thing for so long now. I dunno.

Bottom line is when I think about dream matches, Orton is never there. I'm never like "awww man I REALLY want Orton to face (blank) at WM" In fact, I usually put Orton in in a category along with Cena and just hope that he feuds with Kane or Big Show just to keep him away from a title and letting someone else get a chance to have a higher profile.

I would say that a feud between Orton and an in his prime Jake the Snake would be pretty cool though.

They can push him all they want, but as long as Cena is there, he won't be #1.

Random thought: I remember the past few Manias that Orton was a face at I laughed because his matches were pretty much "Who did John Cena just feud with? Ok, have them feud with Orton now."

I know what you mean. I think the problem with Orton is that whenever he has been a face in the past, his character really lost a lot of 'edge.'


I think if Orton were to be a face, but he went back to punting people in the head, it could help him. RKO'ing a whole bunch of people in the ring (like 6 or 7 people), similar to how Austin would 'stun' people back in the day, would also be pretty conducive to Orton's character I think.


Orton having that 'Stone Cold craziness' as a face would serve Orton well in my opinion.

This certainly was the case a few years ago, but I think the WWE have now realized that Cena doesn't necessarily need to be in the "#1 main-event slot" in order for him to still be the company's biggest draw.


Cases in point: CM Punk from 2011-2012, Daniel Bryan from last year, and Roman Reigns of this year.


And again - a few years ago, before 2012, the WWE was purely PG. As the WWE has shifted away from the PG era now, perhaps a new guy can legitimately take over Cena's spot as the #1 guy.


CM Punk wasn't the guy. Management doesn't want Bryan, while the fans seemingly don't want Reigns. Could this be Orton's time to 'burn in the light'? (see what I did there? :D).

Cena still #1 guy in all those cases.

I like heel Orton the most but for him to be the #1 face then Cena has to turn heel and get punted in the head.

I'd say no mostly because Cena is still around and has that spot locked until Reigns is ready to take over. Maybe could do it for a short period if he had a "Summer of" moment like Punk did but don't see him leaping over Cena/Reigns to become the defacto #1 face.

Even reclaiming his spot as the #2 guy after Cena/Reigns is going to be tougher now because of Bryan and how much the crowd has grown behind him the past few years.

This.

At this point, his opportunity to be THE guy at any point is over. For whatever reason, that ship has sailed. But he's still the one guy who can just be perpetually over as a face without a catchphrase or a certain storyline or a gimmick of any kind. He just is. You can say he fucked up his chance to be the other Cena, but he's still naturally WAY more of a star than any of the other full time guys.

That last face run he had as the star of Smackdown was SO fucking good, by the way. He just came off as the star amongst a bunch of up and comers and he put Mark Henry over as good as anyone could. He was the Sting to Henry's Vader. On a show where there's no brand split and he's equals with Cena though, he's gonna have a problem fitting in.

like when Stone Cold gave everyone Stunners on Sunday Night Heat. that shit was awesome.

Miniak is the next big blob.

Great post and agree with most of it.


Only thing I'd say in defense of that, is that..........


1) WWE Management aren't firmly behind Daniel Bryan in terms of going "all out" with him and so Bryan being 'top dog' may be far more sporadic.


2) The WWE Universe aren't fully on board with Roman Reigns, and if Reigns push ends up flopping as a result of this, then we could see Reigns be demoted in half a year or so........like after Summerslam 2015 fo instance.


3) John Cena might still be the #1 guy, but unlike 2005-2013, Cena doesn't even have to be in the main-events anymore to be that guy. Last year's Wrestlemania was a good example of this.




These are some of the reasons why I think badass Face Orton might have a shot of succeeding.

The only way Orton could become #1 is if Cena were to retire/die tomorrow.

I find him boring in the ring tbh. Rko going ddp style would be great though.

Yes, but you could say the exact same thing for guys like CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, and now Roman Reigns.


In all these instances, all of those guys were pushed as "the number one" guy even though Cena was head over heels the true number one guy. Cena has reached a point where he doesn't even need to be in the main storyline or be chasing the World title to be considered the top guy.




That's the point I'm trying to make.


Management hasn't bought into Bryan. The fans haven't bought into Reigns. Who's left? A badass Face Orton, that's who!

Agreed. Whatever 'spark' it takes to captivate more interest from the fans.

I like the idea of it being a HUGE deal when Cena goes after the title again. Keep him away from the title picture for 9 months before bringing him back.

Of course Orton can be the #1 for WWE. He has the talent, ability, and people buy into his characters.

Agreed with everything you said.


On that last point though, I would argue that perhaps Cena and Orton can cater to completely different demographics. Cena already caters towards kids, but Orton can cater towards the older teen demographic.


You're right about Orton/Henry though. Orton put him over like a mother fucker. Absolutely terrific work by Orton throughout that whole ordeal.

Pretty good marketing right there.


For all those saying that Orton can't 'take the next level' or whatever, what if he went through an absolute grueling match with Lesnar and went over cleanly? Both Orton and Lesnar are excellent wrestlers and so the match could be pretty good.

I would just like to point out that calling it "CHW Wrestling" is redundant, akin to when people say "PIN number", as the W in CHW (allegedly) stands for "wrestling". Miniak thanks you.

Yes, as long as there's no one better around.

Orton as a face could be early 90's era Savage in The pecking order. Not at the top but always able to step in credibly and carry a load if necessary.

I'm in the camp that much prefers Orton as a face than a heel. His turn against Daniel Bryan made sense, but they seemingly put Orton's balls in a draw, and it felt like he wasn't credible enough to headline WrestleMania by the end of it (even though he was their top in-ring heel). Orton spent most of his face run directionless, but was pretty white-hot as an act anyway. Imagine that investment with a point behind it?

That being said, we're in an odd situation right now. Fans are kind of "Daniel Bryan or broke," whilst Roman Reigns is getting an awkward push. You also have Dolph Ziggler and Dean Ambrose as face acts in the wings, which could become kinetic at any point in time. Sheamus is due back, and although he's about due to get nasty, he'll be needing credibility and that will mean broken faces at his feet. I guess what I'm saying is "Holy fuck there are a lot of potential top faces lying around, and the heels that the company are going to need to make them need to be made by some of these already established faces."

There's also the fact that a lot has changed, and whilst a face Orton is going to be "cool" for a couple of months, increasingly vocal crowds might still see him as the "old guard," and not be entirely cool with him getting so much spotlight at the expense of acts like Daniel Bryan, Dean Ambrose and surely some of the NXT guys that will be called up in 2015. Don't get me wrong -- Orton will probably be white-hot again -- but there are more obstacles there than there would have been some years ago.

I, for one, am interested in seeing how a face Orton interacts with the face peers he has spent months and months battling against. Dean Ambrose and Daniel Bryan are the biggest exhibits. Orton essentially played chickenshit against Daniel Bryan, so how does he occupy the ring with him now? That returned confidence might create an intriguing match-up. Plus, with Rollins having issues with Orton, and Rollins about to become the WWE World Heavyweight Champion -- there is potential for a Rollins vs. Orton title program to headline at least one PPV. Maybe it will catch on?

All this is making me think that Roman Reigns should just turn heel. The company is going to need some credible heels, and the nature of his presence will allow him to play good counterpoint to guys like Bryan, Ambrose and Orton. Reigns & Sheamus as a heel wrecking team in the main event picture (sort of like the Two-Man Power Trip or Rated-RKO) could be a real force.

Depends on how big his cock is. If it's bigger than Brock's or Bray Wyatt's then possibly.

A match between him and Summer Rae would be great.