With three Cross Rhodes’ and a punt kick, Cody Rhodes was able to finally vanquish his mentor-turned rival Randy Orton at WWE Crown Jewel 2026.
While Cody Rhodes has set his sights on captaining Team USA in the elimination tag team match against Team Mexico at Survivor Series 2026, it’s unclear what direction “The Viper” will be going in next on the SmackDown brand.
We will likely need to tune into this week’s SmackDown to find out, but here are three paths forward WWE could take with Randy Orton after Crown Jewel.
Absent until the 2027 Royal Rumble
Randy Orton is no stranger to the occasional WWE vanishing act, and another period of absence is certainly a possibility after this latest loss to Cody Rhodes.
To be fair to Orton he’s not the only one that has been taken off the road whilst they’ve been without creative plans, as Seth Rollins is currently in a similar situation over on Raw right now, and we’ve seen CM Punk given time off at the conclusion of major storylines.
There’s not a clear and obvious next feud for Orton, especially given that he’s coming off a major loss. He’s likely not going to be next in line for a shot at Sami Zayn’s Undisputed WWE Title and most of the other babyfaces on SmackDown are preoccupied with other feuds.
WWE may decide it’s better to just keep Orton off TV until early 2027, where he can return for his next major rivalry en route to WrestleMania 43.
Reignites feud with Kevin Owens whilst trying to win world title number 15
After Kevin Owens returned to WWE at SummerSlam, he and Randy Orton seemingly buried the hatchet following their 2025 feud where Owens attempted to end Orton’s career with a piledriver.
Now that Orton isn’t preoccupied with Cody Rhodes however, his attitude may potentially shift and all that forgiveness may be thrown right out the window.
Both Orton and Owens want the same thing: the Undisputed WWE Championship, so we could see those old issues brought right back to the surface as they both pursue that goal.
Attempts to bring out LA Knight’s dark side
While it ultimately ended in him getting his head kicked clean off his shoulders, Randy Orton can in some ways consider Crown Jewel a success, as he finally got Cody Rhodes unearth a darker side of himself.
With Rhodes potentially now heading down a dark path, Orton can move away to a different target on the roster; someone who may also be tempted to listen to the voices and show a more destructive side of himself: LA Knight.
Knight suffered yet another major setback at WWE Money in the Bank 2026 when he lost his World Heavyweight Championship match with Roman Reigns. As well as that, Knight has had to witness his friend Solo Sikoa go back on his word and rejoin The Bloodline.
While Knight told Solo that they were “cool” we haven’t seen “The Megastar” again since, so, in storyline, he may be sitting at home and stewing on that friendship and his failure to win “the big one.”
Much like Karrion Kross, and later Aleister Black used to do, Orton could get in the ear of Knight, convincing him to embrace the hate and take all of his pent up frustration on The Bloodline.
To make sure you stay up to date with all the biggest wrestling and WrestleTalk news, follow us on Threads by clicking this link!
Comments.
Loading comments…