There remains a mystery surrounding who will face Randy Orton at WWE WrestleMania 41 after Kevin Owens was removed from the match.
On SmackDown ahead of WrestleMania 41, Randy Orton issued an open challenge to anyone in Las Vegas to fight him at WrestleMania 41.
Here are several different options of who could answer the call to face Randy Orton at WrestleMania 41.
Rusev
Even before there was confirmation that Miro was departing from AEW, fans were hopeful that the Bulgarian would return to WWE.
Formerly known as Rusev during his time in WWE, speculation picked up even more after he was spotted at WWE HQ.
WWE star Big E would go on to seemingly confirm the return while hosting a live stream, noting that he was told directly from the former AEW TNT Champion he was returning to the company.
Whether or not he is held as a surprise for the Raw after WrestleMania remains to be seen but Rusev could certainly hold his own against Randy Orton.
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Aleister Black
Another star who is anticipated to be making his way back to WWE after having spent a few years in AEW is Aleister Black.
After several weeks of teaser vignettes, it seems that the Dutchman is finally set to make a return to WWE soon, pointing to the SmackDown after WrestleMania.
Given the unforeseen circumstances of Kevin Owens’ injury, perhaps plans for the return of former NXT Champion have to occur earlier than expected.
Not only would it be awesome to see his surprise return at WrestleMania 41 – it could be even better if it ended up leading to an actual feud with Randy Orton going forward.
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Jeff Hardy
While Jeff Hardy (along with his brother Matt) are currently signed to TNA Wrestling, it hasn’t stopped rumors that there will be another WWE return in the Hardy Boyz’s future after their NXT appearances earlier this year.
There may never be a better time to see the surprise return of Jeff Hardy to WWE than to take on his old rival, Randy Orton.
The surprise moment could provide rationale for Matt and Jeff to hit the stage for a meaningful WrestleMania 41 moment, but without a long-lasting impact to any new stories.
The duo haven’t met in singles action since 2021 and it would be very rewarding to see them lock up again!
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Uncle Howdy
All of the members of Wyatt Sicks – Bo Dallas/Uncle Howdy, Joe Gacy, Dexter Lumis, Erick Rowan and Nikki Cross – have been off of WWE TV in 2025.
While Bo Dallas was reportedly out of action due to a shoulder injury, the latest from last month noted he was medically cleared to compete.
Given the history between the original Wyatt Family and Randy Orton – as well as The Fiend, Alexa Bliss and Randy Orton – this could perhaps prove to be the perfect way to bring back the Wyatts.
There remains a floating rumor that WrestleMania plans were discussed for Alexa Bliss to debut with the faction at WrestleMania, but nothing has come to fruition so far.
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Nick Aldis
After some heated exchanges in the past between Nick Aldis as the SmackDown GM and Randy Orton – this match would be perfect.
Although he has yet to make a WWE in-ring debut, Nick Aldis is an enormously respected veteran professional wrestler.
The former TNA and NWA World Champion has been portraying an authority figure as SmackDown GM since his arrival in WWE. Furthermore, but has mentioned in the past that he is not retired from competing… so the stage seems set perfectly!
Nick Aldis could put on an impressive display of his in-ring skills on the world’s biggest stage, without having to muddy the storyline waters of having a whole program against one of his employees.
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Shane McMahon
While it may sound a little far fetched, there are some historical reference points that make this work – with a noted history between Shane McMahon and Randy Orton’s characters dating back to 2009, it could be the perfect way for Shane to have one more big WrestleMania moment.
Shane’s last appearance at WrestleMania did not end well, as he made a surprise return in 2023 and was set to take on The Miz for a match, but immediately suffered a torn quad. In the end it was an impromptu performance by Snoop Dogg that saved the segment – but Shane deserves a better last WrestleMania moment!
At the WWE Hall of Fame, Triple H made mention specifically of Shane McMahon, saying “I miss you”, and added that he hopes to see McMahon soon.
Triple H also advised Shane to “not jump off of anything” too high, any time soon… which of course was in reference to Shane’s past history of doing wild spots in his WWE performances. There are a lot of high things to jump off at WrestleMania this year if he wants to go against Triple H’s advice.
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Oba Femi
Although he already had a big day at NXT Stand & Deliver, Oba Femi could pull double duty for the weekend to appear at WrestleMania 41 on Sunday.
After being able to defeat Trick Williams and Je’Von Evans to retain his NXT Championship, The Ruler of NXT could believeably answer Orton’s call.
With Randy Orton already having had a match on NXT against Je’Von Evans – another clear future star of the company – introducing as many WWE fans as possible to Oba Femi would be a great way to showcase NXT.
If not Femi, other NXT options could include Ricky Saints, All Ego Ethan Page, or even Je’Von Evans again.
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Joe Hendry
While Joe Hendry remains under contract with TNA Wrestling, there has been buzz regarding his likely future in WWE.
Since Randy Orton did specifically note it could be anyone in Las Vegas this weekend who answers his challeng, TNA Wrestling World Champion Joe Hendry would be an amazing substitution.
The charming Hendry could lose and be just as beloved as he already was – if not more so – making a WrestleMania moment the perfect way to remind WWE fans about him without any steep consequences.
Offering a fun surprise to professional wrestling fans in the know, as well as introducing a whole new audience to a future star in WWE, seems like a solid strategy.
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Shinsuke Nakamura
Former three-time United States Champion Shinsuke Nakamura finds himself without a match at WrestleMania 41.
While his performance in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal was on the SmackDown before Mania, Nakamura was eliminated.
Since Randy Orton and Nakamura have history anyway, perhaps pairing them together now in order to kick off a feud would make sense.
Others on the current roster who are not currently slated for matches at Mania who could sub in include Andrade, Karrion Kross and even Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal winner – Carmelo Hayes.
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Solo Sikoa
After Jacob Fatu captured the WWE United States Championship at WrestleMania 41 night one, maybe night two will hold a big moment for Solo Sikoa.
While fans anticipated that Sikoa may end up taking on Orton at WrestleMania, Randy would go on to introduce this open challenge concept.
Perhaps looking to re-establish himself as a force to be reckoned with on SmackDown, Sikoa could be victorious, but on the other hand, a loss could spell doom for the self-appointed leader of the new Bloodline.
Having Randy Orton being the one to finally put an end to Solo Sikoa’s reign over the Bloodline would be incredibly poetic after everything the group – including under the helm of Sikoa – has done to Orton.
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