Next week, The Undertaker will make his highly anticipated return to WWE programming during the nine hundredth episode of SmackDown. He hasn’t been seen on WWE television since Wrestlemania 32 , and the rumors of his retirement have been on the mind of the WWE Universe for the past seven months. With his upcoming appearance on SmackDown, he’s essentially confirmed for Wrestlemania 33 in Orlando next year.
However, it has been reported that WWE will be promoting The Undertaker’s Wrestlemania 33 match as his retirement match. It’ll be the twenty-fifth match of his career on the grandest stage of them all, which will give the match double the hype and the anticipation if it is meant to be the last ride of The Deadman. But, it could be his final match, which makes his opponent for the match even more important than it already was.
The speculation about his opponent will continue to grow until WWE officially reveals the man in question, but that isn’t stopping the rumor mill from giving name after name. Thus far, John Cena has emerged as the choice that would be “best for business.” It has been reported that the top choice for WWE officials is Kevin Owens. There are many possibilities, but the choice is said to be made and is apparently “set in stone.”
In a surprising turn of events, WWE pulled off a creative swerve to the feud between Randy Orton and Bray Wyatt that most people weren’t expecting. By all appearances, Orton has aligned with The Wyatt Family and turned heel to embrace the darkness inside himself. There is still the possibility of him being “undercover” inside The Wyatt Family, and he’ll turn on them as WWE TLC or WWE Royal Rumble approaches.
However, it seems WWE is running with Randy Orton as a part of The Wyatt Family, and he’ll be embracing his latest heel run on SmackDown. Things have progressed slowly, but WWE Survivor Series will be a big test for him as he is one fifth of Team SmackDown in the match against Team Raw at the PPV. It has also been reported that The Undertaker’s return to WWE television will lead to a feud with Randy Orton as well.
The belief from the WWE Universe was that Orton vs. The Undertaker would be a rivalry that would happen over the next several months on “The Road to Wrestlemania.” The thought was that if Undertaker were a part of the WWE Royal Rumble or any other WWE PPV before Wrestlemania, that feud would end before his feud for the grandest stage of them all would begin. It’s now being reported that is not the case at all.
According to a new report , Randy Orton vs. The Undertaker may be the match for both men in Orlando next year at Wrestlemania 33 . The two men faced off many years ago at Wrestlemania 21 , so a rematch could be considered an unexpected choice, especially when the WWE Universe wants to see Cena , possibly Sting , or even Finn Balor face The Undertaker on the grandest stage of them all instead of Orton .
Another report has revealed that WWE officials are interested in Randy Orton feuding with The Undertaker because they only want top WWE veterans to work with The Deadman for the time being due to his recent health issues. The idea is Randy would protect him in the ring and ensure that The Undertaker will have as many matches in WWE as wants. Orton’s star power also makes him a logical choice for such a big match.
Randy Orton vs. The Undertaker may not be the most interesting match on the card, but the WWE Universe knows it will be a good match between two of WWE’s top veterans. Not to mention, Orton has a high chance of walking out of Wrestlemania 33 with a victory over Undertaker, which is something only Brock Lesnar can say. Next week’s SmackDown will provide some answers, but “The Legend Killer” may be receiving the final honor and bragging rights of being the one to end the legendary career of The Undertaker.
[Featured Image by WWE]