Randy Orton 'Happy' That CM Punk Is Back In WWE

Randy Orton returned at the 2023 Survivor Series premium live event after spending over a year away from the ring, but the multi-time world champion had to share the limelight on the night as WWE also hosted the stunning return of CM Punk at the same show, who came back to the promotion after nearly a decade. 

Orton was recently on The Bump, and he spoke on dealing with some interesting feelings ahead of his comeback. WWE announced the week prior to Survivor Series that Orton was to be the final man competing in WarGames, and Orton noted how that did take some of the wind out of his sails. In the end though, he was satisfied with his return, and didn’t hold anything against WWE or CM Punk for his return after the main event. 

"So for a month prior, there was all these rumors online that I was coming back, but there was also rumors like that CM Punk was coming back. Instead of it being a surprise that it was me, instead of Punk, they let everyone know the week prior [that] Randy Orton’s gonna be the one joining Cody’s team in WarGames. Kind of let the wind out of my sails a little bit because I’d been gone for a year and a half, there’s all this anticipation, people have been expecting me to return for the past six months because I’d been out so long. 

“I can tell that I’ve matured a lot because a part of me wanted to be irate, right, like this was taken from me, this reaction from the crowd that I’d been looking forward to for 18 months. But after all was said and done, I came out, got a great reaction. Punk came out, got a great reaction, and I realized after the fact that nobody stepped on anyone’s toes. It was really just a really fun night for the fans.”

Orton went on to explain how it was cool for there to be two different types of reactions to returns on the night, and he also explained that he is personally ‘happy’ to have Punk back, saying that is a “hell of a worker, hell of a guy”. He spoke on the dark cloud that hung over Punk ten years ago, but says it was something he had too, so he can’t judge. It was revealed that at Survivor Series the pair shared a handshake and hug, and he knows that the feeling is mutual when it comes to wishing each other the best. 

H/T Fightful