As first reported by Fightful Select, and then F4WOnline, WWE fears Randy Orton will have to undergo surgery for the back injury that he is dealing with. Fightful notes that sources in WWE said that if Orton does need to undergo surgery, he will likely be out of action for the remainder of 2022.
Orton last appeared on the May 20 episode of WWE SmackDown, where Rk-Bro lost the Tag Team title unification match against The Usos. There was then a post-match angle that saw Roman Reigns and The Usos attack Orton and Riddle.
Fightful notes Orton had “work done to improve his condition” before the Tag Team title unification match. However, the extent of the work that Orton had done is not known. It is also said that things “have gotten progressively worse.”
Orton reportedly was supposed to challenge Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at SummerSlam next month.
Riddle is challenging Reigns for the Undisputed title on this Friday night’s SmackDown. The stipulation is that if Riddle loses he can not challenge for the Undisputed WWE Universal title again while Reigns is champion.