10 Major Stars That Could Leave WWE Next

8. Randy Orton

Mercedes Moné Becky Lynch
WWE

Randy Orton pretty much completed the game as a WWE Superstar in 2022, when he preceded a long injury lay-off acquiring the one thing that had looked out of reach for almost all of his two decades in the spotlight - genuine critical acclaim.

Alongside RK-Bro partner Matt Riddle, Orton earned raves as the much-needed veteran presence in his pillock mate's corner, and the two of them went through a laundry list of opponents as Raw Tag Team Champions before losing the belts to The Usos in a choice offering on the May 20th edition of SmackDown.

It proved to be his last match as of writing.

Orton's been dealing with a back injury ever since, and as recently as the first week of 2023, there was reportedly a lot of concern internally about his health and healing. Might 'The Viper' view all this as a sign in and of itself?

While the bulk of his in-ring hasn't always been for everybody, Orton's legacy is now assured and that'll only grow with time. Longer careers are now thankfully becoming the norm but the 'Apex Predator' jumped in when that wasn't always the case - he can look back on his 20 years with pride if he elects to put on a bow it with plenty of life left to live.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett