21 Years Of WWE SmackDown Mistakes

9. 2011 - Hotsh*t

The Randy Orton that recently rattled a WWE staffer in an on-screen replication of his well-publicised weirdness would have been the perfect person to dethrone sentimental favourite World Heavyweight Champion Christian just two days into his title reign. Babyface McMahon favourite Randy was not.

Christian had only taken the title thanks to Edge's unexpected post-WrestleMania retirement, with Orton's win designed to trigger a broadly enjoyable feud between the pair that stretched all the way to SummerSlam. The loss broke Christian's brain to trigger his heel turn, but it broke audience hearts first.

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