6 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE SmackDown (20 March - Results & Review)

2. WWE Aren’t Reading The Room

Randy Orton Matt Cardona
WWE.com

Firstly, it's important to say that Randy Orton nailed his promo. It was really well executed, and he personally deserves credit for that, but fans just totally rejected the chance to boo him yet again, and WWE keep pretending he’s some super-villain who has angered the fanbase. It’s jarring. There’s a real disconnect here, which is worrying for WrestleMania.

Right now, unless something drastic happens, there’s a real chance that Cody Rhodes gets booed out of the building and they need to turn him heel anyway. So, what are we doing here? Randy is in the same no win situation that John Cena was last year. In fact, it’s worse! He’s shown he’s an awesome heel on and off for decades, but Cody’s boos aren’t going away. This was a fab promo from Orton, but it’d be hard to justify giving it an ‘Up’ considering the actual narrative isn’t working.

Also, sorry but Matt Cardona isn’t over enough to coax boos for Orton. That's not meant as a sly dig at Cardona - it’s simply the truth. The actual execution of Randy getting vicious and being unable to say no to devil on his shoulder is good, but the heat just isn’t there. WWE fans are firmly in Orton’s corner no matter how horrible get gets. They were chanting: "Randy! Randy! Randy!" as he battered Matt, for crying out loud.

Did Hunter and gang really believe that Cardona taking a kicking was going to force fans to change their minds on a legend?! If so, then they're daft.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.