7 Ups & 3 Downs From WWE Raw (12 Aug - Results & Review)

5. Orton ‘Screws Up’

Randy Orton has done it all in his WWE career, so serving him up as Gunther’s first challenger for the World Heavyweight Championship is a pretty smart piece of business.

For Gunther, Orton is a big mountain to climb right out of the gate, an opportunity to legitimize his title reign immediately. At this stage in his career, Orton is the elder statesman, a flawed hero who accepts his role and never betrays his true self.

Monday’s in-ring encounter wasn’t a classic by any means, but it continued to show Gunther’s chops on the mic, as he cut into Orton by claiming that he squandered his natural gifts and talents, calling him a screw-up. To his credit, Orton acknowledged those imperfections, but noted that they make him unpredictable and dangerous. (We’ll ignore the “smokeshow wife” comment.) He would back that up moments later, capitalizing on a distraction from Drew McIntyre to hit the RKO on Gunther.

The feud seems to be on a steady simmer rather than boiling over into a rage-filled brawl, and that fits both men well. Having Drew out there to provide a distraction was a nice touch, tipping the hand to a future challenger for the Ring General.