Randy Orton doesn't even make it to the ring before The Nexus strike, targeting his knee and sending the show to break with concern if he can even get through it. He guts it out with Viper-like tendencies (we are all CM Punk side-eyeing Vince McMahon via Michael Cole for these calls) as the Straight Edge Superstar uses the pre-match attack to tacitly chip away at Wade Barrett’s character on the off chance that's about to become a major storyline in a month.
Regardless of the Champion's guile, the belt is Wade's for the taking until John Cena returns from the balmy Orlando evening to a thunderous response and pulls out the referee just before his hand slaps three. Cena wails on Barrett as an indignant Punk echoes his fury from earlier. "I don't agree with that. If he's fired, he's fired", he notes, before Nexus runs off the still-sacked 'Champ' in what we're told is his last actual act.
A battered Orton seizes the opportunity and nails a total popper of an RKO to send the fans home happy, limp and all.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 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. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, 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
