Randy Orton is perhaps one of the more physical pro wrestlers in the industry today. He has never shied away from the moves that are likely to put his body in danger, and all this in order to entertain the crowd. But now, his body seems to be feeling the brunt of all those years of RKO’s, unfortunately.
The RKO is a crowd-pleasing move for many reasons. Predominant on that list would be the height Randy gets at the beginning of the execution. Yet perhaps, it’s the loud bang that results in the final seconds of the move, with him landing on his back, that is perhaps most satisfying to anyone watching in the arena and at home.
Randy stays in shape, relying on a light weight regimen nowadays and includes rubber band training, which is of course easier on the joints. He is shredded these days, and as always is in epic cardiovascular shape and is always ready to go the distance with his matches as is evident from match to match. It was as he spoke to FOX2 Now, that he stated that he’s starting to feel the wear and tear on his body after all. He also went into the specifics of his deadly RKO.
“I jump up as high as I can, grab the guy’s neck, and come crashing down to the mat. I’ve been doing it for a very long time and I kind of wish I could go back in time and create a finishing move that didn’t entail me jumping up as high as I can and landing on my back. After doing that a couple of thousand times over the last few decades, I’m starting to feel it.
I’m not lifting a lot of heavy weights or anything. It’s about conditioning. It’s about keeping track of all the other injuries and past injuries that I have and that I’m also always kind of working through. WWE Superstars are all banged, bruised up, and working through injuries. I think that’s one of the reasons we take so much pride in what we do. It’s definitely very hard and I think sometimes our performers make it look very easy.
I’m blessed. I’m 41 years old. I’ve been doing this for 20 years. Growing up in St. Louis, which is historically a wrestling town, being a part of the Orton family, there’s a legacy there. And I’m in control of that legacy now. I look to my five children and their future and you know, who knows? There might be some little Ortons in the ring, you know, fourth-generation superstars in the future. Who knows?”
Now that is something to look forward to for sure…more Orton’s in the ring. Randy is of course Cowboy Bob Orton Jr.’s son. His grandfather, Bob Orton Sr, and his uncle, Barry Orton, were also pro wrestlers.
Just look at how astronomically successful Randy turned out to be…he taking on the family name. His children would do good to follow in that legacy should they choose to. He’ll probably suggest a safer finisher when he’s training them, though.
H/T Wrestling Inc.