Prepare yourselves for an emotional rollercoaster as we delve deep into the heart-wrenching tale of RK-Bro, the dynamic tag team that captured the WWE Universe's attention and then left us all in shock.
In this video, we break down the highs and lows of the RK-Bro partnership, tracing the journey from their electrifying formation to the unexpected tragedy that unfolded. Randy Orton and Riddle, an odd-couple pairing that seemed destined for greatness, took the wrestling world by storm with their undeniable chemistry and in-ring prowess
Witness the genuine friendship that blossomed between the Viper and the Original Bro, as they overcame differences and forged an unbreakable bond. The comedic banter, jaw-dropping teamwork, and unexpected success left fans cheering for RK-Bro with every match.
Don't miss out on this emotional journey through the rise and fall of RK-Bro – a story that transcends the ring and resonates with fans on a personal level. Hit the like button, subscribe for more in-depth wrestling content, and share your thoughts in the comments below. This is the tragedy of RK-Bro, and you won't want to miss a minute of it.
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You can also visit our site: https://www.sportskeeda.com/wwe
In this video, we break down the highs and lows of the RK-Bro partnership, tracing the journey from their electrifying formation to the unexpected tragedy that unfolded. Randy Orton and Riddle, an odd-couple pairing that seemed destined for greatness, took the wrestling world by storm with their undeniable chemistry and in-ring prowess
Witness the genuine friendship that blossomed between the Viper and the Original Bro, as they overcame differences and forged an unbreakable bond. The comedic banter, jaw-dropping teamwork, and unexpected success left fans cheering for RK-Bro with every match.
Don't miss out on this emotional journey through the rise and fall of RK-Bro – a story that transcends the ring and resonates with fans on a personal level. Hit the like button, subscribe for more in-depth wrestling content, and share your thoughts in the comments below. This is the tragedy of RK-Bro, and you won't want to miss a minute of it.
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You can also visit our site: https://www.sportskeeda.com/wwe
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SportsTranscript
00:00 Randy Orton, Matt Riddle, RK-Bro.
00:03 They were one of the biggest what if stories
00:06 to come out of WWE in the past few years.
00:08 What if they were still together?
00:10 What it could have been.
00:12 They were so good, such a perfect odd couple paired together
00:17 it shouldn't have been as good as it was,
00:19 but it didn't get to be everything it could have been.
00:22 Let's get into it.
00:23 Sports Kina Wrestling, I'm Kevin.
00:25 Let us know what you think of RK-Bro
00:27 and how it should have gone in the comments below.
00:30 Odd pairings are nothing new in WWE.
00:33 RK-Bro wasn't the first and they weren't the last.
00:36 Look at, oh, I don't know, Rockin' Sock Connection.
00:39 This may be a modern day version of that,
00:41 but for a brief time that they had together,
00:43 almost everything went perfectly until it didn't.
00:47 A large part of why their pairing worked out so well
00:50 is because they were in very interesting places
00:53 in their separate solo careers in WWE.
00:56 Matt Riddle was a relative newcomer
00:58 and off of a United States Championship loss,
01:01 storming into WWE just a few years earlier
01:05 and having a big splash in NXT.
01:08 Randy Orton just finished his second underwhelming feud
01:11 with Bray Wyatt.
01:12 Yeah, that WrestleMania match he had wasn't that great,
01:15 but he's still Randy Orton stacking those world titles up
01:19 and maybe, you know, breaking a record in the future.
01:21 Maybe that's a different video.
01:23 Orton was kind of lost in the shuffle,
01:25 which is weird to do with Randy Orton.
01:27 When Matt Riddle approached him and their story began,
01:30 it proved to be a perfect opportunity
01:33 for a career renaissance for the Viper,
01:35 who had been around a whopping 19 years
01:38 compared to Riddle's one year on the main roster.
01:41 WWE television improved quite a bit
01:43 after WrestleMania 37 around that time,
01:45 and even though no crowds were present,
01:47 the RK-Bro dynamic quickly captured
01:51 the interest of fans watching.
01:53 It was a very unique way to bring out the character
01:56 of both, you know, head in the clouds,
01:58 stoner wrestler Matt Riddle,
02:00 and so serious Randy Orton.
02:03 WWE did a good job of slow burning the momentum
02:06 and formation of the team,
02:08 not making it something that was so clear
02:10 and obvious right away.
02:12 Even when Orton agreed to start teaming with Matt,
02:15 he was a bit reluctant.
02:17 Yeah, and he began to show comedic elements of his character
02:21 that we really had only seen now and then,
02:24 and not that consistently throughout
02:25 his soon to be Hall of Fame career.
02:28 Fans were always used to watching a more serious,
02:31 you know, in his own thing,
02:32 stone cold killer Viper,
02:34 who tries to take out everybody with the big RKO.
02:37 And after that, the storyline with the Fiend
02:40 was so over the top and maybe a little bit too serious,
02:43 it was kind of a breath of fresh air.
02:44 Levity, if you will.
02:46 It became clear that this would be
02:48 a win-win type of situation,
02:50 allowing Randy Orton to do something different
02:52 and for Matt Riddle to do the thing he was pretty good at,
02:55 playing a lovable goofball who suplexes people.
02:58 They began to play off of each other
03:00 and even used each other's finishers
03:02 in back-to-back matches against Xavier Woods on Raw.
03:05 Although some speculated that Orton's injury
03:08 before Money in the Bank would be detrimental
03:10 to this developing story,
03:12 it actually helped extend it without any effort.
03:15 Although it was just seven weeks,
03:17 they picked up right where they left off
03:20 with Orton returning, giving us this incredible moment
03:23 where Riddle managed to hug it out with the Viper.
03:27 It was a little less surprising
03:29 when the hug was followed up with an RKO.
03:32 Yeah, don't hug me, bro.
03:33 Don't hug me.
03:34 Yes, lovable Riddle really wanted Randy Orton to be his bro,
03:38 but even still, the RKO that Orton hit Riddle on
03:42 seemed to be his own weird way of showing gratitude.
03:46 Yeah, I'm very grateful.
03:47 Let me plant you on your face into the mat.
03:49 Within only 12 days of that face plant into the ring,
03:52 they would end up winning the Raw Tag Team Titles together
03:56 by beating AJ Styles and the gigantic Omos.
04:00 Once again, the timing was perfect
04:01 because crowds had literally only returned
04:04 the previous month following the end of pandemic restrictions
04:08 and they were suddenly the hottest act in the mid-card of WWE.
04:13 It was all clicking,
04:15 especially once they had those Raw Tag Team Titles.
04:18 The Little Brother Bothers the Big Brother dynamic
04:21 played out so well.
04:22 Oh yeah, and they could also go bell to bell.
04:25 The Little Brother Bothers the Big Brother dynamic
04:27 continued and they had so many awesome moments together,
04:31 whether it was Riddle entering crown jewel
04:33 on a freaking camel with Randy Orton
04:36 looking just befuddled by it,
04:38 or their amazing champion versus champion match
04:41 where they defeated the Usos at Survivor Series.
04:44 Yeah, they beat the Usos.
04:46 Those two moments alone happened
04:48 within just a few weeks of each other,
04:51 but it doesn't do justice to how awesome they were
04:53 or how popular they were with WWE fans.
04:57 It's not often that a duo of two really defined single stars
05:01 becomes a popular act as a tag team like this.
05:05 It was a bit shocking when they lost
05:06 the Raw Tag Team Titles to the Alpha Academy in early 2022,
05:10 but they quickly regained it a couple of months later
05:13 and went on to successfully defend those titles,
05:16 their first and sadly only WrestleMania moment together.
05:20 It almost felt like it was all too good to be true
05:22 because everything would change after that.
05:24 It began when RK-Bro got challenged by the Usos
05:28 to unify the Raw and SmackDown Tag Team Championships
05:33 in the aftermath of Roman unifying the WWE
05:36 and Universal Championships.
05:38 That's right, Ro-Ro can't have his cousins
05:41 not also having double belt duty.
05:43 The match was teased and anticipated for quite some time.
05:46 It was scheduled for the Backlash Premium Event
05:48 before being changed into a six-man tag team match
05:52 where Roman Reigns and the Usos, the Bloodline,
05:55 would defeat RK-Bro and Drew McIntyre.
05:59 They did eventually get back to that unification match
06:02 on SmackDown and RK-Bro lost in tragic, devastating fashion
06:07 before it was later announced that Randy Orton
06:10 would be out of action indefinitely
06:12 with a serious injury that was gonna require surgery
06:15 and maybe a lengthy rehab,
06:17 some feeling that possibly it could alter his career
06:20 in a very big way.
06:22 All those years on the road with Randy Orton
06:25 taking the toils and damage of a pro wrestler
06:28 were something that truly had added up
06:30 and it's something he admitted he had wished he'd changed
06:33 with the way he delivers his RKO finisher,
06:36 caused serious damage to his back.
06:39 Matt Riddle managed to have a pretty fruitful
06:41 singles career, but his personal issues outside of the ring
06:45 got the better of him in September of 2023
06:48 when just two months before Randy Orton's return,
06:51 he was released by WWE.
06:53 It's a shame because even Matt Riddle has admitted
06:56 that Randy Orton was a huge supporter of him,
06:59 from the tumultuous time in his life
07:01 to his successes in the ring
07:03 when he was going through a divorce.
07:05 He was still able to be successful
07:07 and saw his wife and his family life completely change.
07:11 Balancing that is pretty hard.
07:13 Riddle described Orton as a real life brother to him,
07:16 someone who will have a spot in his heart forever.
07:19 It's really a wholesome moment when you consider it.
07:21 But if that doesn't sum up the progress and maturity
07:23 that humans go through over the years
07:26 in the very daunting and emotionally draining world
07:29 that is WWE, we hope that others get to experience
07:32 these type of bonds together.
07:34 Even Randy Orton only had nice things to say
07:38 about his time with Matt Riddle.
07:40 Until the actual severity of Viper's injuries
07:44 were revealed by his father, Bob Orton Jr.,
07:47 nobody knew that he had been dealing with a nagging injury
07:51 and a serious one that went from nagging to,
07:54 "Oh wow, this could mean you're not gonna wrestle again."
07:57 Orton directly credited Riddle
07:59 for being the man to carry the team.
08:01 If it weren't for Riddle, we may not have gotten
08:03 to see those epic moments that they had together.
08:06 On the Impulsive podcast, Orton told Logan Paul,
08:10 "I've gotta give props because that year we tagged together.
08:13 "I was not able to be in that ring
08:15 "unless I was in there with someone like him
08:18 "because he was able to take the brunt of the physicality.
08:21 "He tagged me, I come in and do my (beep)."
08:24 Who knows what would have happened if Randy Orton
08:26 didn't have to take such a long time off.
08:28 He was out of the ring for nearly 18 months,
08:30 and yeah, there was doubt of whether or not
08:32 he would actually get back in the ring.
08:34 They probably would have been slotted right back together,
08:36 or maybe eventually they would have broken up,
08:39 being able to have the revenge angle,
08:41 "One brother turns on the other."
08:43 Oh, that would have been something, right?
08:45 We all thought at some point,
08:47 maybe Randy Orton would have really hit that RKO
08:50 that broke a heart and maybe a nose in the process.
08:54 Imagine if Riddle turning on Randy Orton
08:57 was the other way around.
08:58 Wow, that would be something, yeah.
09:01 For now, it's something we can really only imagine,
09:04 and we'd love to know how you would imagine it.
09:07 Let us know in the comments below
09:08 and check out more deep dive wrestling videos like this
09:11 from Sportskeeda Wrestling.
09:13 Also, hit the like button, bro.
09:15 (silence)
09:17 [BLANK_AUDIO]