Randy Orton and Ric Flair have been linked since early 2003 and the formation of Evolution. Nearly two decades later, the mentor and pupil still have the kind of chemistry that creates raw, unscripted, emotional moments that are woven into the DNA of sports entertainment.
Speaking on a media call ahead of SummerSlam 2020, Randy Orton detailed a moment he shared with Ric Flair prior to betraying the legend in 2020 that made the segment more difficult but added real emotion to the moment.
Credit to Kenny McIntosh from Inside The Ropes for passing along the following quote.
"That segment, that was hard to do. There were so many things I could've said that would've been nasty and would've even made that segment better. It was hard to look him in the eye, no matter how much we wanted it to come across that way, it was hard to be mean to that man after how he's treated me for the past twenty years especially. But ya know, business is business," said Randy. "Ric knows that and I know that and I'll tell you what he was never supposed to grab the microphone from me that night. He was just supposed to say a few things under his breath that the handheld camera in the ring may or may not pick up."
He continued, "You were supposed to see our facial expressions and get an idea that he was bringing me back in & eventually we had the hug and I turned on him but when he grabbed the mic I was thinking 'Ah, come on Ric you're not supposed to grab the mic' but then he went on to cut that promo and it was very touching. The thing is he meant everything he said. That's why he's so special to this business, he's always left his heart out there in the ring and every emotion you get out there from Ric Flair, it's real and that's one of the reasons he's the best."
Randy Orton is going for his 14th WWE Championship when he faces Drew McIntyre at WWE SummerSlam.
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