Je’Von Evans looks back on his faceoff with Randy Orton.
Across his WWE career, Randy Orton has only made two in-ring appearances on the NXT brand. Fortunately for Je’Von Evans, he was involved in one of them.
While speaking on A Shot of Brandi, Evans reflected on his match with “The Viper” on the October 8, 2024 edition of NXT, which took place in Orton’s hometown of St. Louis. According to Evans, the opportunity was “insane,” so much so that he almost cried before locking up with Orton.
“I’d probably say Randy Orton [was the most challenging opponent]. I feel like when he came down to NXT, I was grateful for the opportunity, blessed with it. But I think I was just so nervous,” Evans said. “You can even tell, usually I’m all excited. If you watch back when I’m doing my entrance, or even before they match, I’m just like pacing in the ring. I just remember like him coming out and I was talking to ref, I was like, ‘Bro, like I’m about to cry.’ It was insane.”
In the closing moments of Evans vs. Orton, Evans delivered a cutter, but missed when he attempted to follow with a second one. Orton then picked Evans back up, only to instantly drop him with an RKO for the win. After the match, the 14-time world champion helped the young star up to his feet once more.
“I would say it was my most challenging because NXT and main roster are two different flows when it comes to wrestling,” Evans said. “I feel like I was ready to, of course, go kind of with the main roster flow, but I was also ready to learn, you feel me? He kind of upped my level when it came to in ring competition, in ring psychology, all that. So I feel like that was my biggest competition, my biggest challenge, just being able to step in the ring with somebody that’s a future hall of famer, a legend, a legend killer.”
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