Randy Orton Reportedly “Nowhere Near Medically Cleared” For WWE Return

The man that hears voices in his head is hoping to make a WWE return, but a recent report suggests that Randy Orton isn’t close to coming back yet.

It has been reported by PWInsider that former WWE Champion Randy Orton is in Detroit for SummerSlam weekend ahead of Saturday’s show.

That led to speculation from some fans that perhaps Orton could be making his big return to television because we have seen some major returns at SummerSlam over the years. Since Orton has been absent for over a year, it would be a good spot to bring him back.

With that said, sometimes WWE brings in injured people or retired wrestlers to film content for Peacock/WWE Network and other documentaries or just because that person wants to be at a major show like SummerSlam.

While some fans hoped that this news would mean a Randy Orton comeback was coming soon, it doesn’t appear to be the case. On Twitter/X, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful wrote that Randy Orton isn’t close to coming back yet.

“Despite reports of Randy Orton being in Detroit, I’m told by people close to Randy that he is nowhere near medically cleared to return at this point.”

It was also reported by Fightful earlier this week that Orton hasn’t been cleared to return.

Randy Orton Has Missed Over One Year Of WWE Action Due To A Back Injury

In 2002, which was 21 years ago, Randy Orton made his WWE debut and within two years he became the youngest World Champion in company history, which is a record that he still holds. Orton is also a 14-time World Champion in WWE, which trails only John Cena and Ric Flair.

Randy Orton last wrestled in May 2022 when he and Matt Riddle lost the Tag Team Title unification match to The Usos. Since then, Orton has had major back surgery while doing his best to rehab and get better so that he can return.

The Fightful report from earlier in the week noted a lower back fusion that Orton has undergone is somewhat unprecedented for a wrestler with doctors telling him that a return to the ring isn’t a good idea. Orton is apparently “huge” since he has resumed weightlifting but is still not bumping.