Legend makes last-minute John Cena vs. Randy Orton prediction for WWE Backlash

Randy Orton will challenge John Cena for the Undisputed WWE Championship in his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri, at Backlash on May 10. Ahead of the event, WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray gave his take on which wrestler will leave the show with the gold.

On April 20, Cena defeated Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 41 to win a record-breaking 17th World Title. The next night, Orton unexpectedly hit the new champion with an RKO on RAW to set up their final match against each other at Backlash.

Bully Ray, aka Bubba Ray Dudley, said on Busted Open that he expects Cena to retain the title:

"I believe that John Cena is walking out of St. Louis as your champion, I'm gonna say without a doubt. I think it would be too early [for John Cena to lose]. I've said this many times on the show, Dave [host Dave LaGreca], I am a fan of the any given Sunday mentality. I like it when championships flip-flop randomly. You just never know. It seems with these World Heavyweight Championships they go on one person, then they stay there for a while, and then we build up to the big, big show, and then they stay there for a while." [From 3:02 onwards]

Look who just shut down all of Tony Khan's critics! More HERE.

Cena and Orton debuted on WWE's main roster in 2002 after training in the Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) developmental system. They went on to become legendary rivals in the 2000s and 2010s.

Bully Ray explains why John Cena will beat Randy Orton

Cody Rhodes has not appeared on WWE television since his year-long title reign ended at WrestleMania 41.

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In the long run, Bully Ray thinks The American Nightmare is a more realistic candidate than Randy Orton to capture the Undisputed WWE Championship from John Cena:

"There's no reason why you couldn't give the people in St. Louis something that they can go buck wild about, which is Randy Orton winning it for, what, the 15th time? Absolutely. But if you're gonna turn John Cena heel and you're gonna really get into this, with hopefully Cody being the beneficiary of everything at the end of the game, I'm keeping the championship on Cena." [From 3:35 onwards]

Orton's most recent world title victory came in 2020 when he defeated Drew McIntyre for the WWE Championship at Hell in a Cell.

Please credit Busted Open and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.

About the author

Danny Hart is a journalist who has been reporting on pro wrestling (WWE) at Sportskeeda since 2017. He grew up as a massive fan of football/soccer and wrestling, leading him to pursue a career in sports journalism.

Before assuming his current role, Hart worked as a football writer at Goal.com between 2009 and 2016. He prides himself on writing original content that is fact-based and highly accurate. Hart thoroughly proofreads his work before submitting it and relies only on credible sources for information.

Hart’s favorite pro wrestler is The Undertaker. He admires the 2022 WWE Hall of Famer’s ability to reinvent his character and remain relevant across his decades-long career. If given the keys to WWE’s creative department, he would bring back The Phenom for a farewell bout against AJ Styles in a stadium full of fans. Not only that, but he would love to have the multi-time world champion’s greatest rivals seated at ringside for the spectacle.

When not watching and covering sports, Hart enjoys long-distance running, playing video games, and listening to audiobooks and podcasts.

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Edited by Danny Hart