Randy Orton Wanted To Release His Energy After 2011 RKO On Mark Henry, Ended Up Touching His Toes

Randy Orton recalls jumping up and touching his toes after dropping Mark Henry with an RKO in 2011. 

When Randy Orton became WWE World Heavyweight Champion in 2011, he was tasked with being the babyface top guy on SmackDown after years of playing the number one villain or the number two good guy on the same brand as John Cena. 

As a babyface, he was tasked with going against names such as Sheamus and Mark Henry, and on May 20, 2011, after dropping Mark Henry with an RKO, Randy excitedly jumped in the air and touched his toes. 

In a video reflecting on his 20+ year career with WWE, Orton claims that the excited gesture was just a way to fire up because, even in character, he wasn’t trying to get angry at Mark Henry. 

“The infamous toe touch. If I may, was a hell of a toe touch. Quite the athlete. That toe touch was not me celebrating. I wanted to rage on my opponent, but because my opponent was Mark Henry, I couldn’t get angry at Mark Henry. I had to get that adrenaline and anger out in some other ways. So for some reason, I chose to jump up and touch my feet. I don’t know why,” he said. 

Hell of a toe touch! https://t.co/ewSvI68iOE

— TheMarkHenry (@TheMarkHenry) December 8, 2023

Recently having returned from back fusion surgery, Orton feels like he has a second lease on his wrestling career. Read his comments on the matter here. 

John Cena also recently reflected on Randy Orton’s return. Read his comments here.

If you use any of the quotes above, please credit the original source with a H/T and link back to Fightful for the transcription.