Randy Orton and Jeff Hardy...intertwined?

[It's...Baylariat!]

Is it just me or are Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton not taken as seriously backstage? Orton's WWE title reign may be one of the worst in recent memory. Getting beat up by Flair, Shane, Vince, Batista, and HHH regularly doesn't spell dominant champion to me.

Jeff Hardy was the in-between for Punk's cash in, and lost his WWE title not too long after winning it. He jobbed to Matt Hardy at WM, and is constantly fed to Edge, except for Extreme Rules.

SO...can someone tell me the logic in treating two of your biggest stars with no faith and no respect? I can see the logic in Jeff, but not Randy. Orton's great when he's on his game and to have him look weak as champion was just an insult. And to give Jeff the belt for short title reigns torments the kids everywhere that cheer for the Unique Enigma.

So is it just me, or are Orton and Jeff treated unfairly? What would you do with them? Are they being treated like they should be? Where do they go next?

 

[Tenta]

Is it just me or are Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton not taken as seriously backstage? Orton's WWE title reign may be one of the worst in recent memory. Getting beat up by Flair, Shane, Vince, Batista, and HHH regularly doesn't spell dominant champion to me.

Jeff Hardy was the in-between for Punk's cash in, and lost his WWE title not too long after winning it. He jobbed to Matt Hardy at WM, and is constantly fed to Edge, except for Extreme Rules.

SO...can someone tell me the logic in treating two of your biggest stars with no faith and no respect? I can see the logic in Jeff, but not Randy. Orton's great when he's on his game and to have him look weak as champion was just an insult. And to give Jeff the belt for short title reigns torments the kids everywhere that cheer for the Unique Enigma.

So is it just me, or are Orton and Jeff treated unfairly? What would you do with them? Are they being treated like they should be? Where do they go next?

Unfortunately, Jeff has kind of placed himself in a bit of a bind with his actions. For what it's worth, Michael Hayes has always been a fan of his work, and as long as he's still head of creative for Smackdown, Hardy will always be in the upper echelon.

Orton's kind of an odd case. From what you read, he does have a lot of pull backstage. Granted, not Triple H pull. But creative listens to his input. They certainly did on the Manu situation. And I'm not entirely sure he had nothing to do with Kennedy's release. But then again, you might be onto something.

These two... For whatever reason, don't get too much trust. But as long as key backers are along to help them out, they will always have a place in the main event in WWE.

 

[Nate DaMac]

I think I have a good theory. Aren't both of them on their last strike when it comes to the wellness policy? I know Jeff is, but I'm unsure about Orton. If that's the case, I see why they wouldn't trust them. I'm thinking they got plans to get the title back on Orton eventually, maybe even they realized they fucked that all up. As for Jeff, I just don't know. Maybe they just feel he's of better use helping Punk turn heel. Or maybe he's still leaving?

 

[ShockTheMonkey223]

Jeff isn't going to be pushed strongly until he signs a new contract.

But saying Orton is treated unfairly is beyond ridiculous. Ratings drop every time the guy is the focal point of the show, yet still continues to main event. Why? Because he's friends with Trips (his last name also helps). I'm really hoping WWE is done giving him chance after chance to gain interest and gets him out of the main event picture after his loss last night. I know that's probally wishful thinking though.

 

[Nate DaMac]

I am probably one of the biggest Orton haters. But even I can see that he has been booked horribly. His last name doesn't mean shit. What the fuck did Bob Orton do? I don't think the ratings plummet rest solely on Orton. But let us see what a decent title reign does for him. On the other side of the spectrum, please let Jeff have a great feud with Punk! Let him have one more title run before he rolls out!

 

[HBK-aholic]

I don't think Hardy is that great as champion. He's completely the opposite to everyone else in that Main event scene. Orton, Triple H, Batista, Cena, Hardy. He just doesn't really fit there. I like watching Hardy, he's very entertaining, but I don't think he's been treated unfairly. There's also the Wellness Policy issue. WWE could be afraid to give him the title too long in case he's found to have violated the policy for a third time, thus giving him an automatic dismissal from the company.

 

[shadowlaw85]

I think they are not used very well...I kno there's some orton haters here but honestly think about how much orton has grown let alone look how much betta of a wrestler he is compared to his father(his father was a loser his whole fawking career....my daughter is a betta wrestler than his father lmao)orton is not gettin da push he needs,plus they mak legacy look lik a bunch of *****es.as for jeff hardy,this guy is really gettin mistreated.....as much tymes he's bust his as for wwe he deserves a decent run....when he won at extreme rules dat cud of been da start he needed....unless if jus so happen a punk vs hardy happens n it last til summerslam....who freakin knows either way these guys deserve a lil more than waht they hav been gettin

 

[Thriller Ant]

I'll begin by saying that I love both Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton. They are probably my two favorites right now. The characters they play are completely different, however, and that is why you can't have the same answer for both.

Randy Orton is getting screwed, plain and simple. His character is made to be a champion. He is cocky, arrogant, and will do anything to take out his opponent. He is very good at being on top, and his character needs the belt for it to work. He is good at chasing, but his best mic work comes as champion.

Jeff Hardy, on the other hand, makes a bad champion. I love Jeff to death, but he is very similar to Rey Mysterio in that he often plays the underdog in his matches. When was the last time you saw Hardy completely dominate an opponent pretty much from bell to bell? As champion, it is okay to get beat up and win every now and then, but it makes you look weak if it happens every match. Jeff thrives in the chase. A lot of people hate his mic work, but you can hear how badly he wants to win in his promos when he isn't champion. He makes the people get behind him and want him to win, no matter how many times he fails. That is why Hardy doesn't win the big one; He is better at being the guy who just misses.

 

[Sasori]

Yeah my little cousin was crying about the fact that Jeff lost the title so quick and I was pretty upset. Either there trying to make Punk a coward face or just a heel or it has something to do with Jeff's contract. And Orton I'm not sure at all... The guy is gold, and yet they still make him look like crap for gods sake he won the Royal Rumble took out Batista, Vince, Shane, Steph, HHH, and Flair and won the wwe title taking out HHH in the process! AND HE LOSSES THE TITLE TO AN INJURED BATISTA IN A 8 MINUTE SQUASH MATCH!?!?! WTF!

 

[TwistofRKO]

Is it just me or are Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton not taken as seriously backstage? Orton's WWE title reign may be one of the worst in recent memory. Getting beat up by Flair, Shane, Vince, Batista, and HHH regularly doesn't spell dominant champion to me.

Jeff Hardy was the in-between for Punk's cash in, and lost his WWE title not too long after winning it. He jobbed to Matt Hardy at WM, and is constantly fed to Edge, except for Extreme Rules.

SO...can someone tell me the logic in treating two of your biggest stars with no faith and no respect? I can see the logic in Jeff, but not Randy. Orton's great when he's on his game and to have him look weak as champion was just an insult. And to give Jeff the belt for short title reigns torments the kids everywhere that cheer for the Unique Enigma.

So is it just me, or are Orton and Jeff treated unfairly? What would you do with them? Are they being treated like they should be? Where do they go next?

You nailed it on the head, in my opinion, maybe biased considering these are my two favorite stars on the roster.

Jeff isn't going to be pushed strongly until he signs a new contract.

But saying Orton is treated unfairly is beyond ridiculous. Ratings drop every time the guy is the focal point of the show, yet still continues to main event. Why? Because he's friends with Trips (his last name also helps). I'm really hoping WWE is done giving him chance after chance to gain interest and gets him out of the main event picture after his loss last night. I know that's probally wishful thinking though.

Ignorance at it's finest.

The ratings have been in free-fall for some time now, and this is only used to make a point because the one episode of RAW pulled in over a 4. One episode. Is Smackdown the better show right now? Most of this site seems to subscribe to that theory, they're fresh, etc etc, and they are pulling in sub 2.0 ratings.

It's hardly Orton's fault.

I don't think Hardy is that great as champion. He's completely the opposite to everyone else in that Main event scene. Orton, Triple H, Batista, Cena, Hardy. He just doesn't really fit there

I don't think that has an impact on it at all. It's built around the fans and the WWE has ingrained it upon the fan's minds that Jeff Hardy can last with Triple H and Orton (off of that list) and he's barely a notch below them.

I'll begin by saying that I love both Jeff Hardy and Randy Orton. They are probably my two favorites right now. The characters they play are completely different, however, and that is why you can't have the same answer for both.

Randy Orton is getting screwed, plain and simple. His character is made to be a champion. He is cocky, arrogant, and will do anything to take out his opponent. He is very good at being on top, and his character needs the belt for it to work. He is good at chasing, but his best mic work comes as champion.

Exactly. I feel Orton's work has been great until he is forced to sell being miles inferior to Shane, Vince, and Ric Flair, just among non full-time competitors. They have built Orton up, a lot, to only tear it down by him not being able to defend himself.

Jeff Hardy, on the other hand, makes a bad champion. I love Jeff to death, but he is very similar to Rey Mysterio in that he often plays the underdog in his matches. When was the last time you saw Hardy completely dominate an opponent pretty much from bell to bell? As champion, it is okay to get beat up and win every now and then, but it makes you look weak if it happens every match. Jeff thrives in the chase. A lot of people hate his mic work, but you can hear how badly he wants to win in his promos when he isn't champion. He makes the people get behind him and want him to win, no matter how many times he fails. That is why Hardy doesn't win the big one; He is better at being the guy who just misses.

I agree with this, but I'll echo the point FTS made about Batista last night, there's only so many times it can happen. You cannot constantly terrorize the fans. If Hardy re-signs and is in the fold then he should hold the belt, or be involved in main event non-title feuds.

And the funny thing you said was how a champion looks weak when he's beaten down every week, completely echoing the first half of your post. Hopefully the WWE creative team realizes this?

 

[FromTheSouth]

First of all, Jeff Hardy's wellness policy violations have no bearing on the length of his title reigns. If he violates again, they can have him drop the title, and get injured. I'm sure, that if he is about to be fired from his dream job, he can pick up an extra paycheck and do a job to someone on the way out.

Orton is a different case. To say he's not taken seriously when he has main evented the last two Wrestlemanias is a stretch. His title reigns' lengths are due more to his character than anything else. Randy, Batista, and Jeff are all linked in that they are best while chasing the title. Edge, Cena, and HHH are the guys who are best while holding the title. Jeff's search for glory, Orton's single minded focus, Batista's drive, these are all traits that help you get over while chasing a belt. HHH's psychosis, Cena vs. the odds, Edge and his cunning, these are traits the help you stay on top.

Orton's and Hardy's short reigns are due to their character. I'm sure that there is a certain level of distrust with both of them, however, that would result in a contingency plan for what ifs as opposed to changing entire storylines. Having Jeff in the main event scene is what is best for the company, and that is what the driving force is when it comes to dealing with him and the title.

 

[Paradox100]

I believe there was a reason for Jeff winning the title. One, many people wanted to see Jeff win the title again. The WWE wanted to drop the title on Punk. But if he were to beat Edge for the same title, in the same position, in the same style, two years running, it would be a repeat of last year. We all saw that, and since people wanted to see Jeff with the title again, they knew people would be okay with a 4 minute reign. Because, when it goes down in history, a title reign is a title reign. Sadly, Jeff Hardy was nothing more than a transitional champion.