Aleister Black returned to WWE on the April 25th edition of Friday Night SmackDown earlier this year. He had been one of the rumored names set to leave All Elite Wrestling and return under the WWE banner.
His return happened shortly after WrestleMania, and fans had been expecting him to return at the Show of Shows instead. There was a perfect opportunity for him as well. Randy Orton didn’t have a WrestleMania opponent anymore, since Kevin Owens got injured. He issued an open challenge for everyone, and some wanted Black to be the one to answer it.
WWE Had Considered Aleister Black Vs Randy Orton For WrestleMania 41
While speaking with Graham Matthews on WrestleRant, Aleister Black said WWE didn’t put him up against Randy Orton at this year’s WrestleMania because they simply didn’t want him to lose so quickly (transcription courtesy of Bleacher Report).
“They were toying with a bunch of ideas. I know at one point it was this conversation about like, ‘Oh, is he coming back to wrestle Randy Orton at WrestleMania?’ That was an actual thing that was discussed but you also have to understand that wasn’t an isolated thing as to like, ‘Oh, maybe it could be this.’ Then all the focus went on that. It’s more like, they’ll check a list of names….It was counter-argued quickly because they were like, ‘Well, we don’t want him to lose coming back at WrestleMania. That doesn’t make any sense.'”
At WrestleMania, Joe Hendry answered Orton’s open challenge. He had a great showing against The Viper, and even though he lost, that night certainly raised Hendry’s stock in WWE.
You can watch Aleister Black’s full interview with WrestleRant on YouTube below:
In recent months, Black has paired up with his wife, Zelina, on WWE programming. One of the goals he has for his current run is to win the World Titles in the company.