At last November's Survivor Series: WarGames, Randy Orton made his long-awaited WWE return following a potentially career-ending back injury. However, The Viper had to share the spotlight with CM Punk because the Best in the World later made his surprise comeback mere moments after the main event ended.
Orton recently appeared on WWE's The Bump and was asked how he felt to see the Chicago native enter the arena.
"For a month prior, there [were] all these rumors online that I was coming back," he says in the video below. "But there [were] also rumors online that CM Punk was coming back. Instead of it being a surprise that it was me instead of Punk, they let everyone know the week prior. [It] kind of let the wind out of my sails a little bit."
"I can tell that I've matured a lot because a part of me wanted to be irate, right?" Orton continued. "Like this was taken from me, this reaction from the crowd that I've been looking forward to for 18 months. But after all was said and done, I came out [and] got a great reaction, Punk came out [and] got a great reaction."
The former WWE Champion was clearly more disappointed with not being able to surprise fans than he was by any possible chance of being overshadowed by Punk. In fact, he seems pleased to have welcomed the Second City Saint back into the WWE fold.
"On a personal level, I was happy to have him back," Orton admits. "He's a hell of a worker, hell of a guy."
"He's more mature than he was. As am I, and I think that when I saw him in Chicago, [I] shook his hand, gave him a little hug, and it was nothing but sincere. We were both happy to see each other and I want him to do great here, you know? And I think the feeling's mutual."
It's great to hear about the level of respect between these two and we can only hope they eventually share the ring again down the line. At this month's Royal Rumble PLE, Punk will enter the 30-man match in a bid to main event WrestleMania.
As for Orton, he takes part in a Fatal 4-Way match for Roman Reigns' Undisputed WWE Universal Championship. The other competitors are AJ Styles and LA Knight.
You can watch the full interview with Orton in the player below.