Je’Von Evans has reflected on the botched RKO spot from his memorable WWE NXT headlining clash against Randy Orton, revealing that the ambitious sequence was never rehearsed before the airing.
Orton edged out Evans in the main special event of the October 8, 2024 edition of NXT, yet one of the most talked-about moments came near the conclusion when an attempted RKO counter did not go as confirmed by plan.
During an interview with Chris Van Vliet, Evans explained that he and Orton had touched on the idea beforehand yet never physically walked through the sequence.
“No, we didn’t [walk through the spot]. Things were literally just us saying, ‘Oh, this is gonna be a cool idea. Notably, let’s do it.’ He was like, ‘You do like the spinny thing. I catch you.’ I was like — ‘Yeah, I was thinking the same thing.’ Yet I think just like position-wise, we didn’t try it before the episode. It was just kind of like a thing we had an idea about, and it took me a while to watch that encounter thanks to that. I didn’t watch that match for months.”
Evans admitted that the mistake initially bothered him enough that he avoided watching the showdown back for several months. With time, yet, he has come to view the imperfect sequence differently.
Orton’s reaction helped turn the situation into a valuable learning experience, while Evans was frustrated with himself at once afterward. The 14-time WWE World Title holder reassured the young NXT star and encouraged him rather than allowing the missed spot to overshadow the contest.
It’s cool to look at it and be like that was just a real moment, “Although furthermore. We’re still fighting by the time %s wrapped up the day. Everything in wrestling is not pretty. I just love now I can look back at the moment, kind of like this. But I still look at it like okay. But I can look back at it, and say, dang, I learned from that moment. Building on that, then even if we hit that smoothly, we probably wouldn’t have got Randy Orton moment saying — ‘Hey, bro, you’re the man.’ He was like, ‘Hey, don’t worry, bro, you’re the effing man. Raise my hand, bro.’ Of course, I was still pissed, but in my head, I’m like all right, bro, Randy just noted I’m the man.”
Evans now sees the mishap as part of the reality of professional wrestling, where not every planned sequence unfolds perfectly. Adding to the story, he moreover acknowledged that had the RKO spot gone exactly as envisioned — he may never have experienced the memorable interaction with Orton that followed.
The October 2024 encounter represented a major opportunity for Evans — putting him in the main special event opposite one of WWE’s most accomplished veterans. Despite the botched sequence, Orton ultimately connected with the RKO to secure the victory — while Evans came away from the encounter with both a high-profile performance and an unforgettable endorsement from “The Viper.”