The Randy Orton vs. Jinder Mahal Feud Has Ruined Both WWE Characters

It was almost one year ago that the Randy Orton vs. Jinder Mahal feud first took shape as they prepared to face off for the WWE Championship at Backlash 2017. One year later, most fans couldn't care less about the seemingly never-ending rivalry.

As if their first feud wasn't ineffective enough, they will be renewing their rivalry over the United States Championship come Backlash 2018, and fans shouldn't expect the end result to be any different.

Back in 2017, Mahal was just getting his feet wet as a main-event player on SmackDown Live. In addition to being heavily protected, he stacked up a number of notable victories yet never truly clicked in the role.

Despite beating Orton on countless occasions and embarking on a six-month reign as WWE champion, Mahal's efforts to prove he was a world championship-caliber competitor were unsuccessful.

Instead of rushing Mahal to the main-event picture, WWE should have taken their time with him and slotted The Modern Day Maharaja in the midcard. He portrays the cliched evil foreigner character well, and thus a run as United States champion only seemed logical.

The idea of another Mahal title reign so soon after his last one may not excite a majority of the WWE Universe, and rightfully so. Not many of his matches in 2017 were enthralling, but his dethroning against AJ Styles that November was a major moment.

Mahal's stint with the star-spangled prize should also allow him to work with fresh faces and young blood from the blue brand, not the same Superstars with whom he shares zero chemistry, such as Orton.

Orton is obviously an exceptional athlete in his own right, but he simply couldn't create magic with Mahal last year. That should have been apparent during their initial outing at Backlash, but officials went on to have them clash another two times at Money in the Bank and Battleground, respectively.

The Punjabi Prison match in particular was atrocious and, again, did nothing to establish Mahal as any more of a main-event threat than he was before. If anything, it ruined Mahal's chances of getting over in that role, and Orton was also worse off from the rivalry.

Credit: WWE.com

Orton has been in desperate need of a change in character for a while. He hasn't had an engaging rivalry in well over a year and isn't compelling as a babyface in the slightest.

Although he won the No. 1 Contender's Triple Threat match this past Tuesday night on SmackDown, Orton can still possibly be sent to Raw in the Superstar Shake-up. That way, he and Mahal can be separated at long last, ensuring the latest incarnation of their rivalry is short-lived.

Regardless, it doesn't change the fact that fans will be forced to endure another month of them at odds with each other, inflicting further damage into both characters.

All that said, both Orton and Mahal are not beyond repair and can be built back up over time. Orton is essentially bulletproof at this stage of his career, but he could mean so much more to the roster if he wasn't being pitted against Mahal in a program few care to see.

As for Mahal, WWE's recent booking of the former WWE champion has been puzzling. If officials are determined to solidify him as a star, he shouldn't be put in positions to fail.

It's mind-boggling to think WWE has yet to realize the Randy Orton vs. Jinder Mahal storyline is detrimental to all involved, but the quicker they go their separate ways, the better.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, is an Endicott College alumnus and aspiring journalist. Visit his website, Next Era Wrestling, and "like" his official Facebook page to continue the conversation on all things wrestling.