Sheamus vs. Randy Orton Feud Is Crushing Stars' Momentum on Road to SummerSlam

There are few Superstars in today's WWE who have as much history as Randy Orton and Sheamus. They've crossed paths on countless occasions over the last five years and currently find themselves in another heated rivalry on the road to SummerSlam.

Unlike many of WWE's most iconic feuds, however, Orton and Sheamus simply don't have great chemistry together, whether it be in the ring or on the mic. Very rarely have they contested compelling matches against each other, which raises the question why their long-running rivalry has dragged on for as long as it has.

Take nothing away from the respective talent of both individuals; they're two of the top workers on the roster. In fact, some of their best work as singles stars has come in 2015.

After being away from the ring for a couple months, Randy Orton returned to television at February's Fastlane pay-per-view. As an antihero, he's successfully rejuvenated his carer and appears to be more motivated than he's been in quite some time.

Sheamus was also brought back to TV in a big way as a heel the night after WrestleMania 31. He too is much more comfortable in this role than he was as a babyface and is now in possession of the opportunistic Money in the Bank briefcase.

Credit: WWE.com

If nothing else, it's clear Orton and Sheamus have been paired together in a program because WWE isn't sure what else to do with them at the moment. With that said, there is plenty of new blood on the roster they could engage with, including Bray Wyatt, Neville and others.

It's not that they have bad matches; rather, we've seen them face off so many times over the years that it's grown tiresome. Regardless of what roles they're in, fans are tired of seeing them in the ring together and are ready for something new.

The history between them dates back to early 2010, when they clashed over the WWE Championship—and even then fans weren't intrigued by their matches. They briefly feuded that fall before battling over the World Heavyweight Championship the subsequent spring.

Their match on the post-WrestleMania 29 edition of Raw is infamous for the backlash it received from that night's raucous crowd. From that point forward, fans have rejected any match involving them as opponents because it's been done to death.

Only their most recent match at the Battleground pay-per-view managed to exceed expectations, but most of that can be credited to St. Louis fans being hot for their hometown hero (Orton) and wanting to see one of their own emerge victorious.

That would have been the ideal time to blow off the feud, but WWE insisted on keeping it going. They've been on opposite sides of various tag team matches in recent weeks, including a six-man tag bout on the Aug. 3 edition of Raw in which Orton's team pulled out the win.

Although no formal match between the two has been announced for this year's SummerSlam, it's likely they'll have yet another rematch on the show in order to get them on the card, especially given the four-hour format.

According to Dave Meltzer of F4WOnline, Sheamus might have suffered a concussion during the six-man tag team match and was kept out of action for that weekend's live events. Despite the injury, he appeared on Monday's Raw and got physical in the episode's closing moments, so it's possible he's cleared to compete in time for the Aug. 23 event.

If he can't compete, it could be a blessing in disguise for both Orton and Sheamus. With their lackluster feud hindering their momentum going into SummerSlam, the untimely injury would force officials to bring the program to an abrupt end.

Where this would leave Orton as the August extravaganza draws near is unknown, but on the bright side, it would allow him to transition into a fresh feud with someone not named Sheamus.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, is a journalism major at Endicott College. Visit his website, Next Era Wrestling, and "like" his official Facebook page to continue the conversation on all things wrestling.

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