JD McDonagh Reveals He Pitched the “Super RKO” Spot with Randy Orton at Survivor Series 2023

JD McDonagh Reveals He Pitched the “Super RKO” Spot with Randy Orton at Survivor Series 2023

JD McDonagh has shared how the memorable “Super RKO” moment with Randy Orton at Survivor Series 2023 was actually his idea.

After being sidelined for 18 months due to a serious back injury, Randy Orton made his highly anticipated return at Survivor Series. He joined Team Cody Rhodes in their match against The Judgment Day. Fans were excited to see The Viper back in action, and he made sure to deliver a standout moment.

JD McDonagh Pitched the Super RKO Spot with Randy Orton

The closing moments of the match saw JD McDonagh at the top of the cage while Randy Orton waited in the ring below. Sami Zayn and Seth Rollins threw McDonagh off the cage, straight into a stunning RKO from Orton — a moment that instantly went viral.

Speaking with Chris Van Vliet, McDonagh revealed that the daring “Super RKO” was actually his idea:

“Yeah, that was my idea. My first idea was I was going to moonsault off the cage and they said, ‘No you can’t do that. Charlotte’s gonna do that.’ I said, ‘Okay, well then in that case, I have a slightly more dangerous suggestion.’ I said super RKO, and they asked do you think you can do it safely? I said, ‘I’d have to eyeball it. I’d have to get up there onto the cage and see the height and see, but I reckon I could.’”

How JD McDonagh and Randy Orton Rehearsed the Super RKO

McDonagh explained that they practiced the move the night before the event, using a crash mat to make sure everything went smoothly:

“We got a crash mat out the night before. I hate blowing up the secrets in wrestling but we got a crash night out, he stood at the end of it, I got up on the cage and just jumped off. He eyeballed and he goes, ‘I got you.’ I bet you do. All right, let’s do it tomorrow when the lights are on.”

The Idea Behind the Super RKO at Survivor Series 2023

McDonagh shared how his experience as a young wrestler prepared him for taking such a high-risk move. He recalled a game from his early wrestling days where he and his friends would jump from various heights onto crash mats:

“When we were coming through, when I was 12 or 13, you’re just a kid, you learn how to bump and hit a crash mat or whatever. We used to have a game where we would try and jump from ascending heights and put our hands behind our back and just take the crash mat.

So you’d start standing, might go to the bottom rope, the second rope, the top rope, we’d be like pushing each other and daring each other to go higher and higher. At the end of it, I was jumping off a ladder in the ring onto the crash mat on the floor, and hooking my hands behind my back.”

JD McDonagh Shares His Experience Performing the Super RKO

Despite the risk involved, McDonagh trusted Orton’s ability to pull off the move, saying he just focused on doing his part:

“Honestly, it felt like that when I was up there on the cage just about to do it, and Randy’s walking over. He’s eyeing me up and stuff. I thought about all those bumps that I took, I was okay, just do it like that. Just put your hands behind your back and leave your head out there for something for him to grab and, yeah, thank God it came off great.”