Despite losing to Randy Orton at WWE WrestleMania 41, current TNA Champion Joe Hendry is over the moon about the experience.

He took to X, formerly Twitter, after his match to post about his surprise appearance. “I just wrestled Randy Orton at WrestleMania,” he wrote.

The post has over 2.6 million views and 134,000 likes as of the time of this writing. Hendry went viral for his reaction to the career-defining moment. He got a loud response from fans upon his music hitting the stadium.

During the second night of WrestleMania 41, Orton went to the ring for an open challenge. Originally, he was supposed to face Kevin Owens in a highly-anticipated match. However, Owens' injury caused him to miss the annual event, leaving Orton without an opponent.

So, after Orton made his entrance, he awaited his opponent. Hendry's iconic entrance music hit, which opens with the line, “Say his name, and he appears / I believe in Joe Hendry.”

Unfortunately for Hendry, the match lasted less than his 2025 Royal Rumble appearance. He was defeated in just over three minutes by Orton, who hit a second RKO on Hendry after the match.

He still seemed to show some respect towards the TNA Champion. Perhaps this is not the last time they square off. Orton got the win as he celebrated the 20th anniversary of his WrestleMania debut.

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Who is TNA Champion Joe Hendry, and why was he at WWE WrestleMania 41?

Hendry is the current TNA Champion and is a familiar face to WWE NXT fans. He first crossed over with WWE in 2024, appearing in NXT as one of the members of a battle royal match.

He then feuded with the likes of Pete Dunne, Wes Lee, and Ethan Page during his first NXT run. Hendry challenged Page for the NXT Championship at No Mercy. However, he lost.

In February 2025, Hendry made a surprise appearance in the Royal Rumble match. He entered in the 15th slot and was eliminated a few minutes later by Roman Reigns.

His next appearance in WWE came at WrestleMania 41 when Joe Hendry answered Randy Orton's open challenge. It is unknown when he will reappear in the company.

Hendry recently won the TNA World Championship from Nic Remeth at Genesis on January 19, 2025. He has continued to hold the championship since then.