Randy Orton appears to be closing in on his WWE return after vanishing from television following WrestleMania 42, and fans may not have to wait much longer to see The Viper strike again.

After weeks off WWE programming following his crushing loss to Cody Rhodes, Orton is now officially being advertised for the May 29 edition of SmackDown in Barcelona, Spain at Olympic Arena.

The timing has immediately raised eyebrows, as the episode serves as the final SmackDown before Clash in Italy. That has fueled heavy speculation WWE could be positioning Orton for a major role heading into the premium live event.

Orton has not appeared since WrestleMania 42, where Rhodes retained the Undisputed WWE Championship in the main event. Following the show, reports surfaced claiming WWE had strongly considered putting the title on Orton before making a late creative change.

Fightful Select later reported there had been significant internal discussion about Orton capturing his 15th world championship before WWE ultimately decided to keep the championship on Rhodes. The decision reportedly tied into plans to continue the rivalry beyond WrestleMania rather than ending it there.

The feud came to a violent conclusion on the night when Orton snapped after the loss, attacking Rhodes with the championship belt before delivering a devastating punt kick to close the show.

Now, with Orton suddenly returning to WWE’s advertised schedule, speculation is already building that WWE could be preparing to reignite the rivalry as summer approaches.