CM Punk later revealed his sinister rationale for costing Randy Orton the WWE Championship. The crowd was on the edge of their seats for each twist and turn. WrestleMania XXX saw one of the greatest moments in WrestleMania history take place, as the WWE Universe witnessed "the miracle on Bourbon Street. Some lockups and submission holds took up the first few minutes before some fighting outside. Considering RVD was leaving, you would have thought it would have been a one-sided affair in favour of Orton, but no, it was a great match. That said, only an elite few can lay claim to truly bringing the best out of The Viper in the ring, on the mic and in every other aspect. Their WrestleMania 21 match is widely regarded as one of Orton's best bouts. Things didn't go well and it boiled over into this violent match. It has so many moving parts and important moments that should be remembered more fondly. He had been in the main event picture for a few years at this point but had not been given a chance with the big strap. The biggest moment of the match came when Orton handcuffed Cena to the ring post and basically tortured him for a while. Crowds were consistently hot for their matches no matter how many times they faced off and everything they were doing in between the pay-per-views kept people interested. They had no less than half-a-dozen matches from May through October and each of them was better than the last. Visit his website,WrestleRant, and subscribe to hisYouTube channelfor more wrestling-related content. FULL MATCH - Roman Reigns & Daniel Bryan vs. Randy Orton & Seth Rollins: Raw, Feb. 23, 2015. It was one of the sickest sights to ever happen in a WWE ring. The Viper is a former 14-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion and has competed at 16 different WrestleMania events during his WWE career. Once again, Randy Orton found himself as part of one of the best iterations of that match earlier this year. That is why it was a bit surprising when Orton emerged victorious in a number one contenders battle royal. They put together one of, if not the, best fatal four-way in the companies history. He has finished as the sole survivor in three successive years from 2003-2005 and a couple more times after that. An absolute war of all time proportions featuring a laundry list of moments and weapons that no one expected to see in a WWE ring. Upon returning from a prolonged absence, Edge was put against his long-time rival. Rollins was kept as the Authority's "golden boy" because he was the future. Backstories of one of the individuals in this match aside, this was a very important step in the career of Randy Orton. Their 'Mania bout is one of the more underrated in recent history, and their Last Man Standing rematch at Extreme Rules was even better. Trident Digital Media Limited. Randy Orton vs. Chad Gable: Raw, Jan. 24, 2022 585,473 views Jan 24, 2022 16K Dislike Share Save WWE 88.1M subscribers Randy Orton goes one-on-one with Chad Gable, and Riddle figures out. The polarizing social media reaction to the title change likely was what caused WWE to continue on with Christian in chase mode that summer instead of moving on to other challengers. #10 Randy Orton vs. Shawn Michaels - Unforgiven 2003 PPV debut This was a breakout match for the future Legend Killer and Viper. That changed when they resumed their rivalry in 2008 in the buildup to WrestleMania 24 and again in late 2009. However, Randy Orton responded by putting all of the members of Punk's The New Nexus faction on the sidelines week by week. There's been no shortage of amazing matches and moments throughout Randy Orton's decorated 20-year career in WWE.. He and Christian put on an instant classic that was capped by a wild RKO onto steel steps. Cactus was known for his hardcore expertise but what shocked many in the match was the brutality that Orton adopted. He ended his reign as world champion quicker than it started and plans changing caused the remainder of their rivalry to be derailed. It was a great visual to see these moves used by Orton and Edge and added a great sense of nostalgia to the match. His celebration was cut short when Orton beat him for the title just two days later. Both men faced The Usos in a tag team unification match where RK-BRO failed to win the match after Roman Reigns aided his cousins. WWE Announces Additional Draft Picks Between SmackDown And Raw, Hall Of Famer Says WWE Should Introduce "Television Championship" For Women, Ranking Every Night One WWE 2023 Draft Pick From Worst To Best, AEW Star Was On "Handshake Deal" During Debut, 4 Ups & 4 Downs From AEW Rampage (April 28), 7 Ups & 2 Downs From WWE SmackDown (April 28). The road to WrestleMania XXX was a bumpy one. It brought a side of his character to light that helped to define him as a performer. He needed a truly defining feud in order to ascend to that level, and his rivalry with The Undertaker in 2005 was just that. Daniel Bryan was not supposed to be there. The stakes were high at Survivor Series 2003 with Stone Cold Steve Austin's job as co-Raw General Manager on the line. The storyline started on a whim with Orton dethroning Christian as world heavyweight champion on SmackDown in May 2011 within days of Christian capturing the gold. The Essential Randy Orton Match Collection: The best and most significant Randy Orton matches Alright, let's try this again after that massive mistake in the last post. Orton became a focal point of Raw in 2003 through his involvement with Evolution, but it was the Mick Foley rivalry that really caused him to be looked at in a different light by the fanbase. He defended his Intercontinental Title against the legendary Mick Foley in a Hardcore Match. From 2010 through 2015, Orton and Sheamus had many matches and every single one was well-wrestled. Edge Vs. Chris Jericho Vs. Batista - New Year's Revolution 2005 (Rating: 9.13), Vs. Cactus Jack - Backlash 2004 (Rating: 9.35), Randy Orton's 14 World Title Reigns, Ranked From Worst To Best, one of the most prolific performers in the history of, Daniel Bryan defended the WWE Championship inside the Elimination Chamber, The Viper was determined to back up his victory over Michaels at, Both factions were a force to be reckoned with, one of the best WWE Title matches of the decade, 10 Things About Christian's WWE Career That Made No Sense, arguably the best main event that WWE staged in 2007, defended the Intercontinental Championship, Mick Foley's 5 Best Matches As A Heel (& 5 Best As A Babyface). In celebration of Randy Orton's achievement, here are five of his best matches from 2020 to the present day. Kingston halted Orton's quest of regaining the WWE Title with Bryan managing to escape with his title intact. Punk recalled Orton costing him the World Heavyweight Championship in 2008, cutting short Punk's inaugural World Championship reign after Randy Orton viciously punt kicked CM Punk in the skull. This is only his opinion, so some matches might be rated higher for you. However, we got arguably the most vicious incarnation of Orton for this feud. A clean win over a great wrestlerwho Orton showed he could more than hang tough against. It was, in John Cena's words, "THE. At the onset of 2008, there was no one hotter in wrestling than Jeff Hardy. This Steel Cage match, voted for by the fans at Taboo Tuesday, was one of the more shorter pay-per-view main events in history, at just 10 and a half minutes, but they certainly made the most of every second. Orton and his former Rated-RKO tag team partner Edge worked together to keep Michaels and Edge out of the picture. We get a few varieties of suplexes from both as Punk screamed at Orton to stay down before he wrapped Orton's neck in the chair and sends him into the ring post. Edge Vs. Shawn Michaels - Backlash 2007 (Rating: 9.02), Vs. It showed us some pairings that we didnt think we would see and added another layer to the match. [5.0] "A very "of the times" Triple H match here, with his slow and plodding style. Are you looking to re-watch some of his classic battles? After a stellar first year on the WWE roster, Randy Orton entered a feud with WWE legend Mick Foley towards the end of 2003 on WWE television. It was a story that no one could have told with the expertise that Orton and Cena did on that night. Tevon is a big fan of professional wrestling, who has followed wrestling since the Attitude Era. Collectively known as Rated-RKO, they became a brilliant makeshift tandem, won the tag titles and ruled Raw. The showcase of the immortals is WWE's biggest show of the year and has featured some of the biggest and best moments and matches in WWE history. Randy Orton Vs. A fitting way to 'end' their feud, Cena leaving with the title and the bragging rights. The Summer of 2004 was a milestone for Orton. Whether they were heated wars, technical clashes, or multi-man madness, Orton has a lot of great matches in his career and these are our picks for the 10 best. Extreme Rules 2011 was an excellent event overall and this set the tone for what was to come. Being billed as The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever, was a bit of an overshot. The action was so hot, particularly Batista and Orton's double reverse RKO/Batista Bomb through the announcer's table. Sometimes when it was expected, and, in some cases, "from outta nowhere". WrestleMania 37 is firmly on the horizon for every member of the WWE roster and every member of the WWE Universe. This included Randy Orton countering The Undertaker's chokeslam in mid-air to hit an RKO for an incredibly close near fall. This is not only Randy Orton's best match from 2002 to 2009, but probably the best match he has ever wrestled. Both men were on the rise at the time and fighting to determine who would reach the top of the card first in the form of the Intercontinental Championship. HHH was the one that took the title from him in 2008 before their series of grueling gimmick matches, so it was apparent Orton still wasn't being portrayed as an equal to Triple H until he beat him on back-to-back pay-per-views in 2009. Perhaps the most memorable spot came when Foley/Jack pulled out a bag that turned out to be thumbtacks. The action was crisp and their ability to have prolonged chain wrestling was awesome. Follow me on Twitter @joshuaplummeruk, 10 WWE Stars Who HATED Their Own WrestleMania Matches, CM Punk Turns Up Backstage At Another Major Wrestling Company. Orton busted Triple H open after a great spot where he delivers an RKO through a steel chair. Both had been in the company for a time but they still showed maturity beyond their years. Orton has been the number 2 guy in WWE for more than a decade now, only behind John Cena, and rightly so. It brought an edge to his character and the vicious nature of his attacks made him a must-see talent. Billed as the new golden child of The Authority, tensions quickly began to build between Rollins and existing Authority member Randy Orton. Neither man pulled any punches as they were both determined to be the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. His version of. 10 Randy Orton vs. Seth Rollins - WrestleMania 31 The feud between Randy Orton and Seth Rollins got going towards the end of 2014. It looked pretty sick. Over two decades later, he's evolved into one of the most well-rounded, world-renowned performers in WWE's history. The two men have engaged in battle all over the world, and in every match type imaginable. All jokes aside, Edge vs. Orton II wound. This was one of the most intense and physical matches in history. However, in the coming weeks Randy Orton played mind games with his former teammates. 0:39. vs Randy Orton - WWE SummerSlam 2016 EPIC Match ' F5 into RKO' MU. The Leader of the Cenation wasn't any ordinary rivalry. Several months prior to their match, CM Punk and The New Nexus cost Randy Orton the WWE Championship during The Viper's match against The Miz at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view. Reservations aside Orton put on one hell of a match for the Toronto crowd. He gained plenty in defeat that night and used the loss as fuel to come back better in time for their SummerSlam rematch, which was won by Orton. It's one of the best matches in the history of Backlash, and The Legend Killer announced himself as a major player as he outlasted Cactus Jack with a ferocious RKO on the exposed barbed wire bat. It proved to the world that Orton was more than just a handsome guy. In his near twenty year career, he has had no limit of classic matches. Please logout and login again. Throughout this contest, he was one step quicker than Orton. Every John Cena vs. Randy Orton match: WWE Playlist WWE 93.9M subscribers Subscribe 6.6M views 2 years ago John Cena and Randy Orton's rivalry is among the most storied in WWE history.. His work with the championship, after this win, proved his championship pedigree to the wrestling world. The match featured intense spots and high-flying action, but sadly RK-Bro lost . We get some great back and forth action, with a lot of chops and suplexes from Benoit and some great counters and top rope moves from Orton. Orton gave RVD a vicious post-match beating afterwards, to write Rob Van Dam off Television. The rivalry between Orton and The Undertaker came to a breaking point during their highly anticipated match on the grandest stage of them all at WrestleMania 21. Literately right from the get-go as Cena attempted a shoulder tackle and Orton ducked out of the way, he immediately pounced on him a seized control for quite a while. 13:33. ", For close to 12 months, Daniel Bryan had been involved in a fierce rivalry with Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and The Authority after they only considered Bryan to be a "B+ player.". The feud between Randy Orton and CM Punk reached a boiling point with a match between the two rivals taking place at WrestleMania XXVII. Randy Orton has been a mainstay in WWE for almost two decades; here are the 14-time World Champion's best matches on pay-per-view. Considering Triple H served as Orton's mentor in the embryonic stages of his main roster run, it shouldn't be surprising that the two would have a storied history dating back almost 20 years. It appears that Randy Orton and the Elimination Chamber kind of go hand in hand with one another. The Game squeaked out the win and the WWE Title. That led to Orton and Foley facing off one more time at Backlash in a hardcore-style, no-rules match. Orton played an integral part in this match as he eliminated Chris Jericho with his patented RKO. Randy Orton and Batista are both great performers, but it would have been very difficult for them to have the match we expect as a WrestleMania main event. Sve06474. Here we sit nearly two decades later and Orton is exactly that. Randy Orton Vs. John Cena - 60 Minute Iron Man (Bragging Rights 2009) WWE The Apex Predator vs. Because of how terrible Orton was to Foley, he brought out his violent alter ego, Cactus Jack. Be the first one to comment on this story. It was the perfect dynamic, even though their matches were more focused on the storytelling aspect of it and not as much on the in-ring action itself. The Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana exploded with cheers and YES! Despite their differences at that time, they went on to form a seemingly unstoppable unit two years later and wreaked havoc over Raw's tag team division. Winning the World Title in the summer of 2004 was huge but this was the match that truly made Randy Orton into a huge star. The action started off fast with some quick exchanges. When fans look at the best matches of Ric Flair's 2001 - 2008 return to WWE, everyone will talk about his last WWE match with Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 24 as being the best. Look back at Randy Orton's greatest moments at WrestleMania, from RKOs outta nowhere to championship wins.Stream WWE on Peacock https://pck.tv/3l4d8TP in the. To keep yourself relevant, as a performer, for 20 years is a testament to the talent that The Viper possesses. After Punk barely survived the count after an RKO, Orton charged for the Punt, but Punk counters to a modified GTS where he used the ring steps instead of his knee. There is naturally going to be downtime during the match and this can make it drag on. Triple H Vs. Chris Benoit Vs. The second-generation star debuted on the April 25, 2002 edition of SmackDown. The toughest test in Randy Orton's young career came at Backlash 2004 when he defended the Intercontinental Championship against Cactus Jack in a Hardcore match. It was a brutal encounter that showed the world what Orton was capable of. It was arguably the best RKO in history. Daniel Bryan belonged here and that is what made the match what it was. The best of these contests has to be their Iron Man Match at Bragging Rights. Randy Orton is one of the most prolific performers in the history of Survivor Series. RELATED:Randy Orton: 10 Best Feuds Of His Career, Ranked. The Legend Killer was a made man in WWE after his fantastic match against The Undertaker. The Viper was instrumental in legitimizing the Irishman as a main event player and it was always a treat whenever they locked up. WWE superstar Roman Reigns rendy Orton broke lesner under tekar match WWE fighting best champions#wwe #wwesmackdown #wwf #wwe2k22 #wwe row#world #world best. The Viper can deliver when expected, and sometimes, "from outta nowhere.". At the height of their bad blood, Cena was being booked as the ultimate babyface while The Legend Killer was firing on all cylinders as a hated heel. But the veteran Orton had him well scouted. From reliving his intense rivalry with Jeff Hardy to igniting a new one by eliminating AJ Styles, Orton looked great. The long build to their bout culminated in an exciting encounter at WrestleMania 31 (which famously featured one of the best RKOs ever) and a series of other entertaining outings in the months that followed for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Getting the win was a huge feather in the cap of Randy Orton and one that proved he is one of the best of all time. Survivor Series 2021 marked an impressive record for one of the longest-tenured WWE wrestlers. This continued The Undertaker's WrestleMania undefeated streak, extending "The Streak" to 13-0 on the grandest stage of them all. RELATED: Evolution's 5 Best (& 5 Worst) Rivals. The show opened up with Vince McMahon declaring Orton as the new WWE Champion, only for him to lose it less than 15 minutes later to Triple H. After The Game retained the title in the second match with Umaga, Vince ordered a rematch with Orton for the main event, in a Last Man Standing match. It eventually led to a hardcore showdown at Backlash. As the end came, Benoit went up top for a Diving Headbutt, but it didn't connect as Orton put his knees up. Lock, Daniel Bryan was incredibly able to submit Batista and become the WWE World Heavyweight Champion in the process. Even though Randy had only debuted on WWE TV 2 years earlier, he had quickly risen to one of WWE's best performers by the time of this match, thanks to some rewarding performances with Shawn Michaels, RVD, Edge and of course, Mick Foley. Free shipping for many products! Matching up at Wrestlemania was a huge opportunity for Orton and one that could cement his legacy. He also set the record for the youngest wrestler to win the world title, a record that still stands today A shame we cant talk about it anymore. It was a good match, with one main objective, to put Orton over, and Michaels did so in convincing fashion. Randy Orton: Profile & Match Listing - Internet Wrestling Database (IWD) Randy Orton Profile & Match Listing Facts & Stats PWI Ratings Opponents & Partners Win/Loss Record Star Ratings Win Types Relations PPV Randy Orton Promotion Search: All HWA NXT OVW WWE WWF The list of opponents that The Apex Predator has faced off against on the grandest stage of them all reads as a who's who of WWE Hall of Famers, legends and icons. Whether they were heated wars, technical clashes, or multi-man madness, Orton has a lot of great matches in his career and these are our picks for the 10 best. Eric Bischoff recruited Randy Orton, Christian, Chris Jericho, Mark Henry, and Scott Steiner to do his bidding. Randy Orton regularly attacked and degraded The Hardcore Legend, spitting in Foley's face and referring to him as a coward.