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Rated RKO became a pivotal chapter in the careers of Edge and Randy Orton. As two of WWE's most controversial and successful superstars, Edge and Orton joined forces to form one of the most formidable tag teams in wrestling history. From their epic battles against DX to their eventual betrayal, Rated RKO not only dominated the tag team division but also solidified Edge and Orton as top-tier main eventers. See how this alliance shaped their legacy and left an indelible mark on WWE history.
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#randyorton #edge #ratedrko #rko #wwe #wrestling #sportskeedawrestling
Play now to find out - https://www.sportskeeda.com/wwe/brainbuster-wwe-player-guessing-game
Rated RKO became a pivotal chapter in the careers of Edge and Randy Orton. As two of WWE's most controversial and successful superstars, Edge and Orton joined forces to form one of the most formidable tag teams in wrestling history. From their epic battles against DX to their eventual betrayal, Rated RKO not only dominated the tag team division but also solidified Edge and Orton as top-tier main eventers. See how this alliance shaped their legacy and left an indelible mark on WWE history.
You can also visit our site: https://www.sportskeeda.com/wwe
#randyorton #edge #ratedrko #rko #wwe #wrestling #sportskeedawrestling
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00:00Edge and Randy Orton were two of the rising stars in WWE in 2006.
00:07They had already won the WWE and World Championships and had established themselves as effective
00:11villains up until this point.
00:14Both were known for their cunning and ruthless personas, so WWE made the genius plan to pair
00:18them together, forming Rated RKO.
00:21Let's talk about one of the most memorable tag teams in WWE history and why it worked.
00:27Pairing
00:42Edge and Randy Orton was a brilliant move by WWE that capitalized on both wrestlers'
00:47ability to draw heat and deliver compelling performances as heels.
00:51Edge started his career in a tag team with Christian and came out as a lovable babyface
00:56when Christian turned on him.
00:58Everyone was banking on him to become a massive star in the company as a good guy, but he
01:02turned heel in 2004 for the first time in his singles career and his career took off
01:07after winning the first ever Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 21 in 2005.
01:13He had a very steamy relationship with Lita, which made him the most hated man in WWE.
01:19Remember that live sex celebration between the two?
01:22Yeah, we get why he was getting so much heat.
01:25He solidified his reputation as the Rated R Superstar, a moniker that defined his heel
01:29persona for the rest of his career.
01:32His opportunistic use of the Money in the Bank contract to win the WWE Championship
01:36from John Cena at New Year's Revolution in January 2006 marked a significant turning
01:42point in his career.
01:43He feuded with John Cena for the first half of 2006 and won the WWE Championship twice.
01:50Randy Orton on the other hand was a natural heel.
01:53He established himself as a young, cocky and arrogant member of Evolution and quickly
01:57learned the ropes of villainy from some of the greatest heels in wrestling history like
02:01Triple H and Ric Flair.
02:03He honed his in-ring skills and developed a ruthless persona.
02:07WWE always saw him as a future world champion and in 2004 he won the World Heavyweight Championship
02:13and turned face after Evolution turned on him, but the fans quickly rejected the idea
02:18of Randy being a good guy.
02:20Soon he was back to being a heel.
02:22He feuded with The Undertaker in 2005 and this is when he became one of the most despicable
02:26villains in wrestling.
02:29Both Orton and Edge were the two big baddies of WWE, so when they joined forces, it felt
02:34like a match made in heaven.
02:36It all started with DX cost Edge his title shot against Cena in a steel cage match.
02:41This led to Edge approaching Randy Orton and asking him to join him to get rid of DX as
02:45Orton had his own issues with Triple H and Shawn Michaels.
02:49Edge approached Orton proposing an alliance to take down DX and highlighted how Triple
02:53H had previously betrayed Orton during their time in Evolution.
02:57Soon they started teaming up together and Rated RKO was born.
03:01They immediately became very outspoken against DX.
03:05They hilariously mocked Triple H and Shawn Michaels in an episode of Raw where Edge played
03:09Hunter and Orton played Michaels.
03:12Watch that particular segment if you haven't, it's pure comedy gold.
03:16Their first major confrontation with DX occurred on Cyber Sunday 2006 where Rated RKO defeated
03:22them handing Hunter and Shawn their first team loss since they reunited.
03:27Following this, they set their sights on the tag team gold.
03:30They faced Ric Flair and Roddy Piper for the World Tag Team Championship, but failed to
03:35win the titles thanks to the interference from DX.
03:39But the following week on Raw, Edge and Orton seized an opportunity during their rematch
03:43for the World Tag Team Championships against Flair and Piper.
03:47They ambushed Piper as he made his entrance with Edge delivering a vicious con chair to
03:51incapacitating him.
03:53With Piper being taken to the locker room, Flair was left to defend the titles all alone.
03:58Despite his valiant effort, the Nature Boy succumbed to the numbers game and Rated RKO
04:03captured the championship after Edge delivered a spear to secure the victory.
04:08This was the right call, Orton and Edge were doing some of the best work of their careers
04:12and putting the titles on them made sense.
04:15This also elevated the tag team championships as two of the most popular wrestlers were
04:19holding them.
04:20However, Survivor Series was not their night.
04:23In a 10 man elimination match, Rated RKO teamed up with Johnny Nitro, Mike Knox and Gregory
04:29Helms but were completely overpowered by Team DX which included DX, Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy
04:36and CM Punk.
04:38Orton was the last member of his team to be eliminated, resulting in a clean sweep victory
04:42for Team DX.
04:44Although they lost, it was one of the most entertaining elimination matches in Survivor
04:48Series history.
04:49They took out their frustrations on the Nature Boy Ric Flair leaving him bloodied and battered
04:54and dragged his lifeless body to the ring.
04:57They also delivered con chair twos on him one by one.
05:01It was hard to watch, Edge and Orton were completely like animals at this point.
05:06They also attacked DX giving Michaels a double RKO on a steel chair and two con chair twos
05:11to Triple H on the announce table.
05:13This significant moment in the Rated RKO DX rivalry occurred at New Year's Revolution
05:182007 where Triple H suffered a legitimate quadricep injury during their match.
05:24Despite this setback for DX, Rated RKO continued their assault cementing their status as top
05:29heels in WWE.
05:31The injury to Triple H temporarily halted DX's momentum allowing Rated RKO to gain
05:37an upper hand in the feud.
05:39Following this, Edge and Randy started targeting Shawn Michaels and Edge even earned a victory
05:43over Michaels.
05:44At Royal Rumble 2007, both of them reached the final four in the match but were ultimately
05:50eliminated by Michaels.
05:52They worked together in the Royal Rumble, but during one moment of the match, it looked
05:56like Edge was going to spear Randy Orton.
05:59The Viper took notice and nothing happened but the slow descent between the two began.
06:04The duo lost the World Tag Team Championship to the tag team of John Cena and Shawn Michaels.
06:10Internal conflicts continued as both Edge and Orton asserted themselves as the rightful
06:14number one contender to the WWE Championship.
06:18This tension came to a head on the February 26th episode of Raw when Edge abandoned Orton
06:23during a rematch for the World Tag Team Championship due to a miscommunication between them.
06:29At WrestleMania 23, both of them competed in the Money in the Bank ladder match.
06:33For weeks leading up to Mania, Edge manipulated various authority figures into placing Orton
06:38in matches designed to ensure his failure.
06:41They both did not win as it was Mr. Kennedy who walked out with the briefcase.
06:46Edge and Randy Orton briefly took on John Cena in a handicap match, however they lost
06:50due to interference from Shawn Michaels.
06:53This set the stage for a fatal four-way match at Backlash where Edge, Orton, Michaels and
06:58Cena competed for the WWE Championship.
07:02Cena successfully retained his title by pinning Orton.
07:06Following this, Edge and Orton squared off in a one-on-one match where the Rated-R Superstar
07:10emerged victorious pinning Orton after delivering a spear.
07:15Soon they parted ways.
07:17Their time together was relatively short but it was impactful.
07:21Both were already in prominent positions, but their run as Rated-R KO solidified their
07:25status as top tier talent.
07:28Following this, Edge beat Mr. Kennedy and took his Money in the Bank contract only to
07:32cash in on The Undertaker to win the World Heavyweight Championship on Smackdown.
07:38In the meantime, Randy started a feud with John Cena and eventually won the WWE Championship
07:43by injuring him.
07:45He also attacked Cena's father.
07:47Both of them were champions on two different brands, however they were so good together
07:51that WWE kept reuniting them on different occasions.
07:55During Raw's 15th anniversary episode on December 10th, Rated-R KO reunited and joined
08:01forces with Umaga in a six-man tag team match against Evolution members Triple H, Batista
08:07and Ric Flair.
08:09Before that match, Orton stated, quote,
08:11If I'm going to be remembered for being a member of a group, a faction, a team, I
08:16want it to be because I was a member of Rated-R KO, end quote.
08:20That match ended in a loss for Rated-R KO and Umaga due to disqualification.
08:25The team had another reunion on April 21st, 2008 on an episode of Raw.
08:31This time Orton and Edge teamed up with JBL and Chavo Guerrero Jr to face John Cena, Triple
08:37H, The Undertaker and Kane.
08:40This reunion proved successful as Orton and Edge's team won the match.
08:44Edge and Randy feuded against each other in 2010 where their past as Rated-R KO was mentioned.
08:51This was it for the group as both of them went their separate ways.
08:54In 2011, Edge retired from WWE while Randy Orton went on to win the WWE Championship
09:01a few more times.
09:03The next story in Rated-R KO happened in 2020 when Edge made a shocking return to WWE at
09:08the 2020 Royal Rumble.
09:10This was his first in-ring appearance since retiring in 2011 due to a career-ending neck
09:16injury.
09:17Randy Orton was also in the match and they briefly worked together before he eliminated
09:20Orton from the match.
09:22The night after the Royal Rumble on the January 27th episode of Raw, Edge addressed the WWE
09:28Universe expressing his gratitude for the opportunity to return in the ring.
09:32During his speech, Randy Orton interrupted welcoming Edge back and suggesting a Rated-R
09:37KO reunion.
09:39The crowd erupted at the thought of the iconic tag team reforming, however Orton's intentions
09:44quickly turned sinister.
09:46He suddenly attacked Edge delivering a brutal RKO then viciously assaulting him with a steel
09:51chair targeting his surgically repaired neck.
09:54Orton's actions shocked and outraged the WWE Universe.
09:58Orton justified his actions by claiming he was trying to protect Edge from further injury,
10:03but his violent methods told a different story.
10:06The ensuing rivalry saw Orton and Edge engage in intense promos and matches including a
10:11last man standing match at Wrestlemania 36 where Edge emerged victorious in a grueling
10:17encounter.
10:18Whether they fought side by side or against each other, Edge and Randy Orton had incredible
10:23chemistry thanks to their time as Rated-R KO.
10:26The memories of their brutal tactics, charismatic promos and unforgettable matches continue
10:31to resonate with fans.
10:33The legacy of Rated-R KO remains a testament to the magic that happens when two wrestling
10:38icons unite.
10:40What do you think about Rated-R KO?