Randy Orton's arrival in WWE was seemingly inevitable. After all, he was practically raised in the business that both his father and grandfather excelled in. It's no wonder he has quickly ascended to the higher echelons of the RAW roster and eventually became the youngest World Heavyweight Champion ever. Part of that success can be attributed to Ortons use of his finisher, the RKO. Orton has shown the ability to hit the lightning-quick, high-impact move out of nowhere and at virtually any time confounding opponents who are beaten before they even realize what has happened.
In April 2002, he began his WWE career with an appearance on SmackDown! A few months into his rookie run, an unfortunate injury put him out of action. Refusing to sit idly on the sidelines, Orton continued making appearances on WWE television, going as far as attacking targeted Superstars with his crutches and giving fans constant updates on his medical progress -- whether they wanted them or not.
Upon returning to active competition in May 2003, Orton was instantly recruited by Triple H to join with the legendary Nature Boy Ric Flair, and the Animal Batista as part of Evolution. Orton captured his first major championship on Dec. 14, 2003, defeating Rob Van Dam for the Intercontinental Championship at Armageddon. He held on to the championship for an impressive seven months.
Priding himself as The Legend Killer, Orton has finished off the likes of Hall of Famer Sgt. Slaughter, Jake the Snake Roberts and hardcore legend Mick Foley. Orton also displays no fear and no respect when confronting legends such as Harley Race, asserting his claim as the true legend of sports-entertainment.
At WrestleMania XX, Orton teamed with Flair and Batista to take on the reunited Rock n Sock Connection (The Rock and Mick Foley). Orton delivered the RKO to Foley, enabling his team to emerge victorious. At the Backlash pay-per-view, Orton added Cactus Jack to his list of killed, pinning Mick Foley in a bloody and memorable Hardcore Rules Match.
But Ortons meteoric rise to WWE stardom came too fast for some. When Randy capitalized on an opportunity at SummerSlam 2004 defeating Chris Benoit for the World Heavyweight Championship it didnt sit well with Evolutions leader. The very next night, Triple H arranged a vicious beating for his former stablemate and banished him from Evolution. Independence, however, only made Orton stronger and bolder. When Triple H threatened Orton and demanded that he hand over the World Heavyweight Championship, Orton just spit in his face. He then went on to kill one of the greatest legends of them all: 16-time world champion (and his former mentor) Ric Flair in a fan-selected Steel Cage Match at Taboo Tuesday.
Orton set his sights on another legend at WrestleMania 21, challenging Undertaker and his then-12-0 WrestleMania record. In a match that brought the crowd to its collective feet, Randy came within a heartbeat of defeating the Deadman. According to him, only a shoulder injury suffered during the match prevented him from earning the coveted victory.
The injury worsened when Batista rammed Ortons shoulder into the ring post the next night on RAW. The damage done necessitated immediate surgery, which was performed in mid-April. Orton is expected to miss 3-4 months before he can return to the ring. But Orton has come back from injury before, and overlooking the third-generation Superstar could be a fatal error for anyone on RAW.
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