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?
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