Rated-RKO

On the October 2, 2006, episode of Raw, interference from the newly reformed D-Generation X (D-X) (Triple H and Shawn Michaels) tag team cost Edge his promoted "final chance" at the WWE Championship held by John Cena in a Steel Cage match.[3] This led to Edge approaching Randy Orton and asking him to join forces with him to "get rid of D-X". In his stand, Edge explained to Orton why he should join him as a tag team partner, as he cited Orton's lack of success after being kicked out of Evolution (Orton's former group), as well as the antics of D-X taking up television time that he felt should rightfully go to the younger stars.[4]

Edge and Orton, calling themselves "Rated-RKO",[5] immediately became very outspoken against D-X and began mocking them at every opportunity, including a sketch reminiscent of the ones D-X did about their opponents on a usual basis.[6] This led to a tag team match on November 5, 2006, at Cyber Sunday with the fans choosing the special guest referee. At Cyber Sunday, the duo defeated D-X, handing them their first team loss since they reunited when Eric Bischoff (the fan selected referee) allowed the use of a steel chair without calling for a disqualification.[7] Later in the night, Lita won the Women's Championship in the finals of a seven-woman tournament.[8] The following night on Raw, Edge and Orton faced Ric Flair and Roddy Piper for the World Tag Team Championship with Eric Bischoff as the guest referee. Rated-RKO lost the match, following help from D-X.[9]

Edge and Randy Orton as World Tag Team Champions

The following week on Raw however, they won the World Tag Team Championship from Flair and Piper in a rematch when they attacked Piper upon making his entrance, with Edge delivering a one man con-chair-to to Piper. As he was taken to the locker room by paramedics, Flair was forced to defend the titles by himself, and Rated-RKO won the match after Edge performed a spear on Flair.[10][11] The real reason for the sudden switch was later revealed to be Piper's diagnosis of lymphoma forcing him out of action.[12] On the November 20 episode of Raw, Rated-RKO, Big Show and Kenny lost to Triple H, Shawn Michaels, John Cena and Ric Flair.

At Survivor Series, Lita legitimately retired after losing the Women's Championship to Mickie James and left the group in the process.[13] Later that night, Team Rated-RKO, consisting of Rated-RKO along with Johnny Nitro, Mike Knox, and Gregory Helms, were swept by Team D-X (D-X, Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy, and CM Punk) with Orton being the last member eliminated in a ten-man elimination match.[14] The night after Survivor Series, Edge and Orton beat Ric Flair until he was bloody and continued to beat him after dragging him to the ring, knowing that D-X had already left the building.[15] In doing so, D-X claimed they had made their rivalry "personal".[16] On the December 4 episode of Raw, Rated-RKO and MNM defeated D-X and The Hardys. On the December 18 episode of Raw, Rated-RKO and Umaga battled to a no contest against John Cena and D-X after Cena and Umaga battled to the back. After the match, Edge and Orton attacked D-X giving Michaels a double RKO on a steel chair and two con-chair-tos to Triple H on the announce table. At New Year's Revolution in January 2007, Rated-RKO retained the World Tag Team Championship after fighting with D-X to a no-contest in a match that saw Triple H suffer a legitimate torn right quadriceps muscle.[17] The next night on Raw, Rated-RKO held a victory celebration and Shawn Michaels came out to the stage to confront Edge and Orton setting up a 2-on-1 handicap match the following week.

With Triple H out of action, Rated-RKO continued their on-screen rivalry with remaining D-X member Shawn Michaels. They were able to schedule a two-on-one handicap match against Michaels, during which he was able to beat the odds and defeat both men, leaving Orton lying in the ring after a one-man con-chair-to as Edge stood and watched at ringside.[18] On the January 22 episode of Raw, Edge defeated Michaels in a street fight with help from Orton. At the Royal Rumble, both members of Rated-RKO made it to the final four in the Royal Rumble match (they both were eliminated by Michaels) where The Undertaker won the match. The next night on Raw, the duo lost the World Tag Team Championship to the impromptu team of John Cena and Shawn Michaels.[19][20] On the February 15 episode of Raw, Rated-RKO, Mr. Kennedy and MVP lost to John Cena, Shawn Michaels, The Undertaker and Batista. Internal dissension continued as both men laid claim to being the number one contender to the WWE Championship,[21] and Edge walked out on Orton on the February 26 episode of Raw during a rematch for the World Tag Team Championship due to miscommunication.[22]

The relationship strained further after both men qualified for the WrestleMania 23 Money in the Bank ladder match, which would grant the winner a championship match. For weeks Edge influenced various authority figures into putting Orton in matches that would cause Orton not to succeed.[23][24][25]

On the April 16, 2007 episode of Raw, they reunited to take on John Cena in a handicap match but lost the match due to interference from Michaels.[26] At Backlash, the two were involved in a Fatal Four-Way match for the WWE Championship along with Michaels and Cena. Cena ended up retaining the title after pinning Orton.[27] On the April 30 episode of Raw, Edge and Orton met in a one-on-one match. Edge won the match by pinning Orton following a spear.[28] Edge then moved to the SmackDown! brand on the May 11 episode of SmackDown!, after cashing in the Money in the Bank briefcase (which he had won from Mr. Kennedy on the May 7 episode of Raw)[29] to win the World Heavyweight Championship from The Undertaker.[30][31] With this move, Rated-RKO was officially disbanded. During Raw's 15th Anniversary episode on December 10, Rated-RKO reunited for "one night only" to partake in a six-man tag team match, teaming up with Umaga to face the members of Orton's former group Evolution (Triple H, Batista, and Ric Flair). They lost the match after being disqualified.[32]

The team had a reunion on the April 21, 2008 episode of Raw, when Orton and Edge teamed with John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) and Chavo Guerrero to take on John Cena, Triple H, The Undertaker, and Kane in a winning effort.[33]

On the April 26, 2010, episode of Raw, Edge cost Orton (who had turned face after feuding with his former group The Legacy) a number-one contender's match by spearing him during a triple threat match against Batista and Sheamus.[34] Orton and Edge faced off at Over the Limit in May, though Orton dislocated his right shoulder and the match concluded with a double countout.[35]

On the January 28, 2011 episode of SmackDown, Edge and Orton reunited in a winning effort against Dolph Ziggler and The Miz.[36] On the February 18 episode of SmackDown, they reunited once again and teamed up with John Morrison, R-Truth, Rey Mysterio, and John Cena to defeat Kane, Ziggler, Sheamus, CM Punk, Drew McIntyre, and Wade Barrett in a 12-man tag team match.[37] On the April 11 episode of Raw, Edge announced his retirement due to a neck injury preventing him from being medically cleared.[38]

At the Royal Rumble pay-per-view on January 26, 2020, Edge returned from a neck injury to wrestle for the first time since 2011, reuniting with Orton during the match to eliminate O.C. members Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson.[39] Later in the match, after realizing that Orton was considering betraying him with an RKO, Edge eliminated Orton. The following night on Raw, Edge made his return to Raw the following night, stating that he had questioned what if he could wrestle again, and explained that after a second neck surgery and hard work, he was able to make his return at the Royal Rumble and would be able to retire on his own terms. Orton interrupted Edge's promo to praise him and suggest that they reform Rated-RKO for one last time, but then he turned on him when he immediately attacked Edge with an RKO thus turning heel once again in the process and viciously attacked Edge's neck with a vicious steel chair assault and placed head on him sandwiched with two steel chairs and a Con-Chair-To (a move they had used as a tag team) in which Edge had made famous in the past.[40][41][42] Edge's wife and fellow WWE Hall of Famer Beth Phoenix appeared on the March 2 episode of Raw to give a medical update on her husband. Orton interrupted and said that he attacked Edge so that he would remain at home and continue being a husband and a father to their children. He then blamed Phoenix for the attack, claiming that she allowed Edge to get back in the ring. Phoenix slapped Orton, who in turn performed an RKO on her.[43] Edge made his return from injury the following week on Montel Vontavious Porter's (MVP) talk show, the "VIP Lounge". Orton attempted to attack Edge, only for Edge to perform an RKO of his own on Orton. After Orton retreated, Edge performed the Conchairto on MVP twice as a warning to Orton.[44] Edge then challenged Orton to a Last Man Standing match at WrestleMania,[45] and Orton was accepted their challenge the following week.[46]

The two then faced-off at WrestleMania 36 in a Last Man Standing match, marking Edge's his first one-on-one match in nine years, as Edge waited for Orton to make his entrance, Orton – who had been disguised and dressed himself as a cameraman – attacked Edge from behind with an RKO. Orton then attacked Edge with a second RKO and a camera, but Edge rose to his feet. Edge and Orton then fought in the Performance Center's gym area, where Orton placed Edge's arms in a sling and proceeded to attack him. As Orton attempted to attack Edge with a weight, Edge performed a dropkick on him. The two then fought back to the ringside area, where Orton threw Edge into a barricade off a raised platform. After fighting all throughout the Performance Center, they eventually fought atop a production truck where Edge performed a spear on Orton and Orton performed an RKO on Edge. In the end, Edge applied a sleeper hold on Orton, who passed out on a steel chair just same thing did to Montel Vontavious Porter (MVP) nearly a month before. A conflicted Edge then performed the Con-Chair-To on Orton. Edge won the match after Orton was unable to answer the referee's 10 count.[47]

On the May 11 episode of Raw the night after Money in the Bank was held at the WWE Global Headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut, both Edge and Randy Orton made their first post-WrestleMania appearances. Orton said that at WrestleMania, the better man won, but questioned whether or not the better wrestler had actually won. Nothing that the Royal Rumble and Last Man Standing matches were non-traditional matches, Orton challenged Edge to a normal singles one–on–one match at Backlash.[48] Edge accepted their challenge on Raw the following week.[49]

Fightful Select originally reported that most of the matches were filmed in advance on June 7, hours before the Performance Center recruits were moved to Full Sail University to act as spectators for NXT TakeOver: In Your House that aired live that night. However, it was revealed by Wrestling Observer Newsletter Forum journalist Dave Meltzer the day after that only the Edge vs. Randy Orton match was pre-recorded. The recruits had a call-sheet at 8:30 am time in United States of America that had them working both events until midnight on June 8. The rest of the Backlash card aired live on June 14.[50]

The pre-recorded nature of the Edge vs. Randy Orton match allowed WWE to utilize "unique production techniques and camera angles ... to add to the experience." One production technique was amplified crowd noise. WWE also used the classic Madison Square Garden microphone that was used during WrestleMania I, with previous recordings of the late Howard Finkel doing introductions for both wrestlers. Referee Charles Robinson also wore a classic light blue ref shirt with black bowtie.[51] WWE then billed the match as "The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever."[52]

In the main event at Backlash, Edge faced Randy Orton in a match WWE billed as "The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever." Referee Charles Robinson laid out the rules of the match, including no hair pulling and no low blows. This was a back-and-forth match. During the match, Orton and Edge used their own finishing moves on each other (RKO and Spear, respectively) and paid homage to other WWE Hall of Famers and legends by using their finishing moves, such as Kurt Angle's Angle Slam, The Rock's Rock Bottom, Triple H's Pedigree, and Christian's Killswitch. In a desperate moment while the referee was not looking, Orton performed a low blow on Edge and then performed a Punt on him to win the match that lasted nearly 45 minutes. Following the match, medical personnel tended to Edge, who refused.[53]

On the next night of Raw after Backlash, Randy Orton declared he is now "the greatest wrestler ever" after winning "The Greatest Wrestling Match Ever" and then stated he did what he had to do to Edge. Christian, Edge's best friend then came out and asked him what kind of friend Orton is. Orton taunted Christian and stated to him that he always desired one more match and challenged him to an unsanctioned match later on the show. Knowing that he's not medically cleared to compete, Christian stated he will think about it, however, he was convinced by Big Show and former Evolution member Ric Flair to accept and fight for Edge, who legitimately tore his triceps at Backlash the night before. During the match, Flair, who was in Christian's corner, performed a low blow on Christian. Orton took advantage and performed a Punt kick on Christian's head to win the match. Following the match, paramedics tended to Christian and stretchered him out of the WWE Performance Center.[54]

On the January 30, 2021 episode of WWE Backstage, it was announced that both members of Rated-RKO would enter the 2021 Royal Rumble match as the first two entrants, with Orton entering at #1 and Edge entering at #2. In the main event, the men's Royal Rumble match was contested. Edge and Randy Orton started the match as the first and second entrant respectively. Edge and Orton fought at ringside before the match officially began. Orton along with Sami Zayn (#3 entrant) and Mustafa Ali (the fourth entrant) began to triple team Edge, however, Edge fought them off and perfomed a Spear on Orton, who rolled out of the ring under the bottom rope (Orton was not eliminated due to escaping under the bottom rope). Edge followed Orton soon after and the two continued to brawl at ringside.

In his first appearance since he left the WWE 11 years earlier in 2010, free agent Carlito made a surprise return at #8 entrant, however he was eliminated by Elias (#13 entrant). NXT's Damian Priest (#14 entrant) then eliminated Elias. At this point, it was shown that medical personnel tended to Orton who suffered an knee injury went to backstage. Edge then returned to the match and the ring soon after.

Due to Bad Bunny rejecting The Miz's offer in a backstage segment earlier, Miz (#15 entrant) proceeded to destroy Bad Bunny's DJ equipment on the stage area and then celebrated with his tag team partner, John Morrison (#11 entrant). An irate Bad Bunny then came out, distracting Miz and Morrison who were eliminated by Priest. Bad Bunny then performed a cross body on Miz and Morrison. Kane (#18 entrant) made his surprise return to eliminate both Ricochet and Dolph Ziggler only for Priest to eliminate him. Later in the match, and his first official match since Elimination Chamber, Christian (#24 entrant) made his surprise return to in-ring action. Seth Rollins (#29 entrant) and Braun Strowman (#30 entrant) then returned after their respective hiatus since Survivor Series two months earlier.

The final five competitors inside the ring were Edge, Christian, Rollins, Strowman and Orton (although Orton did not return at this point owing to a knee injury earlier). Rollins convinced Strowman to work together and eliminate Edge and Christian, however, Strowman turned on Rollins soon after. As Strowman tried to eliminate Edge, Christian assisted Edge and both would eliminate Strowman. Edge soon eliminated Rollins thereafter. In the dramatic climax and conclusion of the Royal Rumble match, Orton returned to the match from knee injury and attempted to eliminate Edge after hitting an RKO, however, Edge countered and eliminated Orton to win the Royal Rumble match for a second time of his career in the WWE and earning himself a world championship match opportunity at WrestleMania 37.

Edge won the men's Royal Rumble match for a second time, last winning it in 2010 (exactly on the same date on January 31), thus becoming the eighth two-time winner, it was also the third wrestler to win it as the number one entrant after Shawn Michaels in 1995 and the late Chris Benoit in 2004, and also the first wrestler to win the Royal Rumble match after being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.[55]