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Throughout the illustrious history of Professional Wrestling, there have been a few limited finishing maneuvers which have certainly made a huge impact on the entire Pro Wrestling industry, in overall.
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However, over the years, there have been very few moves like The RKO, which has eventually gone on to cement its place as one of the all-time greatest wrestling finishers of all time.
Randy Orton's ability to pull-off the RKO during unexpected moments and his capability of striking quick from unexpected situations is what truly makes this move as one of the most genuinely feared and dangerous moves of all time. And time and time out, several notable superstars and WWE legends have all had a taste of the RKO.
Therefore, with that being said, here are the 10 best RKOs delivered by Randy Orton in the WWE:
#10 Rey Mysterio- SmackDown, 2005
Throughout the years, both Randy Orton and Rey Mysterio have squared-off against each other on several occasions in the WWE ring and have eventually gone on to cement their place as two of WWE's biggest veterans.
Back in the day, Orton and Mysterio sure did enjoy a pretty intense rivalry with each other on SmackDown and during one of their one-on-one collisions in 2005, 'The Viper' was seen hitting one of the most craziest RKOs of all time on the masked luchador.
With his legendary father Bob Orton standing by at ringside, Orton first placed Mysterio on the top rope and then executed a perfect running RKO on 'The Master of the 619' and eventually landed right at the middle of the ring.
#9 Christian- SummerSlam, 2011
Randy Orton and Christian's feud from 2011 was arguably the best feud of the year for WWE, that particular year. Orton and Christian traded some spectacular wins against each other, with both men eventually facing-off against each other in a No Holds Barred match at The Biggest Event of The Summer.
As expected, both Orton and Christian dished out some brutal punishment against each other, with the winner eventually getting the opportunity to walk out with the WWE World Heavyweight Title around their waist. Midway through the match, Christian was seemingly in control of the bout, until he made the fatal mistake of climbing up to the top rope with looking to cause further damage to Orton.
However, as soon as 'Captain Charisma' leaped-off the top rope, he was caught with an RKO from Orton in mid-air and was driven straight into the steel steps.
#8 Carlito- Unforgiven, 2006
Back during the Ruthless Aggression era, Randy Orton was in full jerk heel mode during his intense feud against former WWE US Champion Carlito and in the build-up to their match at Unforgiven, the former Legend Killer would absolutely destroy both Carlito and Trish Stratus with his insults.
A determined Carlito was not only out to teach Orton a lesson, but was also fighting for the honor of the retiring Trish Stratus, however, much to Carlito's disappointment, things exactly didn't go the way his way.
With Orton down in the middle of the ring, Carlito attempted a Springboard Clothesline from the corner, only for the former to get up in time and catch 'Mr. Caribean Cool' with a devastating RKO in mid-air.
#7 Cactus Jack- Backlash- 2004
This by far remains as the most gruesome match of Randy Orton's Pro Wrestling careers and as many would argue, this could very well be the best of Orton's WWE career as well. Stepping into the ring with the legendary Mick Foley- then known as Cactus Jack- Randy Orton definitely had all the odds stacked against him, due to the nature of this gruesome No Holds Barred match.
Orton and Cactus Jack went into a brutal back-and-forth war, with both men brutally beating the leaving hell out of each other will every sort of weapon they could potentially find around themselves.
With thumbtacks, tables, and barbed wire bats inside the ring, Orton did all he possibly could in order to hold on to the WWE Intercontinental Title and at one point of the match, 'The Apex Predator' hit one of the most brutal RKO's of all time, as Orton nailed Cactus Jack on top of barbed wire bat.
#6 The Undertaker- WrestleMania 21
Throughout the entirety of his WWE career, The Undertaker has pretty much done everything and has achieved numerous accomplishments, however, the standout accomplishment from The Deadman's list is definitely his previously undefeated WrestleMania streak.
Heading into WrestleMania 21, The Undertaker had already cemented his place as one of WWE's biggest legends and what better way to put his streak on the line and eventually go head-to-head against The Legend Killer, Randy Orton. Orton and Undertaker's rivalry saw two generations go toe-to-toe with each other on the biggest stage of them all.
A young Randy Orton was determined to end The Undertaker's legacy and eventually kick-start his own and at one point of the match, it did seem like the former was indeed on the verge of scoring the biggest win of his career. Undertaker looked to put away Orton with the Chokeslam, only for Orton to twist his body in mid-air and eventually catch The Phenom with the RKO as he came a split second away from scoring the biggest win of his career.
#5 John Cena- Saturday Night's Main Event, 2007
Randy Orton and John Cena's rivalry might just go down as one of the most iconic feuds of all time in WWE history. With Cena and Orton being the focal point of every single WWE pay-per-view and main events around 2007-2009, the two men were definitely in contention of leaving the WWE Universe in awe everytime they shared the ring with each other.
Throughout their historic singles matches, both Orton and Cena seemingly came up with something innovative on every single occasion almost and during an episode of Saturday Night's Main Event, it was Randy Orton who successfully pulled-off one of the most vicious RKOs of all-time.
Following John Cena's win over Carlito, Orton made his way out to the ring and brutally assaulted The Leader of The Cenation and the beatdown ultimately ended with The Apex Predator hitting an RKO on top of a steel chair on Cena.
#4 Hulk Hogan- Saturday Night's Main Event, 2006
Randy Orton and Hulk Hogan's rivalry from 2006 was another classic feud between two of the very best from two generations. Prior to Orton and Hogan's clash at SummerSlam, 2006, both men went back-and-forth against each other on several occasions on episodes of Raw and even on Saturday Night's Main Event.
Whereas, their clash at SummerSlam, 2006 wasn't exactly the instant classic everyone was hoping for, but the build-up to the match was definitely very intense and full of surprises and Randy Orton definitely does deserve a lot of credit for the most part of it.
On an episode of Main Event back in 2006, Orton was involved in a backstage segment with The Hulkster's daughter Brooke Hogan, who played a pivotal role in this entire storyline. Orton, who was in conversation with Brooke, was shortly afterward interrupted by Hulk Hogan forcing Orton to retrieve from the parking lot.
However, what Hogan did not realize was the fact that the former Legend Killer was capable enough of striking out of nowhere and that's what exactly happened, when Orton just flew in on The Hulkster and caught him with the RKO, with Hogan eventually landing on the back of his car.
#3 CM Punk- WrestleMania 23
Ladder Matches in the WWE usually spell crazy spots and high-risk maneuvers and one of the rather more insane Money in the Bank spots was pulled-off at WrestleMania 23 by 'The Viper' Randy Orton.
With the Money in the Bank briefcase hanging on top, Orton was on an absolute roll, destroying every single one of his opponents, by dishing out one RKO after the another. However, it was eventually CM Punk who became the victim of one of the most iconic RKOs' of all time.
With two ladders being set up in the middle of the ring, Punk made his way to the top in order to unhook the MITB briefcase, but it was Orton who put a stop to the Second City Saint and he did so in spectacular fashion. Orton got hold of Punk at top of the two ladders and then delivered a monstrous RKO from a few feet above the ring.
#2 Evan Bourne- Raw, 2010
In the build-up to the 2010 Money in the Bank ladder match, former Rated-RKO partners Randy Orton and Edge faced-off against each other on Raw and as expected, all hell broke loose by the end of the match.
Following Edge's win over Orton, Chris Jericho made his way out to the ring and hit the former with a Codebreaker, only to be put out of harm's way by an RKO from 'The Viper'. This eventually allowed Evan Bourne to make his way out to the ring, as he headed down the ramp in order to put a battered Orton out of contention.
With Orton down in the ring, Bourne climbed up to the top rope and looked to execute the breathtaking Air Bourne move, however, as soon as Bourne took off from the top rope, Orton got up within the blink of an eye and caught the former with an RKO in mid-air. Definitely remains as one the most iconic RKOs' of all time.
#1 Seth Rollins- WrestleMania 31
Since aligning himself with The Authority, Seth Rollins was pretty much handed everything to him starting from the Money in the Bank briefcase to the WWE World Title and this eventually ignited issues between 'The Architect' and the Authority's former golden boy Randy Orton.
Following Orton's return from injury, after being assaulted by Rollins and The Authority, it seemed like things were pretty okay within the group, but it was just a matter of time before Orton eventually snapped and put a hectic beatdown on Rollins.
In the build-up to their showdown at 'Mania 31, Orton and Rollins initially hit each other with their finishing moves, only for both men to kick-out at two. A frustrated Seth Rollins, however, then attempted a second Curb Stomp, with Orton in a perfect place right in the middle of the ring. Rollins came in charging and placed his foot on Orton's back, only for the latter to pop up and eventually send Rollins high in the air allowing Orton to literally catch Seth in mid-air
