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Team Rated-RKO is a professional wrestling tag team, currently heels on the RAW brand of World Wrestling Entertainment where they are the current World Tag Team Champions. The team consists of Edge and Randy Orton, who were formerly joined by valet Lita until her retirement.

The team's name is a portmanteau of Edge's Rated-R Superstar nickname and Randy Orton's RKO, both his initials and the name of his finishing maneuver.

History

One week after D-Generation X (DX) (Shawn Michaels and Triple H) interfered in the Steel Cage match between Edge and John Cena for Cena's WWE Championship, Orton joined forces with Edge in an attempt to "get rid" of DX. Edge cited Orton's lack of success after being kicked out of Evolution by Triple H, which he claimed stalled Orton's career, as well as the antics of DX taking up TV time that he felt should rightfully go to the younger stars as reasons Orton should join him, with Orton agreeing.

Edge and Orton immediately became very outspoken about DX, including mocking them in a sketch reminiscent of the ones DX would do about their opponents. Eventually Orton traded wins with Triple H in singles matches on episodes of RAW, leading to a tag team match at Cyber Sunday with the fans choosing the special guest referee. At Cyber Sunday, the duo gave DX their first team loss since reuniting when Eric Bischoff (the fan selected referee) allowed the use of a steel chair without calling for a disqualification. Earlier in the same show Lita won the Women's Championship in the finals of a seven woman tournament.

On the next night's RAW, Edge & Orton faced Ric Flair and "Rowdy" Roddy Piper for their recently won Tag Team titles, but were unsuccessful despite unfair officiating from Eric Bischoff. The next week, however, Rated-RKO managed to capture the title in a rematch when they attacked Piper upon making his entrance, with Edge going so far as to deliver 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 hit Flair with a spear. The real reason for the sudden switch was later revealed to be Pipers diagnosis of Lymphoma forcing him out of action.

At Survivor Series, Lita (legitly) retired from WWE after losing her Women's Championship to Mickie James. Later in the night Team Rated-RKO -- consisting of Rated-RKO along with Johnny Nitro, Mike Knox and Gregory Helms -- were swept by Team DX -- DX with Jeff Hardy, Matt Hardy and CM Punk -- with Orton being the last member eliminated. On a subsequent episode of RAW Edge and Orton displayed a bloody Ric Flair, continuing to beat on him, after his DX buddies had left the arena. In doing so DX claimed he had made their rivalry "personal".

After the breakup of The Spirit Squad former member Kenny began expressing interest in teaming up with Rated-RKO, though he was rebuffed by Edge and Orton and told he needed to prove himself first.

Wrestling facts

• Finishing and signature maneuvers

• Con-chair-to - Edge and Orton
• RKO (Jumping cutter) - Orton
• Edgecution (Lifting DDT) - Edge
• Spear - Edge

• Theme music and ring entrance

As a group, Rated-RKO use a combination of both Edge and Orton's separate theme songs (Metalingus by Alter Bridge, and Burn in My Light by Mercy Drive respectively). It begins with Metalingus before switching to Burn in My Light and alternes between the two as the wrestlers enter. Edge's "Titantron" video and smoke effects accompany the pair, with Orton's tunnel video and spark pyrotechnics. It's worth noting that both wrestlers use their normal entrances when not competing together.

Championships and accomplishments

• World Wrestling Entertainment

• World Tag Team Championship (Edge and Orton, 1 time together, Current)
• WWE Women's Championship (Lita, 1 time)

Trivia

• Their first tag team title reign marks Randy Orton's first tag title reign while bringing Edge a total of eleven world tag title reigns (12 tag title reigns altogether with the WWE tag title reign), the most reigns of any individual (see his article for more information).
• Their tag title reign also makes Orton the nineteenth WWE Triple Crown Champion (having won a world title, second-tier title, and a tag team title). Edge has also accomplished this feat.
• Before officially teaming up as "Rated-RKO", Edge and Orton had previously worked as a tag team several times in 2006. They first teamed up at the final ECW show before Vengeance to face Kurt Angle and then WWE and ECW Champion Rob Van Dam but they lost. They also worked together in the last two RAW shows before Unforgiven in six man tag matches, with Lita and Johnny Nitro as their third partner.
• Before forming Rated-RKO, both Edge and Orton have stated in separate interviews on Byte This! that their match as opponents at Vengeance 2004 for the Intercontinental Championship is one of their favorites in recent memory. They actually had a short feud between May and June of that year.

External links

• Edge at WWE.com
• Randy Orton at WWE.com
• Rated-RKO at OWW

• World Wrestling Entertainment teams and stables