Biography
Few wrestlers have stayed at the top of WWE for as long as Randy Orton. A 14-time world champion inside the company, he can end a match in a split second with the RKO, and more than two decades after his debut he is still a headline act. In autumn 2026 the Viper is back in villain mode on SmackDown, tormenting his one-time protégé Cody Rhodes.
Wrestling is the family trade. His grandfather Bob Orton, father Bob Orton Jr. and uncle Barry Orton all worked the business, and Randy learned the basics in the Mid-Missouri scene before signing with the WWF in 2000. He polished his game in Ohio Valley Wrestling, winning the OVW Hardcore title twice, and reached the main roster in 2002, where he was soon slotted into Evolution beside Triple H, Ric Flair and Batista. Playing the arrogant 'Legend Killer', he picked fights with veterans, and at SummerSlam 2004 he won the World Heavyweight Championship aged just 24, still the youngest world champion in WWE history. Evolution turned on him almost immediately, pushing him into singles life.
What followed was a remarkable run. He feuded with The Undertaker, took the World Tag Team titles with Edge as Rated-RKO and claimed his first WWE Championship in 2007. Around then the character grew colder and more unpredictable, and 'The Viper' was born. He led The Legacy with Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase, won the 2009 Royal Rumble and waged war with Triple H. In 2013 he cashed in Money in the Bank on Daniel Bryan at SummerSlam, became the face of The Authority and beat John Cena at TLC to unify the two world titles, becoming the last World Heavyweight Champion of that era and the first WWE World Heavyweight Champion.
The hits kept coming: a spell in The Wyatt Family, a second Royal Rumble win and a ninth WWE title at WrestleMania 33 in 2017, then the United States title to complete the Grand Slam. A revived Legend Killer feuded with Edge in 2020 and won a tenth WWE Championship that autumn, before an unlikely double act with Riddle, RK-Bro, delivered two Raw Tag Team title reigns. A serious back injury then kept him away for around 18 months.
He returned at Survivor Series: WarGames in November 2023 and spent 2024 on SmackDown, reaching the King of the Ring final, where he lost a disputed decision to Gunther, before losing the rematch for the World Heavyweight title at Bash in Berlin. In 2025 he beat Joe Hendry at WrestleMania 41, had one last singles match with Cena at Backlash and reached a second straight King of the Ring final.
2026 has been a heel revival. After finishing third in the Royal Rumble he won the Elimination Chamber, then turned on Rhodes in March and fell short in their title match at WrestleMania 42. He resurfaced at SummerSlam to cost Rhodes against CM Punk, beat him on 6 September, and through October has kept interfering in his old pupil's business as the feud rolls on.
