At the Extreme Rules PPV, Christian defeated Alberto Del Rio in a ladder match to become the World Heavyweight Champion for the first time. Five days later, on the 5/6 edition of Friday night Smackdown, General Manager Teddy Long allowed the fans to chose the opponent for Christian's first title defense. They overwhelmingly chose Randy Orton, and the match was made for later that night. Here's how the match ended.
[YOUTUBE]yRctjWFDgAI[/YOUTUBE]
In my opinion, this was one of the best Randy Orton matches he's ever had. Second, the RKO off Christian's signature springboard sunset flip was easily my second favorite RKO, behind the one he gave to Evan Bourne. 3 seconds after the RKO, Randy Orton was World Champion for the 8h time. With Over the Limit only two weeks away, why do you think they picked now to put the title on Orton?
Orton obviously is expected to be the focal point of the Smackdown brand, but as that focal point, with the title, will come a slew of challengers. Perhaps a heel Christian will swap the belt back and forth once with Orton. Sheamus was rebuilt well on Raw, and he and Orton have history feuding over the WWE title. Speaking of history, Cody Rhodes is an intriguing choice. The development of his character leads me to believe they have big plans for him, and he of course was apart of of Orton's stable Legacy. Wade Barrett, IC champion, also has history with Orton, having challenged him for the WWE Title three times in 2010. Hopefully he'll return to becoming a top heel as he was on Raw. Money in the Bank has also been a pitfall for Orton, who lost his last championship as a result of a cash-in. The PPV looms in 2 months. Orton's history with the Undertaker on Smackdown is well-known, and when he returns, he's generally around the title, which he and Orton have never feuded over before. Jinder Mahal is a dark horse, who debuted backstage 2 weeks ago on Smackdown, is someone WWE apparently has big plans for. So all of these options lead me to a few questions:
Who will end the 8th Championship reign of Randy Orton?
When will it take place?
How would you book it/how do you see it being booked?
I believe the title was put on Orton for two reasons. One, with the draft "taking effect" right after Extreme Rules, the WWE wanted to establish that Orton was the star of the show, and not Christian. As with John Cena when drafted to Raw, holding the belt when he arrived immediately made him the focal point of the show, which he's been ever since. I believe they're hoping for this same thing to happen with Orton.
The second reason was to turn Christian heel. Both his promo at the beginning of the show putting over the title, and his despondency upon losing it make me believe this. Christian's a fantastic heel, and could easily become so obsessed with gaining the title that he shows a willingness to do everything and anything to regain it. We've seen him lead factions before, so even that could be in the cards in his pursuit of regaining the title.
But Christian isn't my choice, Cody Rhodes is. They've spent alot of time investing in his character, giving him promo time week after week showing how dark his character is. With Orton's character being potrayed as "dark", I think they're going "darker" with Rhodes', and that's being done to elevate him. Counter in his experience with Orton, and he's the perfect foil. He was "under Randy's wing" for two years, and would seemingly know a counter for everything Orton can do.
However, I don't see this happening for awhile. Rhodes lost his feud with Rey Mysterio, and although he quickly compensated with a very good promo on Smackdown, he needs to win a few feuds definitively before he gets to the place where he's taken seriously as a World Title contender. I see Rhodes winning Money in the Bank on the Smackdown side, and a cash-in following a successful title defense at TLC.
Randy Orton is going to be the champion for a long time, in my opinion, and is going to lose the title in a way where it doesn't detract from him. So booking wise, the first step would be Cody winning MITB, and cashing in on a vulnerable Orton. Sound familar? That's exactly how Edge was elevated after Cena was drafted to Raw. Id have Rhodes then stay one step ahead of Orton, showing that as dark as Orton can be, Rhodes can be darker. They attempted this in a way in the Punk/Orton feud, but not consistently. Id have Rhodes, both in the build-up, and the aftermath, display an even darker side then Orton. With every Orton dominant win with the RKO, Id have Cody win with the mask. Id lean on Cody having learned under Orton to some extent as well, showing off a moveset similar to Orton's, and the ability to counter Orton at every turn. While I think it will take awhile, and Orton will be a dominant champion, I see Cody Rhodes as Randy Orton's foil in about 6-8 months.
[YOUTUBE]yRctjWFDgAI[/YOUTUBE]
In my opinion, this was one of the best Randy Orton matches he's ever had. Second, the RKO off Christian's signature springboard sunset flip was easily my second favorite RKO, behind the one he gave to Evan Bourne. 3 seconds after the RKO, Randy Orton was World Champion for the 8h time. With Over the Limit only two weeks away, why do you think they picked now to put the title on Orton?
Orton obviously is expected to be the focal point of the Smackdown brand, but as that focal point, with the title, will come a slew of challengers. Perhaps a heel Christian will swap the belt back and forth once with Orton. Sheamus was rebuilt well on Raw, and he and Orton have history feuding over the WWE title. Speaking of history, Cody Rhodes is an intriguing choice. The development of his character leads me to believe they have big plans for him, and he of course was apart of of Orton's stable Legacy. Wade Barrett, IC champion, also has history with Orton, having challenged him for the WWE Title three times in 2010. Hopefully he'll return to becoming a top heel as he was on Raw. Money in the Bank has also been a pitfall for Orton, who lost his last championship as a result of a cash-in. The PPV looms in 2 months. Orton's history with the Undertaker on Smackdown is well-known, and when he returns, he's generally around the title, which he and Orton have never feuded over before. Jinder Mahal is a dark horse, who debuted backstage 2 weeks ago on Smackdown, is someone WWE apparently has big plans for. So all of these options lead me to a few questions:
Who will end the 8th Championship reign of Randy Orton?
When will it take place?
How would you book it/how do you see it being booked?
I believe the title was put on Orton for two reasons. One, with the draft "taking effect" right after Extreme Rules, the WWE wanted to establish that Orton was the star of the show, and not Christian. As with John Cena when drafted to Raw, holding the belt when he arrived immediately made him the focal point of the show, which he's been ever since. I believe they're hoping for this same thing to happen with Orton.
The second reason was to turn Christian heel. Both his promo at the beginning of the show putting over the title, and his despondency upon losing it make me believe this. Christian's a fantastic heel, and could easily become so obsessed with gaining the title that he shows a willingness to do everything and anything to regain it. We've seen him lead factions before, so even that could be in the cards in his pursuit of regaining the title.
But Christian isn't my choice, Cody Rhodes is. They've spent alot of time investing in his character, giving him promo time week after week showing how dark his character is. With Orton's character being potrayed as "dark", I think they're going "darker" with Rhodes', and that's being done to elevate him. Counter in his experience with Orton, and he's the perfect foil. He was "under Randy's wing" for two years, and would seemingly know a counter for everything Orton can do.
However, I don't see this happening for awhile. Rhodes lost his feud with Rey Mysterio, and although he quickly compensated with a very good promo on Smackdown, he needs to win a few feuds definitively before he gets to the place where he's taken seriously as a World Title contender. I see Rhodes winning Money in the Bank on the Smackdown side, and a cash-in following a successful title defense at TLC.
Randy Orton is going to be the champion for a long time, in my opinion, and is going to lose the title in a way where it doesn't detract from him. So booking wise, the first step would be Cody winning MITB, and cashing in on a vulnerable Orton. Sound familar? That's exactly how Edge was elevated after Cena was drafted to Raw. Id have Rhodes then stay one step ahead of Orton, showing that as dark as Orton can be, Rhodes can be darker. They attempted this in a way in the Punk/Orton feud, but not consistently. Id have Rhodes, both in the build-up, and the aftermath, display an even darker side then Orton. With every Orton dominant win with the RKO, Id have Cody win with the mask. Id lean on Cody having learned under Orton to some extent as well, showing off a moveset similar to Orton's, and the ability to counter Orton at every turn. While I think it will take awhile, and Orton will be a dominant champion, I see Cody Rhodes as Randy Orton's foil in about 6-8 months.