texts: Raw, after <mask> successfully defended the title against Benoit in a rematch, Evolution threw <mask> a mock celebration only to reveal that they were not pleased with his new victory. While Batista had <mask> propped on his shoulders in elation, Triple H gave him a pleased thumbs-up and then abruptly changed it to a thumbs-down, which was followed by Batista dropping <mask> to the mat. Triple H, Flair and Batista attacked <mask> in the ring, resulting in <mask> being kicked out of Evolution. The following week, he called out <mask> and ordered him to hand over the championship, but he refused, spitting in Triple H's face and hitting him with the title belt. <mask>'s breakup with Evolution led to him turning face when he continued to feud with his former stablemates. A month later, <mask> lost the World Heavyweight Championship to Triple H at Unforgiven after interference from Flair, Batista, and Jonathan Coachman.Seeking revenge, <mask> lashed out at his former Evolution members, catching them by surprise during a show by giving them a large cake as a make-up gift, which he came out of nowhere to beat and humiliate the group. At Taboo Tuesday, <mask> defeated Ric Flair in a steel cage match. After this, <mask> experienced another push, becoming general manager of the Raw brand for a week following a match stipulation at Survivor Series where he picked up the win for his team by last eliminating Triple H in a four-on-four Survivor Series elimination match. He continued to feud with Triple H, using his authority to place his opponents at severe disadvantages during title defenses. In

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


type: original

texts:
 January 2005 at New Year's Revolution, <mask> participated in an Elimination Chamber match for the vacant World Heavyweight Championship, where he was the last man eliminated by Triple H after interference from Ric Flair and Batista. On the January 10 episode of Raw, <mask> defeated Batista to earn a match against Triple H at the Royal Rumble for the World Heavyweight title, which he lost. Feud with The Undertaker (2005–2006)
<mask> began an on-screen relationship with Stacy Keibler and briefly feuded with Christian in February 2005.On the February 28 Raw, Superstar Billy Graham made an appearance, in which he advised <mask> to "go where no wrestler [had] gone before". <mask> then produced a copy of SmackDown! magazine, which featured The Undertaker on the cover. Heeding Graham's advice, <mask> said he would set himself apart from all other wrestlers by ending The Undertaker's undefeated streak at WrestleMania. Throughout March 2005, <mask> taunted The Undertaker, claiming he was unafraid of him. On the March 21 Raw, <mask> turned heel once again after he delivered an RKO to his unsuspecting on-screen girlfriend, Stacy Keibler, knocking her unconscious. During <mask>'s promos, he ran for cover whenever signs of The Undertaker's appearance (lightning, darkness, or smoke) occurred.When wrestler Jake Roberts advised <mask> not to underestimate The Undertaker, <mask> performed an RKO on Roberts as well. In the weeks leading up to WrestleMania, <mask> became more defiant and unafraid of The Undertaker, taunting and assaulting him in the ring following distractions from his father, "Cowboy"


texts: <mask>. At WrestleMania 21, <mask> lost the heavily hyped match. The next night on Raw, <mask> faced Batista, who had become World Heavyweight Champion. <mask> stated on-screen that his match with The Undertaker had aggravated a shoulder injury. While sidelined, <mask> appeared on Raw and claimed that he was ineligible for the WWE Draft Lottery due to his injury. He was informed by WWE Chairman Vince McMahon that he was indeed a candidate for the draft, leaving a possibility of a return to SmackDown!<mask> returned to WWE programming for SmackDown! on June 16, announcing that he was the second pick in the 2005 draft lottery. He rekindled his feud with The Undertaker, defeating him at SummerSlam following a distraction from his father. Two months later at No Mercy, <mask> and his father <mask> defeated The Undertaker in a handicap casket match and after the match, <mask> and his father Bob locked the Undertaker in the casket and, in a move similar to Kane at the 1998 Royal Rumble, chopped holes in the top of the casket with an axe, poured gasoline over the casket and set it ablaze, kayfabe killing The Undertaker. The following month, <mask> replaced the late Eddie Guerrero as a participant in the annual elimination match of Team SmackDown! against Team Raw at Survivor Series, after having lost a qualifying match to Rey Mysterio. In the match, <mask> was the last remaining wrestler in the match for the third straight year, as he pinned Shawn Michaels to get the victory for Team SmackDown!.After the match, The Undertaker returned by emerging from a flaming casket and attacked the

masks:
Bob Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Bob Orton
Randy Orton
Orton
Orton


texts:
 SmackDown! superstars who came to the ring to celebrate Team SmackDown! 's victory. On the SmackDown! episode after Survivor Series, The Undertaker interfered in a match between Rey Mysterio and Big Show after Kane interfered. <mask> RKO'd the Undertaker, he then struck the Undertaker with a tire iron and set him on the back of the lowrider Mysterio had driven to the ring, he then reversed the lowrider into the SmackDown! set, causing an explosion.The feud was finally settled with a Hell in a Cell match at Armageddon. On the December 16 episode of SmackDown!, The Undertaker entered the ring to deliver a promo while one of his druids appeared to be standing in the ring. The Undertaker sustained an RKO from <mask> in a surprise attack. The druid revealed himself to be <mask>'s father, who gave <mask> The Undertaker's urn, which according to the storyline allowed whomever held it to control The Undertaker. The Undertaker, however, beat <mask> in the Hell in a Cell match at Armageddon, ending their nine-month-long feud. Rated-RKO (2006–2007)

After Armageddon, <mask> entered the 2006 Royal Rumble match as the thirtieth and final wrestler, but he was eliminated by the eventual winner of the match Rey Mysterio, who earned a world championship at WrestleMania 22. <mask> challenged him to a match for his title shot at No Way Out.In the weeks preceding No Way Out, <mask> made controversial remarks about Eddie Guerrero, Mysterio's friend who had died a few months previously, in an attempt to gain villain heat. Many fans felt the comments were highly distasteful so soon after Guerrero's death in

masks:
Randy Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton


texts: November 2005. <mask> won at No Way Out, earning Mysterio's title shot for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 22. SmackDown! General Manager Theodore Long re-added Mysterio to the WrestleMania 22 title match, making it a triple threat match between <mask>, Mysterio and then-champion Kurt Angle. On April 2 at WrestleMania, however, <mask> lost after he was pinned by Mysterio. On the following episode of SmackDown!, <mask> challenged Mysterio for the World Heavyweight Championship, but failed to win the title.On April 4, <mask> was suspended for sixty days for "unprofessional conduct". In an interview, <mask> stated, "my conduct was unbecoming of a champion, which is what I will be again when I return". To cover for the suspension, a scripted injury was devised, where Kurt Angle broke <mask>'s ankle during a King of the Ring quarterfinal match. <mask> returned from his suspension in June to the Raw brand, where he entered a rivalry with Angle, culminating in matches at ECW One Night Stand (which he lost) and Vengeance (which he won) before engaging in a storyline feud with Hulk Hogan. <mask> began cutting promos insulting the aging Hogan and flirted with Hogan's then-eighteen-year-old daughter Brooke. At SummerSlam, the two met in a "Legend vs. Legend Killer" match, which Hogan won. He later defeated Carlito, at Unforgiven the following month.After the newly reformed D-Generation X (D-X) (Triple H and Shawn Michaels) cost Edge the WWE Championship, Edge approached <mask> and asked him to join forces to defeat the team. <mask>, whose championship reign had been ended by

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts: Triple H in 2004, agreed, forming the tag team Rated-RKO. The two defeated D-X at Cyber Sunday with help from special guest referee Eric Bischoff, becoming the first team to defeat D-X since their reunion in June and they quickly dominated the Raw brand's tag team division to become World Tag Team Champions by defeating Ric Flair and Roddy Piper on the November 13 episode of Raw. As part of the angle, Rated-RKO attacked Ric Flair with steel chairs to enrage D-X on the November 27 episode of Raw. At New Year's Revolution, Rated-RKO defended the World Tag Team Championship against D-X, but the match was declared a no-contest when Triple H suffered a legitimate injury during the match. Afterwards, Rated-RKO were attacked by D-X. With Triple H out of action, Rated-RKO continued their on-screen rivalry with Michaels.At the Royal Rumble, both men competed in the eponymous match and made it to the final four, but both were eliminated by Michaels. Michaels later teamed with WWE Champion John Cena to defeat Rated-RKO to win the World Tag Team Championship the following night on Raw. After losing the tag team titles, both Edge and <mask> focused on the WWE Championship, causing friction between them. On the February 5, 2007 episode of Raw, they lost a triple threat match against Michaels to earn a WWE Championship match at WrestleMania 23. They both competed in the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania, but the match was won by Mr. Kennedy. On the April 9 episode of Raw, <mask> and Michaels wrestled to a no contest in a number one contender's match for the WWE Championship after both

masks: Orton Orton


texts:
 men's shoulders were down during the pinfall. Finally, <mask> and Edge faced off in a fatal four-way match for the title against Cena and Michaels at Backlash, however Cena retained the title after pinning <mask>.On the April 30 episode of Raw, they competed against each other in a singles match, which Edge won. Their alliance was effectively ended once Edge joined the SmackDown! brand. <mask> then continued his "Legend Killer" persona, attacking Shawn Michaels by using frequent attacks to the head, including an elevated DDT and a running punt to the face. <mask> defeated Michaels at Judgment Day via knockout when Michaels suffered a kayfabe concussion and collapsed during the match. <mask> continued his attacks when he engaged himself in feuds with Rob Van Dam at One Night Stand (after losing a stretcher match to Van Dam), Ric Flair, Dusty Rhodes, and Sgt. Slaughter.During this time the commentators noted how <mask> slithered around and stalked his victims like a snake; this led to "The Viper" becoming a nickname for <mask>. WWE Champion (2007–2008)

On the July 23 episode of Raw, <mask> was named number one contender for John Cena's WWE Championship. Three times before their scheduled bout at SummerSlam, <mask> assaulted Cena with the RKO. <mask> lost the title match at SummerSlam when Cena pinned him after an FU. The next night on the August 27 episode of Raw, <mask> demanded a rematch, but Raw General Manager William Regal denied him. He then appealed to Mr. McMahon, who offered him the shot if he "proved himself". That night, <mask> interfered in Cena's match with King Booker,


texts: assaulting him before kicking his father, who was at ringside, in the head.McMahon granted <mask> his rematch at Unforgiven, which he won by disqualification when Cena refused to stop punching him in the corner; however, Cena retained the championship because titles cannot change hands by disqualification. After the match, Cena's father, who was again at ringside, kicked <mask> in the head, which led to a match the next night on the September 17 episode of Raw, in which <mask> defeated Cena's father by disqualification, then hit him with an RKO while Cena was handcuffed to the ropes. Cena suffered a legitimate injury during a match with Mr. Kennedy on the October 1 episode of Raw, after which <mask> attacked Cena with an RKO. After this, he adopted the nickname of "The Viper". <mask> then threw him outside the ring, and gave him an RKO on the broadcast table. Due to this injury, John Cena was forced to vacate the WWE Championship. At the start of No Mercy, Mr. McMahon awarded <mask> the WWE Championship, which John Cena had vacated due to injury.<mask> lost the title to Triple H in the opening match, but regained it later that night in a Last Man Standing match. <mask> then restarted his feud with Shawn Michaels, who returned on the October 8 episode of Raw during <mask>'s championship coronation and superkicked him. Michaels was chosen by fan voting over Jeff Hardy and Mr. Kennedy to meet <mask> for the WWE Championship at Cyber Sunday, where <mask> was disqualified after low blowing Michaels, but retained the title. They had a rematch at Survivor Series with a pre-match stipulation

masks:
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Randy Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton


texts: that if Michaels had used Sweet Chin Music, he would have lost and never had another chance at the title, while if <mask> was disqualified,  he would have lost the championship; <mask> pinned Michaels at Survivor Series after an RKO to retain the title. <mask> then began a feud with the returning Chris Jericho, who challenged <mask> for the WWE Championship at Armageddon, in which Jericho won by disqualification after interference from SmackDown! color commentator John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL), but <mask> retained the title.He then feuded with Jeff Hardy, during which he punted Hardy's brother Matt in the head and Hardy performed a Swanton Bomb off the Raw set onto <mask>. He successfully defended the title against Hardy at the Royal Rumble.He then restarted his feud with John Cena, who had returned from injury to win the 2008 Royal Rumble match. Instead of taking his title shot at WrestleMania XXIV, as Royal Rumble winners typically do, Cena took it at No Way Out and defeated <mask>, who intentionally got himself disqualified by slapping the referee to retain the title. The following night on Raw, Cena defeated <mask> in a non-title match with Triple H as the special guest referee, resulting in Cena being added to <mask>'s title match with Triple H at WrestleMania, making it a triple threat match. At WrestleMania, <mask> retained the WWE Championship against Cena and Triple H by pinning Cena after Triple H executed a Pedigree on him. The next month at Backlash, <mask> lost the title to Triple H in a fatal four-way elimination match, also including Cena and John "Bradshaw" Layfield


texts:
 (JBL). After failing to win it back at Judgment Day in a steel cage match, he faced Triple H for the title once more in a Last Man Standing match at One Night Stand, which he lost after Triple H countered an RKO by throwing <mask> over the top rope, legitimately breaking his collarbone and putting him out of action. During this time, he gained a new entrance theme, "Voices", performed by the band Rev Theory.The Legacy (2008–2010)

Upon being medically cleared to return to the ring, <mask> was reinjured in a motorcycle accident. He returned to Raw on September 1, criticizing all the champions, including World Tag Team Champions Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase, who he berated and slapped for letting Cryme Tyme steal their belts. This inspired them to try to gain <mask>'s respect. They achieved this at Unforgiven when, with new stablemate Manu, they assaulted World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk, forcing him to vacate his title before his scheduled defense that night. <mask> returned to in-ring action on the November 3 episode of Raw, losing to Punk by disqualification when DiBiase interfered, resulting in <mask> punting DiBiase in the head in retaliation. At Survivor Series, Team Orton, which included Rhodes, defeated Team Batista with both <mask> and Rhodes surviving as the sole survivors. On the December 1 episode of Raw, <mask> proposed that he, Rhodes and Manu form an alliance.The stable, called "The Legacy", debuted the next week, defeating Batista and Triple H, <mask>'s former Evolution stablemates, in a three-on-two handicap match. At Armageddon, <mask> lost to Batista in a singles

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts: match. <mask> began feuding with the McMahon family on the January 19, 2009 episode of Raw when he confronted both Mr. McMahon and Stephanie, claiming that he was worth more than her, and that she had become "worthless". This infuriated Mr. McMahon, who demanded that <mask> apologize, or he'd terminate him on the spot. As Mr. McMahon was about to fire him, <mask> attacked and punted him in the head, leading to him being carried out of the arena on a stretcher. On January 25, <mask> won the Royal Rumble match, last eliminating Triple H. The next night on Raw, <mask> claimed that he suffered from IED, and that he was not responsible for his actions towards Mr. McMahon, claiming that he suffered a "loss of control" because of the disorder. He also claimed that WWE knew of the condition, but did nothing, and threatened to sue WWE for that reason, and also, if Stephanie were to fire him, threatened a second lawsuit for breach of contract, due to the fact that he was legally entitled to compete at WrestleMania because he won the Royal Rumble.Though Stephanie teased firing <mask>, she changed her mind and said that she had "bigger plans", leading to Shane McMahon returning to Raw and attacking <mask>. This led to <mask> facing Shane in a No Holds Barred match at No Way Out, which he won. The next night on Raw, <mask> faced Shane again in an unsanctioned match, which ended in a no contest when he punted Shane in the head, thus rendering him unable to continue the match. Stephanie then ran down to the ring to tend to her brother, but <mask> attacked her with an RKO. This drew Triple H into the

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts: feud, who claimed that <mask> "crossed the line" when he attacked Stephanie, his real-life wife. Later, <mask> claimed that everything he had done was part of a plan to get revenge on Triple H after he kicked him out of Evolution back in 2004; according to <mask>, Triple H "ruined his life", so <mask> was going to do the same and take everything that Triple H cared about away from him. He challenged Triple H for the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 25, where he was unsuccessful.He won it the next month at Backlash by pinning Triple H in a six-man tag team match between The Legacy and Triple H, Batista and Shane McMahon. At Judgment Day, <mask> defended the championship against Batista, where he retained via disqualification after Rhodes and DiBiase interfered. At Extreme Rules, he lost the title to Batista in a steel cage match. The following night on Raw, <mask> and Legacy attacked Batista and injured his arm, forcing him to vacate the title. On the June 15 episode of Raw, <mask> regained the title in a fatal four-way match against Big Show, Triple H and John Cena. The following week, <mask> defended the WWE Championship against Triple H in a Last Man Standing match, which ended in a no-contest after both men failed to answer the referee's ten count. They faced off for the championship once more at The Bash in a Three Stages of Hell match, which <mask> won after interference from Legacy.At SummerSlam, he defended the title against John Cena, during which he used several underhanded tactics to retain the championship. He lost the title to Cena in an "I Quit" match at Breaking Point, but


texts: regained it from Cena in a Hell in a Cell match at Hell in a Cell. At Bragging Rights, <mask> again lost the championship to Cena in a one-hour Iron Man match to end the feud. <mask> then began a rivalry with Kofi Kingston, whom <mask> blamed for him losing the WWE Championship due to Kingston interfering in his match with Cena to chase away Rhodes and DiBiase. On the November 16 episode of Raw, <mask> and Kingston engaged in a brawl that ended with Kingston putting <mask> through a table in the crowd. Both men were named captains for their respective teams at Survivor Series, where Kingston's team defeated <mask>'s team after <mask> was last eliminated by Kingston. The two traded victories over each on following episodes of Raw, leading to a match at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 13, which <mask> won.The next night, he competed in a tournament to crown the 2009 Superstar of the Year, defeating The Undertaker by countout in the first round after interference from Legacy to advance to the finals later that night, where he lost to Cena. <mask> won a triple threat match on January 11, 2010, episode of Raw, with help from Rhodes and DiBiase, for the right to challenge Sheamus at the Royal Rumble for the WWE Championship. <mask> lost by disqualification when Rhodes interfered, which prompted <mask> to attack both Rhodes and DiBiase after the match. On the February 15 episode of Raw, <mask> was again disqualified in a non-title rematch when Legacy interfered. <mask> and DiBiase both competed in the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match at Elimination Chamber, where DiBiase

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts:
 eliminated <mask> after hitting him with a pipe Rhodes had given him. The next night on the February 22 episode of Raw, during a six-man tag team match, <mask> attacked them in retaliation, turning him face. At WrestleMania XXVI, <mask> defeated Rhodes and DiBiase in a triple threat match.World championship reigns (2010–2013)
After The Legacy disbanded, <mask> spent most part of the year in World Title feuds. He unsuccessfully challenged Jack Swagger for the World Heavyweight Championship at Extreme Rules in April. At Fatal 4-Way in June, <mask> competed in a fatal four-way WWE Championship match involving champion Cena, Edge, and Sheamus, who won the title after interference from The Nexus. On July 18 at Money in the Bank, <mask> competed in a Money in the Bank ladder match for a WWE Championship contract, which was won by The Miz and, at SummerSlam, he faced the WWE Champion Sheamus in a match that ended in a disqualification, giving <mask> the win, but not the title. Immediately afterward, <mask> hit Sheamus with the chair and an RKO onto the broadcast table. At Night of Champions, <mask> won the WWE Championship in a six-pack challenge elimination match. After successfully defending the title against Sheamus in a Hell in a Cell match at Hell in a Cell, He feuded with Wade Barrett, who was blackmailing Cena to help him capture the title.<mask> retained the title against him at Bragging Rights and Survivor Series. However, on the November 22 episode of Raw, after <mask> defeated Barrett again in a title match, he lost the championship against The Miz when he cashed his Money in the


texts: Bank contract. <mask> received his rematch against The Miz in a tables match at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs and the Royal Rumble, but he lost both matches. The next month at Elimination Chamber, <mask> failed to win a WWE Championship number one contender Elimination Chamber match after being eliminated by CM Punk. Over the next three weeks, <mask> punted and injured all members of The New Nexus, Michael McGillicutty, David Otunga and Mason Ryan. At WrestleMania XXVII, <mask> defeated Punk after a mid-air RKO. Two weeks later in the 2011 WWE draft, <mask> was drafted to the SmackDown brand and later beat Punk in a Last Man Standing Match at Extreme Rules, ending his feud with The New Nexus.On the May 6 episode of SmackDown, <mask> defeated Christian to win the World Heavyweight Championship for the second time. At Over the Limit, <mask> made his first successful title defense in a rematch against Christian. At Capitol Punishment, <mask> pinned Christian to retain the championship again, despite Christian's foot being under the bottom rope. In July at Money in the Bank, <mask> defended the championship against Christian once more, with the stipulation that if <mask> got himself disqualified, or if there was "bad officiating", Christian would win the title. Christian spat in <mask>'s face, causing him to lose control of his temper, kick Christian in the groin and get disqualified, resulting in <mask> losing the championship. A month later at SummerSlam, <mask> regained the title when he defeated Christian in a No Holds Barred match. <mask> ended his feud with Christian when he retained

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts: the World Heavyweight Championship in a steel cage match on the August 30 episode of SmackDown.<mask> then began a feud with Mark Henry after Henry became the number one contender to the World Heavyweight Championship. Over the next few weeks, Henry regularly attacked <mask>. At Night of Champions, <mask> lost the World Heavyweight Championship to Henry, and failed to regain it two weeks later in a Hell in a Cell match at Hell in a Cell. He then began feuding with his former stablemate Cody Rhodes, who believed that <mask> had mistreated and abused him during their time together in Legacy. On the October 14 episode of SmackDown, <mask> won a 41-man battle royal to earn a title shot of his choice, and he chose to challenge Henry for the World Heavyweight Championship later that night; he won by disqualification after interference from Rhodes, but did not win the championship. He then defeated Rhodes at Vengeance, and on the November 4 SmackDown in a Street Fight. <mask> reignited his feud with Wade Barrett after both were named captain for a traditional 5-on-5 Survivor Series elimination match.On the November 11 episode of SmackDown, <mask> lost a match to Barrett after Barrett poked <mask> in the eye. On the November 14 episode of Raw, <mask> won a rematch by disqualification after Team Barrett interfered. <mask>'s team was defeated at Survivor Series with Barrett and Cody Rhodes being the sole survivors. Barrett then began attacking and distracting <mask> during matches. At Tables, Ladders, & Chairs, <mask> defeated Barrett in a tables match after he put Barrett through the table with


texts: an RKO. Barrett and <mask> continued their feud on the December 23 episode of SmackDown, where they brawled backstage and <mask> hit Barrett with an RKO onto a car. This led to a Falls Count Anywhere match on December 30 episode of SmackDown, in which Barrett pushed <mask> down a flight of stairs, resulting in a herniated disc, which sidelined <mask> for four weeks.On the January 27, 2012 episode of SmackDown, he returned to the ring and attacked Barrett. On the February 3 episode of SmackDown, <mask> defeated Barrett in a No Disqualification match to end the feud. On the February 13 episode of Raw, <mask> suffered a concussion after World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan smashed <mask> over the head with the title belt. Due to the injury, <mask> was taken out of his Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship at Elimination Chamber. When <mask> returned on the March 2 episode of SmackDown, he feuded with Kane and was defeated by him at WrestleMania XXVIII. <mask> defeated Kane on the next SmackDown in a No Disqualification rematch and at Extreme Rules in a Falls Count Anywhere match to end the feud. He participated in a fatal four-way match at Over the Limit for the World Heavyweight Championship, where <mask> failed to win after Sheamus pinned Chris Jericho to retain the title.On May 30, WWE suspended <mask> for 60 days due to his second violation of the company's Talent Wellness Program. <mask> returned on the July 30 episode of Raw defeating Heath Slater. <mask> began feuding with Mr. Money in the Bank Dolph Ziggler and defeated Ziggler at Night of Champions.


texts: He began feuding with Alberto Del Rio on the September 28 episode of SmackDown. <mask> defeated Del Rio at Hell in a Cell in a singles match and represented Team Foley as his team lost to Team Ziggler at Survivor Series in a traditional five-on-five elimination tag match. On the December 3 episode of Raw, <mask> began a feud with The Shield, after he was attacked by them following a victory over Brad Maddox. On the December 14 episode of SmackDown, <mask> was once again assaulted backstage by The Shield.This was used to write him off television due to a shoulder injury. <mask> returned on the December 31 episode of Raw, helping Ryback and Sheamus fend off The Shield. At Elimination Chamber, <mask> eliminated Mark Henry and Chris Jericho before being the last man eliminated by Jack Swagger. In late February, <mask> aligned himself with Sheamus to feud with the Shield. At WrestleMania 29, <mask>, Sheamus and Big Show were defeated by The Shield, after which, both men were knocked out by Big Show. The following night on Raw, <mask> and Sheamus faced off in a match to earn a match with Big Show, however, the match ended in a no contest after Big Show interfered. <mask> and Sheamus then teamed up to defeat Big Show in two handicap matches, first on the April 12 SmackDown via count-out, and second on the April 15 Raw via pinfall.The feud between Big Show and <mask> led to an Extreme Rules match at Extreme Rules, which <mask> won. After Extreme Rules, <mask> began pairing with Daniel Bryan to face the Shield. On the June 14 SmackDown, <mask> teamed with Bryan and Kane to end the Shield's


texts:
 unpinned and unsubmitted streak in televised six-man tag matches. Three days later at Payback, <mask> and Bryan unsuccessfully challenged for Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins' WWE Tag Team Championship. The following night on Raw, <mask> and Bryan faced off in a No Disqualification match, which <mask> won via referee stoppage after Bryan suffered a legitimate nerve injury. Four days later on SmackDown, <mask> was defeated by Bryan in a singles match via countout. <mask> and Bryan faced each other for the third time on the next Raw, but their match ended in a no-contest after both men were counted out.Later that night, <mask> was defeated by Bryan in a Street Fight Match after he was forced to submit to the Yes! Lock with a kendo stick applied to the move. The Authority (2013–2015)

On July 14 at Money in the Bank, <mask> defeated Christian, CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Rob Van Dam, and Sheamus to win the WWE Championship Money in the Bank ladder match, thus earning him an opportunity to challenge for the WWE Championship at a time of his choosing within the next year. On August 18 at SummerSlam, <mask> turned heel after he cashed in his Money in the Bank contract on Daniel Bryan, who had just won the WWE Championship and had been subsequently attacked by special guest referee Triple H, who also counted the pinfall to give <mask> his seventh WWE Championship. The following night on Raw, <mask> was endorsed as the "face of the company" by Vince McMahon and the newly formed Authority (Triple H and Stephanie McMahon). On September 15 at Night of Champions, <mask> lost the WWE Championship back to


texts: Bryan, however, Triple H stripped Bryan of the title the next night on Raw, due to a fast count by referee Scott Armstrong, but refused to give the championship back to <mask>. <mask> and Bryan faced off for the vacant title on October 6 at Battleground, but the match ended in a no contest after Big Show interfered and knocked out both men.<mask> once again challenged Bryan for the vacant championship at Hell in a Cell, where he was successful in regaining the WWE Championship after the special guest referee Shawn Michaels hit Bryan with Sweet Chin Music for attacking Triple H. On November 24 at Survivor Series, after retaining the title against Big Show, <mask> was confronted by World Heavyweight Champion and long-time rival John Cena. The following night on Raw, Cena suggested that there should only be "one champion" in WWE, so Triple H stated there would be a unification match at the TLC pay-per-view. On December 15, <mask> defeated Cena at TLC to unify both titles, and becoming the first WWE World Heavyweight Champion as well as officially being recognized as the final World Heavyweight Champion. <mask> retained the title at the Royal Rumble against Cena after interference by The Wyatt Family. On February 23 at Elimination Chamber, <mask> defeated Cesaro, Christian, Daniel Bryan, John Cena, and Sheamus to retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship and secure his position in the title bout at WrestleMania XXX against Royal Rumble winner Batista. On April 6 at WrestleMania XXX, the main event was changed to a triple threat match after Bryan defeated Triple H earlier that night, and

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts: Bryan won the match after making Batista submit to end <mask>'s reign at 161 days. The following night on Raw, <mask> and Batista were each denied a rematch for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship and instead were forced by The Authority to team together to face The Usos for the WWE Tag Team Championship, despite their issues with one another.The title match ended in a double count-out after the two united and attacked them. Later that night, <mask> and Batista, along with Kane, attacked Bryan before he was set to defend his title against Triple H. Before Triple H could defeat Bryan, The Shield interrupted by spearing Triple H and taking out <mask>, Batista, and Kane, causing Bryan to retain his title via disqualification. On the April 14 episode of Raw, <mask>, Batista, and Triple H came down to the ring to attack The Shield after their 11-on-3 handicap match, using the name and the theme of Evolution. At Extreme Rules and Payback, Evolution lost to The Shield. On the June 9 episode of Raw, The Authority automatically granted <mask> a spot in the 2014 Money in the Bank ladder match for the vacant WWE World Heavyweight Championship, but he failed to win. On the July 21 episode of Raw, Roman Reigns attacked <mask>, which cost him another shot at the title, causing <mask> to retaliate the following week by viciously attacking Reigns and challenging him to a match at SummerSlam, which Reigns won. At Night of Champions, <mask> defeated Chris Jericho.On the October 13 episode of Raw, <mask> asked The Authority to face the loser of a No Holds Barred Contract on a Pole match between John


texts: Cena and Dean Ambrose. Ambrose won the match, setting up a Hell in a Cell match between <mask> and Cena. On the Raw before the event, Triple H revealed that the winner would receive a future WWE World Heavyweight Championship match against Brock Lesnar. Later that night, <mask>, Kane, and Seth Rollins defeated Cena and Ambrose in a handicap Street Fight after <mask> pinned Ambrose, but he was immediately attacked by Rollins with a Curb Stomp post-match. At Hell in a Cell, <mask> lost to Cena. On the October 27 episode of Raw, <mask> attacked Rollins, turning face in the process. The following week on Raw, <mask> attacked Rollins during his Intercontinental Championship match against Dolph Ziggler, and demanded a match with Rollins to settle their dispute, which Triple H granted in order to keep <mask> on their side.Rollins won, and <mask> attacked The Authority before being attacked by The Authority, which ended with Rollins executing a Curb Stomp onto the steel steps on <mask>. He was carried on a stretcher after he sustained a scripted injury, so he could start filming The Condemned 2. After a three-month hiatus, <mask> returned at Fastlane on February 22, 2015, by saving Dolph Ziggler, Erick Rowan and Ryback from a post-match beatdown of Rollins, Big Show and Kane. He feuded with The Authority's Seth Rollins, having a match at WrestleMania 31 where <mask> defeated Rollins. After WrestleMania, with Rollins as the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion, <mask> faced Rollins at Extreme Rules and Payback, losing both title matches. At Money in the Bank, <mask> failed to win the championship


texts:
 contract ladder match, which was won by Sheamus. Following this, <mask> began feuding with Sheamus after both men attacked each other and faced off in various tag-team matches; <mask> defeated Sheamus at Battleground, but lost to Sheamus at SummerSlam.On the September 7 episode of Raw, <mask> was attacked by The Wyatt Family, starting a feud that was booked to end in the Hell in a Cell pre-show, but canceled after <mask> suffered a legit shoulder injury, putting him out of action for the following months. The Wyatt Family (2016–2017)
On the July 7, 2016 episode of SmackDown, <mask> was revealed as Brock Lesnar's opponent for SummerSlam. On July 19 at the 2016 WWE draft, <mask> was drafted to SmackDown, while Lesnar was drafted to Raw. On July 24 at Battleground, <mask> returned as a guest on Chris Jericho's Highlight Reel to be interviewed about his match with Lesnar. <mask> explained that he wanted to face Lesnar to prove that he belonged in the top spot, before executing an RKO on Jericho. On the July 26 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> interrupted Intercontinental Champion The Miz during his Miz TV segment before defeating Miz in a non-title match. During Lesnar's promo on the August 1 episode of Raw, <mask> appeared and delivered an RKO to Lesnar.The following night on SmackDown Live, Lesnar attacked <mask> during his match, delivering an F-5 to <mask>. At SummerSlam, Lesnar defeated <mask> by technical knockout after a series of elbows to the head, leaving <mask> with an open wound which required 10 staples. On the August 23 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> spoke about his match

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts: against Lesnar and declared that he and Lesnar would cross paths again before Bray Wyatt interrupted him, therefore resuming their feud. The following week on SmackDown Live, <mask> accepted Wyatt's challenge for a match at Backlash, where <mask> lost by forfeit after a backstage attack by Wyatt before the show. It was later revealed that <mask> was not cleared to wrestle at the event due to a legitimate concussion that occurred the previous month at SummerSlam. <mask> faced Wyatt at No Mercy, where he lost due to a distraction by the returning Luke Harper. On the October 11 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> was teamed with Kane in a tag team match against Wyatt and Harper, but once again lost the match due to distraction by Harper.On the October 25 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> interfered on Wyatt's behalf in his match with Kane, leading to speculation that he had joined The Wyatt Family, though this was neither confirmed nor denied by WWE or <mask>. On the November 1 episode of SmackDown Live, Wyatt and Harper helped <mask> win his match against Kane, thus confirming <mask>'s alliance with the group, turning heel in the process. That same night, <mask> and Wyatt were revealed as members of Team SmackDown for Survivor Series. At Survivor Series, Team SmackDown defeated Team Raw, where <mask> and Wyatt became the last two surviving members of their team. On the November 29 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> and Wyatt defeated American Alpha to earn a shot at the SmackDown Tag Team Championship against Heath Slater and Rhyno. At TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, they won the titles,


texts: marking <mask>'s first tag team championship in a decade. It was later announced that Harper was also champion under the Freebird Rule.On the December 27 episode of SmackDown Live, they lost the SmackDown Tag Team Championship to American Alpha in a fatal four-way tag team elimination match, after <mask> accidentally hit Harper. On January 29, 2017, at the Royal Rumble, <mask> won the Royal Rumble match for the second time in his career by lastly eliminating Roman Reigns. Despite this, <mask> came out after Wyatt successfully defended the WWE Championship and relinquished his shot at the title on the February 14 episode of SmackDown Live, basically giving his full devotion to Wyatt and leaving the main event of WrestleMania in the air. On the February 28 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> turned on Wyatt while Wyatt was delivering his promo and was seen entering Wyatt's compound, where he claimed that despite being Wyatt's home, it was not his home and declared his intentions to burn the soul of "Sister Abigail". He then set the entire compound on fire after stating that he would face Wyatt at WrestleMania 33, turning face again. On the March 7 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> defeated AJ Styles to become the number one contender for the WWE Championship. On April 2 at WrestleMania 33, <mask> defeated Wyatt to win the WWE Championship for the ninth time, which was also his first WWE Championship win at WrestleMania and 13th overall world championship.On the following episode of SmackDown Live, Wyatt challenged <mask> to a "House of Horrors" rematch, but after Wyatt was moved to the Raw

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts:
 brand as a result of the Superstar Shake-up, it was made a non-title match and scheduled for Raw's Payback on April 30, which he lost. On the April 18 episode of SmackDown Live, Jinder Mahal, who was moved to the SmackDown brand as a result of the Superstar Shake-up, won a six-pack challenge to become the number one contender for the WWE Championship, after interference from The Singh Brothers. The following week on SmackDown Live, <mask> defeated Erick Rowan in a no disqualification match and was afterwards attacked by Mahal and The Singh Brothers; Mahal subsequently stole the WWE Championship belt. At Payback, <mask> lost to Wyatt after Mahal attacked him with the title belt. SmackDown commissioner Shane McMahon later returned the belt to <mask>. On May 21 at Backlash, <mask> lost the WWE Championship to Mahal after interference from The Singh Brothers and failed to regain it the following month at Money in the Bank after The Singh Brothers again interfered. On the June 27 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> demanded a rematch for the title, which McMahon would grant him at Battleground, but with Mahal allowed to choose the stipulation (Mahal came out and chose a Punjabi Prison match).At Battleground, <mask> was again defeated by Mahal when The Great Khali returned and attacked <mask>, allowing Mahal to escape the Punjabi Prison to win. United States Champion (2017–2018)

<mask> started a feud with Rusev, whom he defeated in 10 seconds at SummerSlam. On the September 5 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> lost to Shinsuke Nakamura in a number one contender's match for the WWE


texts:
 Championship. On the September 19 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> defeated Aiden English; after the match, he was challenged by Rusev to an impromptu match, which he lost in 10 seconds after a distraction from English. At Hell in a Cell, <mask> defeated Rusev to end the feud. On the October 24 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> defeated Sami Zayn to qualify for a spot on Team SmackDown at Survivor Series. During the match, <mask> eliminated Finn Bálor and survived until only he and Team SmackDown captain Shane McMahon remained, but was eliminated by Braun Strowman.Team SmackDown ultimately went on to lose. At the Royal Rumble, <mask> entered Royal Rumble match at #24 and eliminated NXT Champion Andrade "Cien" Almas before later being eliminated by Roman Reigns. During the following months, <mask> was put in the orbit of the WWE United States Championship. He defeated the champion Bobby Roode at Fastlane  (thus becoming the 18th Grand Slam Champion) but lost it at WrestleMania 34 against Jinder Mahal in a fatal four-way match also involving Roode and Rusev. He had another title match at Backlash against the new champion Jeff Hardy, but <mask> lost again. On May 18, WWE confirmed that <mask> had undergone successful surgery to repair a medial meniscus tear in his left knee, sidelining him indefinitely. Return of the Legend Killer (2018–2021)
After a brief hiatus, <mask> returned at Extreme Rules and attacked Jeff Hardy after Hardy's match against Shinsuke Nakamura for the United States Championship, turning heel in the process.Two nights later on SmackDown Live, <mask> interfered in the


texts: rematch and attacked Hardy again. On the August 21 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> and Hardy faced off in a match that ended in a no-contest, with Hardy continuing to attack <mask> after the match. At Hell in a Cell, <mask> defeated Hardy in a Hell in a Cell match. On the October 9 episode of SmackDown Live, <mask> defeated a returning Big Show to qualify for the WWE World Cup at Crown Jewel. At Crown Jewel, he lost to Rey Mysterio in the first round. He then started a feud with Mysterio, stealing Mysterio's mask on the November 21 episode of SmackDown Live and carrying it with him for a few weeks. At TLC, <mask> lost to Mysterio in a chairs match.At the Royal Rumble pay-per-view on January 27, 2019, <mask> entered the namesake match at number 29, eliminating Mysterio before he was himself eliminated by Andrade. <mask> competed in the Elimination Chamber match for the WWE Championship at Elimination Chamber, where he eliminated AJ Styles before being eliminated by Kofi Kingston. He then started a feud with Styles, with the two berating each other about their history in the wrestling business. At WrestleMania 35, <mask> lost to Styles. In July, <mask> feuded with Kingston over the WWE Championship, having matches at SummerSlam and Clash of Champions, where <mask> did not win the title. At Crown Jewel and Survivor Series, <mask> was part of two multi-tag matches, but his team lost both times. As part of the 2019 WWE draft, <mask> was drafted to Raw.On the November 11 episode of Raw, <mask> teamed with Ricochet and Humberto Carrillo to defeat The O.C. (AJ Styles, Luke Gallows, and Karl


texts: Anderson). At the end of the match, <mask> seemed like he was going to give Ricochet an RKO, but instead gave one to Styles, turning face in the process. He reignited his feud with Styles and faced him throughout December and January. At the Royal Rumble on January 26, 2020, <mask> entered the titular match at number 25 and eliminated Karl Anderson before he was eliminated by his former Rated-RKO tag team partner Edge, who was returning to competition for the first time since retiring due to career-ending neck injuries in 2011. The next night on Raw, <mask> teased a Rated-RKO reunion with Edge before delivering an RKO and a con-chair-to, turning heel once again. <mask> and Edge then began a feud, facing each other in a Last Man Standing match at WrestleMania 36, which <mask> lost.Their second match at Backlash, billed as the "Greatest Wrestling Match Ever", was won by <mask>. <mask> won after a punt to the head of Edge, marking the first punt <mask> had delivered in years. The match put Edge out of action with a legitimate torn triceps, and the victory enabled <mask> to call himself the "Greatest Wrestler Ever." The following night on Raw, Edge's friend and former tag team partner Christian challenged <mask> to an unsanctioned match, which <mask> won with assistance from Ric Flair. <mask> would go on to revive his Legend Killer gimmick over the next few weeks, attacking legends such as Christian, Shawn Michaels, and Big Show, while becoming more unhinged. <mask> then turned on Flair and set his sights on the WWE Championship. During the following months, <mask> feuded with the WWE


texts: Champion Drew McIntyre, failing to win the title at SummerSlam and Clash of Champions in an Ambulance match, until he defeated McIntyre in a Hell in a Cell match at Hell In A Cell, winning his tenth WWE Championship.However, he would lose the title back to McIntyre on the November 16 episode of Raw. Three weeks before his title loss, on October 26, 2020, <mask> started a feud with Bray Wyatt, now under his new gimmick, The Fiend, as well with his partner Alexa Bliss. At TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 20, <mask> defeated The Fiend in a Firefly Inferno match before setting his body on fire. Despite his victory over the Fiend, <mask> would deal with the repercussions by dealing with Alexa Bliss (who aligned with The Fiend earlier) over the following weeks. After instigating Triple H into agreeing to face him in a No Holds Barred match, Bliss interfered and threw a fireball at <mask> to end it in a no contest. At the Royal Rumble on January 31, <mask> entered as the second participant and continued his feud with a returning Edge, who entered as the first participant. Due to injuries inflicted on him by Edge, <mask> left the match to be tended to by medical personnel without actually being eliminated.<mask> returned to the match at the very end to eliminate Edge, but was then himself eliminated. The following night on Raw, <mask> challenged Edge to one final match to again try to end his wrestling career but was defeated by him due to the interference of Bliss. At Elimination Chamber on February 21, <mask> competed in the Raw Elimination Chamber match for Drew McIntyre's WWE


texts:
 Championship, but was the first man eliminated by Kofi Kingston. After Bliss repeatedly harassed and distracted him over the weeks, causing him to lose matches, Bliss challenged him to an Intergender Match at Fastlane on March 21, which he accepted in the hopes of ridding Bliss from his life. At the event, Bliss attacked him with supernatural powers like making a lighting rig fall and almost land on him and launching a fireball at him. At the end, The Fiend, now with a new grotesque look with charred skin as a result of being set on fire, returned and attacked <mask>, allowing Bliss to get the pinfall victory. On the following episode of Raw, The Fiend attacked <mask> again and a match between them was scheduled for WrestleMania 37.On Night 2 of the event on April 11, <mask> defeated The Fiend after Bliss seemingly turned on The Fiend by distracting him, allowing <mask> to land the RKO and pin him for the win. RK-Bro (2021–present)

On the Raw after WrestleMania, <mask> interfered in a segment between Drew McIntyre, Braun Strowman, MVP, and WWE Champion Bobby Lashley, wanting back in the WWE Championship picture. A triple threat match was made for later that night, in which the winner would receive a shot for the championship against Lashley at WrestleMania Backlash; McIntyre would go on to win. On the April 19 episode of Raw, Riddle interrupted a backstage interview by <mask> to suggest a tag team formation, with <mask> dismissing the idea by leaving. A match was made later on between <mask> and Riddle, which Riddle won with a roll-up. The following week on Raw, <mask> reluctantly


texts: agreed to form a team with Riddle. Later on, the newly labeled RK-Bro defeated Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin.In the following backstage interview, <mask> suggested to Riddle they take the team "a day at a time", thus turning face for the first time since early 2020. On the May 3 episode of Raw, RK-Bro defeated Elias and Jaxson Ryker, bringing their record to 2–0. On the May 10 episode of Raw, they teamed up with The New Day to defeat AJ Styles, Omos, Elias, and Ryker, giving the duo a 3–0 record. On the June 21 episode of Raw, <mask> faced John Morrison in a Money in the Bank qualifier but was defeated. The following week, he was scheduled to face Styles and McIntyre in a last chance match, but was pulled for unknown reasons and replaced by Riddle, who would go on to lose the match. After a seven-week absence, <mask> returned on the August 9 episode of Raw and dissolved his team with Riddle; however, later in the night, <mask> defeated Styles in a match following assistance from Riddle. Afterwards, he pretended to hug Riddle but then hit him with an RKO as his own unique way of showing gratitude.The following week, <mask> officially reunited the team after Riddle saved him from an attack at the hands of Styles and Omos. At SummerSlam, RK-Bro defeated Styles and Omos to become the Raw Tag Team Champions, their first reign each. At Survivor Series, RK-Bro defeated SmackDown Tag Team Champions The Usos (Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso). With this match, <mask> broke Kane's record for wrestling the most PPV matches in WWE history. On the January 10, 2022 episode of Raw, RK-Bro lost the titles

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts:
 to Alpha Academy (Chad Gable and Otis), ending their reign at 142 days. Professional wrestling style and persona

<mask>'s most notable move is his finishing maneuver, the RKO, a jumping variation of a cutter. The name is a pun on his initials (Randal <mask>) with "Randy-KO".He also previously used a punt kick, which saw him run up to an opponent on their hands and knees and kick them in the head; within a storyline, this usually caused a concussion or some other sort of severe head injury to his opponent, and was often used to write off the on-screen characters of wrestlers who were scheduled to take time off. However, the move was legitimately banned by WWE management in 2014 due to the ease of imitation by viewers and the risk of injury should the move be botched. The move was brought back in June 2020 as part of the feud between <mask> and Edge where <mask> used the Punt Kick to defeat Edge at Backlash. <mask> would then start using the move regularly again. During his initial years in WWE, <mask>'s gimmick was that of "the Legend Killer", a young and cocky talent who disrespected and usually defeated several legends. In late 2007, in the midst of his second WWE Championship reign, his character changed to a more unstable and treacherous personality. He then adopted the nicknames of "the Viper" and "the Apex Predator" due to his untrustworthy, snake-like character.He has said numerous times that he prefers playing the villain, as it is easier and more natural for him. In January 2008, <mask> told 411Mania: "It's easy for me to go out there and be a prick on the show because it's me

masks:
Orton
Keith Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton
Orton


texts:
 times ten. And even though you probably don't like me anyway, give me five minutes and I'll make you not like me more. Being a heel is fun. It comes so natural." Acting career
A former Marine, <mask> was set to star in the action film The Marine 2 (2009), but was replaced by Ted DiBiase after injuring his collarbone. He had a supporting role as the father of a school bully in the comedy-drama film That's What I Am (2011).He signed on to star in the action film The Marine 3: Homefront (2013), but was replaced by The Miz due to his uneasy history with the Marines. He later starred in the action films 12 Rounds 2: Reloaded (2013) and The Condemned 2 (2015). He had a guest role as James Richards, a former Navy SEAL and leader of a militia group, in a December 2016 episode of the USA action series Shooter. He also had supporting roles in the comedy-drama film Changeland (2019) and the romantic comedy film Long Shot (2019). Other media
In 2004, <mask> appeared on the talk show Jimmy Kimmel Live! to promote Taboo Tuesday. In March 2007, he appeared alongside Edge, John Cena and Bobby Lashley on the game show Deal or No Deal.He was the cover athlete for the video game WWE '12. In October 2014, he became a popular figure on Vine when a trend began of clips of a superimposed <mask> performing his signature RKO move on internet "fail" victims. Personal life
<mask> married Samantha Speno on September 21, 2007. The couple had a daughter together. They separated in late 2012 and divorced in June 2013. On November 14, 2015, <mask> married Kimberly Kessler, who was previously a member of his fan

masks: Orton Orton Orton Orton Orton


texts:
 club. The couple have a daughter together (<mask>'s second child).They reside in St. Charles, Missouri. <mask> has a United States Marine Corps tattoo on his left arm, but covered it up after receiving his bad conduct discharge. His hypermobility in both shoulders has been a constant source of injuries throughout his career, sidelining him through incidents ranging from pounding the ring mat too hard when performing one of his signature taunts to innocuous things like taking out the trash at home. Controversies
In March 2007, Sports Illustrated posted an article on its website as part of its continuing series investigating a steroid and growth hormone ring used by a number of professional athletes in several sports. The article mentioned several current and former WWE wrestlers, including <mask>, who was alleged to have obtained nandrolone, oxandrolone, stanozolol, and testosterone, as well as ancillary drugs anastrozole and clomiphene citrate. WWE simply claimed that the allegations preceded their Talent Wellness Program, launched in February 2006. In August 2018, <mask> was investigated by WWE for sexual harassment when it was claimed that he had exposed himself to new members of the company's writing staff during his early career, though nothing came of the investigation.In 2018, legal action was brought against Take-Two Interactive and 2K Games for the use of <mask>'s likeness in their WWE 2K video game series, which included copyrighted tattoos by the artist Catherine Alexander on <mask>'s body. Alexander argued that the copying of the tattoos infringed on her rights as the


texts:
 licensed creator. A trial was scheduled for September 20, 2021, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In October 2019, <mask> received criticism for saying "nigga" while playing a Call of Duty game on a live Twitch stream. Filmography

Film

Television

Championships and accomplishments

 The Baltimore Sun
 Wrestler of the Year (2009)
 Guinness Book of World Records
 Most appearances on pay-per-view for a male WWE wrestler
 Ohio Valley Wrestling OVW Hardcore Championship (2 times)
 Pro Wrestling Illustrated Feud of the Year (2009)
 Most Hated Wrestler of the Year (2007, 2009)
 Most Improved Wrestler of the Year (2004)
 Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (2010)
 Rookie of the Year (2001)
 Wrestler of the Year (2009, 2010)
 Ranked No. 1 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2008
 World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE WWE Championship (10 times)
 World Heavyweight Championship (4 times)
 WWE Intercontinental Championship (1 time)
 WWE United States Championship (1 time)
 World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Edge
WWE Raw Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Riddle
 WWE SmackDown Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Bray Wyatt and Luke Harper
 Money in the Bank (2013)
 Royal Rumble (2009, 2017)
 Seventeenth Triple Crown Champion
 Tenth Grand Slam Champion (under current format; eighteenth overall)
 Slammy Award (2 times)
 Hashtag of the Year (2014) –
 Rivalry of the Year (2020)
 WWE Year-End Award for Shocking Moment of the Year (2018) –
 Wrestling Observer Newsletter'''
 Most Improved (2004)
 Most Disgusting Promotional Tactic (2006) Exploiting the death of


texts:
 Eddie Guerrero ("Eddie's down there... in Hell!" promo)
 Most Overrated (2013)
 Worst Feud of the Year (2013) –
 Worst Feud of the Year (2017)
 Worst Feud of the Year (2021)
 Worst Worked Match of the Year (2017)

Footnotes

References

Further reading

External links

1980 births
Living people
21st-century American male actors
American male film actors
American male professional wrestlers
Male actors from Missouri
Male actors from Tennessee
NWA/WCW/WWE United States Heavyweight Champions
People from Jefferson County, Missouri
People from St. Charles, Missouri
Professional wrestlers from Missouri
Professional wrestlers from Tennessee
Sportspeople from Knoxville, Tennessee
Sportspeople from St. Louis
The Authority (professional wrestling) members
United States Marines
World Heavyweight Champions (WWE)
WWE Champions
WWE Grand Slam champions
WWF/WWE Intercontinental


texts:
<mask> (born 12 September 1984) is an Irish hurler who played as a midfielder for the Tipperary senior team. <mask> made his first appearance for the team during the 2006 National League. During his career he has won one All-Ireland winners' medals, five Munster winners' medals, one National Hurling League winners' medal, two Fitzgibbon Cup medals, two Railway Cup medals, one Munster Under-21 Hurling Championship medal and two All-Star awards. He has ended up as an All-Ireland runner-up on two occasions. Mcgrath is known for his aerial ability, horizontal hurling and his piercing runs through the heart of any defence, in 2014 Mcgrath scored eight points from play from midfield in the All-Ireland semi-final and final. At club level along with his three brothers <mask> plays with Ballinahinch gaa club. <mask> was appointed Tipperary Senior hurling captain for the 2013 season.On 17 November 2015 he announced his retirement from inter county. Playing career

Club

<mask> plays his club hurling with his local club in Ballinahinch gaa club. He has enjoyed some success but has yet to win a senior county club championship. University

<mask> also enjoyed much success with the Limerick Institute of Technology (LIT) in the universities and colleges series of games. In 2005 he was on the LIT team that defeated near neighbours University of Limerick in the final. In 2007 he won a second Fitzgibbon Cup medal as the National University of Ireland, Galway were defeated by 2–15 to 0–13 in the final. <mask> also won a Ryan Cup medal as a student of Mary Immaculate College, Limerick

masks:
Shane McGrath
McGrath
McGrath
McGrath
McGrath
McGrath
McGrath


texts:
 in 2009.Inter-county

<mask> first came to prominence on the inter-county scene as a member of the Tipperary intermediate team in 2003. He enjoyed little success during his three years in this grade. In 2004 <mask> joined the Tipperary under-21 hurling panel. He found it difficult to break onto the starting fifteen and finished his time in this grade without any major successes on the field of play. <mask> made his senior competitive debut for Tipperary in a National Hurling League game against Limerick in 2006. Later that season he made his championship debut against the same opposition, however, Tipperary went on to lose a second successive Munster final to Cork. In 2008 Tipp remained undefeated in the National League before meeting Galway in the final.In an exciting game Tipp emerged victorious by 3-18 to 3-16 and <mask> collected his first National League winners' medal. Tipperary later reached the Munster final where they defeated a resurgent Clare team by 2-21 to 0-19. It was <mask> 's first Munster winners' medal. Tipperary were subsequently defeated in a tense All-Ireland semi-final by Waterford on a scoreline of 1-20 to 1-18. In spite of falling short in the championship, <mask> later collected his first All-Star award. <mask> won his second Munster medal in 2009 as Tipp defeated Waterford by 4-14 to 2-16. After a six-week lay-off and a facile semi-final win over Limerick, Tipp qualified for an All-Ireland final meeting with Kilkenny.For much of the match it looked as if Tipp would pull off a shock and deny 'the Cats' a record-equaling four-in-a-row. Two

masks: McGrath McGrath McGrath McGrath McGrath McGrath McGrath


texts: quick goals in the space of a minute, one from a penalty by Henry Shefflin, sealed a 2-22 to 0-23 victory and defeat for Tipperary. After surrendering their Munster title to Cork at the first hurdle in 2010, Tipperray regrouped in the qualifiers and reached a second successive All-Ireland decider. Kilkenny, a team chasing a fifth successive championship, provided the opposition and a great game was expected. Tipperary got off to a great start which was bolstered by an early Lar Corbett goal. He subsequently completed a hat-trick of goals and Tipperary had a fourth by <mask> to deny Kilkenny's drive-for-five and secure a remarkable and convincing 4-17 to 1-18 victory. It was <mask>'s first All-Ireland medal in any grade.Tipperary returned as provincial kingpins once again in 2011. A 7-19 to 0-19 trouncing of Waterford in the southern decider gave <mask> a third Munster medal. For the third successive year, Tipperary faced off against Kilkenny in the All-Ireland final, however, on this occasion Kilkenny were slight underdogs going up against the new champions. Kilkenny started quickly and never surrendered the lead in the 2-17 to 1-16 victory. In spite of an indifferent National League campaign, Tipperary were regarded as potential All-Ireland champions once again. A 2-17 to 0-16 defeat of Waterford in the provincial decider gave <mask> a fourth Munster medal in five seasons. Tipperary later faced a humiliating 4-24 to 1-15 defeat by eventual champions Kilkenny in the All-Ireland semi-final.In October 2014, <mask> won his second All Stars Award after a successful

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 2014 campaign where Tipperary reached the All-Ireland Final. In November 2015, <mask> announced his retirement from inter-county hurling. Inter-provincial

<mask> has also been a regular on the Munster team during various inter-provincial campaigns. He won his first Railway Cup medal in 2007 following a 2-22 to 2-19 defeat of Connacht , then won his second medal when he captained the side to glory in the semi final of the 2013 tournament but was injured for the final that year. Honours

Team
Limerick Institute of Technology
Fitzgibbon Cup (1): 2005, 2007

Mary Immaculate College, Limerick
Ryan Cup (1): 2009

Tipperary
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship (1): 2010
Munster Senior Hurling Championship (5): 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015
National Hurling League (1): 2008
Munster Player of the Year: 2008

Munster
Inter-provincial Championship (2): 2007, 2013

Individual
All-Stars (2): 2008, 2014

References

1984 births
20th-century Irish people
21st-century Irish people
Living people
Ballinahinch hurlers
Tipperary inter-county hurlers
Munster inter-provincial hurlers
All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winners
Alumni of NUI Galway
Alumni of Mary Immaculate College,

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<mask> (born 26 January 1954) is a former cricketer who played for Western Australia, Natal and Australia. He captained Australia in 28 Test matches between 1979 and 1984 before captaining a rebel Australian team in a tour of South Africa, a country which at the time was subject to a sporting boycott opposing apartheid. A right-handed batsman, <mask> was seen to possess an orthodox and attractive batting style. He was identified as a potential Test cricketer from an early age, but his impetuous style of batting, and personality clashes with influential teammates and opponents such as Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh, saw a later introduction to first-class and Test cricket than anticipated. During the split between the establishment Australian Cricket Board and the breakaway World Series Cricket, <mask> stayed with the establishment. <mask>' captaincy record with Australia was hindered by a succession of matches being played away from home (just eight of his 28 Tests while captain were played in Australia) and the necessity to rebuild an inexperienced team after the frequent absence, and later the retirement, of several senior players. Placed under extreme pressure by the media and former teammates during a series of losses to the then dominant cricket team in the world, West Indies, <mask> resigned from the captaincy, making an emotional and tearful speech.He finished his career playing cricket in South Africa. After his playing career, <mask> for a time acted as the chairman of selectors for the Western Australian Cricket Association, and is an occasional commentator for ABC Radio's cricket coverage. Early life
<mask> was born on 26 January 1954, at Margaret River, Western

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texts: Australia, the first child of father Stan, a schoolteacher, and mother Ruth. The <mask> family lived in nearby Kudardup, where Stan was in charge of the one-teacher school. Stan's profession would take the <mask> family across much of the south-west of Western Australia, including postings at Ballidu, Pinjarra and Geraldton. The <mask> family settled in the Geraldton suburb of Wonthella and <mask> attended the local Allendale Primary School, where his father was the headmaster. In Geraldton, the young <mask> played a variety of sports, including hockey, tennis and especially Australian rules football.His boyhood hero was Austin Robertson, Jr. who played for Subiaco Football Club, the club that <mask>' father had played for as a young man. His first organised cricket was as an 11-year old, filling in for the Bluff Point Cricket Club under-16 side. Aged 11, he was selected for a Geraldton under-16 representative side to compete in the junior "Country Week" tournament in the state capital of Perth, where his teammates included Geoff Gallop, later Premier of Western Australia. He was selected in the Geraldton Country Week team again the following year. It was at this tournament that <mask>' performances playing against much older boys saw him come to the attention of cricket administrators. After <mask> finished primary school, the family moved to Perth. <mask> attended City Beach High School and played cricket for the Floreat Park (now Floreat) Under-16 side.In his final season at junior level <mask> scored 555 runs at an average of 46 and took 28 wickets at an average of 6, and was included in the Western Australia Colts squad. The next season, aged 15, <mask> made his first grade

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 debut for Subiaco-Floreat Cricket Club, captained by former Test player Des Hoare; <mask> made 36 runs. In January 1970, <mask> was selected to play for Western Australia in the national under-19 carnival. His captain, Ric Charlesworth, later described <mask> as "the most gifted junior cricketer I ever saw. No one else comes close." Later that season <mask> made his first century in first grade cricket, against Midland-Guildford; he finished the season topping the club batting averages. Cricket career

Club cricket and first-class debut

After only nine first grade games, in 1970–71 <mask> was included in the Western Australian Sheffield Shield squad.Described at the time by Test wicket-keeper Rod Marsh as "a technically perfect batsman", the Perth press speculated he might even make his first-class cricket debut later that season. Instead, <mask> suffered from the "second-year blues" and struggled for runs, averaging only 23 for the season. He was unable to break out of the slump for the next two seasons, finding himself out of the state squad. During this time he managed to retain selection in the state colts team, in one match against the Victorian colts scoring a dashing 97 before being caught on the boundary attempting to make his century from a six. It would be four years after his maiden first grade century that <mask> would make his second, against North Perth. In 1973–74, <mask> was called up to the Western Australian squad. He acted as twelfth man in three successive matches, but was unable to break into the playing XI due to the strong Western Australian batting line-up.Impatient to play at first-class level, <mask> left for Adelaide mid-season to try his luck at

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 gaining selection for South Australia, whose batting was not as strong. He played for East Torrens Cricket Club and awaited an invitation to play for South Australia; he was not even invited to train with the state squad. His South Australian experiment unsuccessful, <mask>—disappointed and homesick—returned to Western Australia. <mask> was captain-coach of North Perth Cricket Club for the 1975–76 season. He finally broke into the Western Australian team in November 1975, making his first-class debut against New South Wales at the WACA Ground. In an innings described by New South Wales bowler Dave Hourn as the "best and most dynamic innings" he had seen in first-class cricket, <mask> continually stepped down the pitch to hit the bowling, even to the pace bowling of Len Pascoe. He was dismissed for 119, ending a partnership of 205 runs with Rob Langer.He was the fifth Western Australian batsman to make a century on first-class debut for the state. Later that season, <mask> scored a second century, against Clive Lloyd's touring West Indians. In his first season for Western Australia, <mask> made 494 runs at an average of 32.93. In the winter of 1976, <mask> played as a professional for Watsonians Cricket Club, a team based around former students of George Watson's College in Edinburgh. <mask> would later call this period "possibly the best six months of my life." Test debut
Playing for Western Australia against the touring Pakistan team in December 1976, <mask> made 137 runs from only 167 balls, making a claim to the attention of the national selectors. The Australian reported that "[r]arely has a batsman of his limited experience been seen in a more majestic performance".A few

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 weeks later, <mask> was called up as twelfth man for Australia in the New Year's Test match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Substituting on the field for Ian Davis, he injured his shoulder attempting to catch Imran Khan. Missing the rest of the Pakistan matches, <mask> was included in the Australian team to tour New Zealand. <mask>, again suffering from homesickness, did not play in either of the two Tests. Four weeks after marrying his girlfriend, <mask> left for England as a member of the 1977 Australian team. The tour was an unhappy one for the Australian team, losing the series three Tests to nil to England and the embryonic World Series Cricket concept caused rifts between the team members. <mask> did not play much cricket early in the tour; Wisden Cricketers' Almanack saying that he was "kept in such idleness that [he] might have claimed restraint of trade."He was selected to make his Test debut in the fifth Test, after the series had already been decided. <mask>, bitter about his treatment by the tour selectors, was unhappy. <mask> told a reporter congratulating him about his upcoming Test debut "Those pricks, know they have made me part of their failure". In an uncharacteristic performance, <mask> faced thirty-four deliveries before he made his first run. It was the only run he made that innings, before he was dismissed by Mike Hendrick. <mask>' teammate Geoff Dymock later said, "They threw [<mask>] to the wolves." World Series Cricket years
World Series Cricket (WSC) divided the Australian team into two camps; those who had signed lucrative contracts with Kerry Packer's rebel group and those, like <mask>, who had remained with the establishment Australian Cricket


texts: Board (ACB).<mask>' boyhood idol, Austin Robertson Jr, acted as Packer's agent, signing players to the new cricket venture, eventually signing 13 of the 17 players who toured England; <mask> was a notable omission. Robertson claims that he did not approach <mask> about a WSC contract; <mask> claims that he was approached but indicated his unwillingness. In September 1977, <mask> made clear his attachment to traditional cricket in a statement. The first season of the divide saw the ACB bring the 41-year-old Bob Simpson out of retirement to captain the Australians against the touring Indians. <mask> fell one run short of a century against the tourists for Western Australia, but missed out on selection for the first Test at the Gabba in Brisbane; instead he was named as twelfth man. <mask> was chosen for the second Test at the WACA Ground in Perth, where he made 28 in the first innings and a duck in the second. He was omitted for the third Test in Melbourne, but returned for the fourth Test in Sydney.At the Sydney Cricket Ground <mask> made 17 and 19, with Bishan Bedi dismissing him on both occasions. Again, <mask> was left out of the Australian team; at this stage he had not played two Test matches consecutively. <mask> travelled to the Caribbean as a member of the Australian cricket team to play the West Indies in 1978. During the first match on tour against the Leeward Islands at Basseterre, Saint Kitts, <mask> suffered from appendicitis and had his appendix removed. The wound became infected and <mask> had to beg team management to be allowed to remain on the tour. Despite his later recovery, he did not play any of the Tests; his personality and attitude to the game did not

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 meet with the approval of the captain, Simpson. A reporter wrote at the time, "<mask> is the most frustrated, disillusioned young man in the West Indies today and with good reason.[...] Never, at any stage, has Simpson considered <mask> a Test prospect." Mike Brearley led his English team to Australia in 1978–79 on the back of his victory over the Greg Chappell-led Australians in 1977. With Simpson standing down from international cricket, Graham Yallop was the new Australian captain, leading an inexperienced Australian team, with only Gary Cosier having played over 10 Tests before the series began; <mask> had only played three Tests. The Australians were no match for the experienced England team, losing the series and the Ashes five Tests to one. Playing in all six Tests, <mask> scored 345 runs at an average of 28.75; only Yallop scored more runs in what was a poor batting performance by Australia. <mask>' only century came in the first Test at Brisbane. Having been bowled out for 116, in their first innings, Australia had lost three wickets for only 49 runs (49/3) in the second innings when <mask> joined Yallop at the crease.Yallop and <mask> scored 170 runs in partnership before Yallop was dismissed for 102. <mask> continued on and was the last Australian wicket to fall, top-scoring with 129, his maiden Test century. While England won the match by seven wickets, <mask> and Yallop at least made the Australian effort look respectable. A young captain
With the Ashes series played and lost, Australia hosted Pakistan for a two-Test series at the end of the Australian 1978–79 season. Pakistan won the first Test by 71 runs after Sarfraz Nawaz took an incredible seven wickets for

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texts: only one run in the Australian second innings. Before the second Test, Yallop tore his calf muscle playing for Richmond—his club side—and had to withdraw from the Australian team. <mask>, playing only his eleventh Test, was named as Australian captain; the first Western Australian to lead the national team.<mask> took to the leadership role with enthusiasm, boasting of a "new era". Bowling in the nets before the start of the third day's play, <mask> rolled his ankle and was not able to take his place in the field. While he sat in the dressing room, the Australian team, desperate to end the Pakistan tenth-wicket partnership "Mankaded" (run out the batsman at the non-striker's end before bowling the ball) Sikander Bakht. During Australia's second innings, Andrew Hilditch picked up the ball after a return from a fieldsman and, in an attempt to be helpful, handed it to Sarfraz. Sarfraz appealed for a handling the ball dismissal, and Hilditch was given out by umpire Tony Crafter. While within the laws of the game, both dismissals were generally seen as unsportsmanlike. <mask> said of his own team's actions, "It was just part of cricket" while condemning the actions of Sarfraz: "It just wasn't cricket".In the end, Australia won the second Test and tied the series one Test apiece. <mask> had started his Australian captaincy with a win. His success in his one Test in charge saw <mask> appointed as captain of the Australian team for the 1979 Cricket World Cup to be held in England. The Australian team was not expected to do well and lived up to those low expectations by not making the semi-finals. A Test series in India was next for <mask> and his team. In a rain-affected series,

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 Australia was unable to win a match, losing two and drawing another four. However, Wisden had praise for <mask>, remarking that there "was a marked development in <mask>'s technique of playing spin bowling" and that "the heavy burden of captaincy had no adverse effect on his batting".His best performance was in the first Test at Chennai (then called Madras), where he scored exactly 100 runs in the first innings, batting in a responsible fashion. Over the series, <mask> topped the aggregate and the averages for Australia, scoring 594 runs at an average of 59.40. Reunification

In 1979, World Series Cricket and the Australian Cricket Board agreed to the reunification of the Australian team. <mask>—along with the other establishment players—now had to compete with the returning WSC players, not only for spots in the Australian team, but also for spots in their respective state teams as well. Many experts in the press did not include <mask> in a full-strength Australian squad and former Australian captain and Packer player, Ian Chappell agreed saying, "Frankly, I can't even see a spot in the [Australian] squad for <mask>" Ultimately <mask> was included in the Australian squad, but was now vice-captain, with Greg Chappell—the captain before the split—restored to this position. England and the West Indies both toured Australia in 1979–80. <mask> started the summer well, making 139 not out in the first Test against a West Indian line-up including bowlers such as Andy Roberts, Michael Holding and Joel Garner.He hit 18 boundaries that innings, 10 of them from the hook shot. The next Test, against England in Perth, <mask> was out one run short of his century, attempting to hit Derek


texts: Underwood out of the ground. A short tour to play Pakistan followed in February 1980, where <mask> made 182 runs in the three-Test series, averaging 36.40. The Centenary Test at Lord's Cricket Ground in August 1980 was a triumph for <mask>. Much of the first three days' play was lost due to bad weather but in that time <mask> played what Wisden would describe as "two innings of the highest quality." <mask> scored a century in the first innings, 117 runs including 14 fours and 3 sixes. His second innings only totalled 84 runs before he was dismissed by Ian Botham.It was this innings, however, that was seen as his most brilliant of the match. His 84 runs included 11 fours and 2 sixes, one of which struck the top deck of the pavilion; <mask> having stepped down the pitch to hit Chris Old back over his head. Former England captain Gubby Allen could not recall a more remarkable straight hit. Cricket writer RS Whitington had to cast his mind back more than 40 years to describe <mask>' batting as "the nearest approach to Stan McCabe in full flurry". The Test was drawn and <mask> was given the Man of the Match award, having batted on each of the five days of the match. His performance in the Centenary Test saw him named as one of the 1981 Wisden Cricketers of the Year. <mask> struggled against New Zealand in 1980–81, making only 102 runs at an average of 27.25 in three Tests.Rumours about <mask>' selection prospects again began to circulate. While <mask> was batting in the traditional Australia Day Test in Adelaide, this time against India, later that summer, his nemesis Ian Chappell opined on the airwaves that "<mask> really does need to build up a big score here. People are starting


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 to talk about him being dropped." In seeming response to this criticism, <mask> scored a double-century; 213 runs including 21 boundaries. A "magnificent innings" Wisden declared, adding that <mask>' batting "touched the heights" and that "[w]ith brilliant footwork, he scored freely off the spinners." <mask> dedicated his innings to his newborn twin sons, Sean and Simon. On-again, off-again skipper

In 1981, Australia was scheduled to tour England to play for the Ashes.Before the squad was selected, Greg Chappell announced that he would not be leading the Australian team, citing business and family reasons. In his absence, the Australian Cricket Board turned to <mask> as captain. The Australian team arrived in England in May and was greeted by rain, leaving them short of needed match practice. Nevertheless, <mask> and his team unexpectedly won the preliminary One Day International series. The first Test was played at Trent Bridge in Nottingham. Australia won the low scoring and rain affected match by six wickets, after <mask> had taken the opportunity to put England into bat after winning the toss. Australia then had the best of a drawn match in the second Test at Lord's.After making a pair in this match, Ian Botham resigned his position as captain of England. The third Test of the series was played at Headingley in Leeds. <mask>' Australians had the better of the early part of the match. Batting first, Australia made 401 runs; with <mask> contributing 89 of them. In response England only scored 174 runs and <mask> enforced the follow-on (forced to take its second batting innings immediately after its first). England were reduced to 135/7 in their second innings and the


texts: on-ground bookmakers decided to offer odds of 500–1 on an England victory. Ian Botham and Bob Willis turned the match on its head.In an extraordinary innings Botham made 149 runs, allowing England to set a target of 130 runs for Australia to win. Willis then took eight wickets for only 43 runs as Australia were all out for 111. <mask> and his Australian team had lost the match from what should have been an unbeatable position. Later, explaining what had happened, <mask> said "Botham rode his luck and we couldn't get him out. [...] In the first innings they missed catches—even Botham and [David] Gower missed them—but in the second they held everything. I'd seen Bob Willis bowl just as well at other times and not take nearly as many wickets." Australia lost the fourth Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham.This time, requiring only 151 runs to win the match, Australia reached 105/4 and seemed certain to win the match. Again, it was Botham who turned the match around, capturing 5 wickets in the space of 28 deliveries while only conceding one run. In the final Test of the series, <mask> chose to shepherd the strike to protect his partner Yallop, who was a specialist batsman. This action, something normally only done for poor, tail-end batsmen, humiliated Yallop. England won the series three Tests to one and retained the Ashes. The series was later known as "Botham's summer." With Chappell again available, <mask> returned to the vice-captaincy for the 1981–82 Tests.Australia played Pakistan first in an ill-tempered three Test series; won by the Australians two Tests to one. <mask> started the series with a century (106) in the first Test in Perth and finished the series having scored 193

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 runs overall. The other touring side that summer were the West Indies, widely considered the best team in the world at that time and supported by a potent fast bowling attack. The first Test in the series was played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Both teams were critical of the pitch prepared at the MCG for the Test. Australia were quickly reduced to 26/4 before <mask> started his effort to recover the Australian innings. <mask> decided to attack the West Indian bowling.In an interview later he said "that to hang around and defend was going to be a waste of time ... So I thought what I could do was try to play as many shots as possible." When the ninth wicket fell, <mask> had made 71 and it appeared a century was out of reach. <mask>' remaining batting partner, Alderman, was a poor batsman; it had taken him nine matches to make his first first-class run. Alderman, despite telling <mask> that he didn't give himself much chance, managed to stay with <mask> long enough for <mask> to reach 100 runs. <mask>' innings was widely praised. West Indian Andy Roberts said "He took up the challenge and it paid off for him.It was a great innings. You don't find one batsman playing that sort of innings on more than one occasion. That was just his day." The Wisden 100, a ranking of the Top 100 Test Innings of all time, ranked that innings as number nine. Last days of the Chappell era
In three Tests, <mask> scored only 29 runs on tour in New Zealand in March 1982. Greg Chappell withdrew from the Australian team to tour Pakistan in 1982, along with Dennis Lillee and Len Pascoe. The fourteen Australian Cricket Board delegates met in March to decide on an interim captain for the tour, with the


texts: two candidates <mask> and Rod Marsh.<mask> narrowly won the vote, 8 votes to 6. Marsh was offered the vice-captaincy, which he declined. Marsh later withdrew from the tour as a result of his son's illness. It was a difficult tour for <mask>' Australians. All members of the touring squad suffered from illness at one stage and at one stage <mask> threatened to take his team back to Australia after several Australian fielders were hit by projectiles thrown from the stands. Intelligent bowling by Pakistan's Abdul Qadir combined with poor fielding and lack of depth in Australia's batting saw Pakistan defeat Australia three Tests to nil. <mask> had hoped to retain the captaincy for the Ashes series in 1982–83, but the ACB chose to restore Chappell to his former position.<mask>' demotion did not affect his batting, however. He scored 469 runs against the English at an average of 67.00. His consistent run scoring saw Bill O'Reilly call <mask> "Mr. Reliable" and even Ian Chappell remarked that "After this series, not only should <mask>' conscience be clear but his slate clean in regard to the 1981 [Ashes] disaster." The highlight of the summer for <mask> was the final Test in Sydney where he batted for over 6 hours to score 137 runs. Australia retrieved the Ashes, winning the series two Tests to one. Not long after the match, Chappell relinquished his position as Australian captain; <mask> was now captain of a full-strength Australian team for the first time.Australia did not make it out of the group stage in the 1983 Cricket World Cup, winning only two of their six matches played. <mask>' team was embarrassed by a loss in their first match against Zimbabwe, at the time a mainly amateur


texts:
 side. There was a chance that Australia could still make the semi-finals with a win against India. <mask> chose to sit out the match, to give a minor injury time to heal. In his absence the Australian team was dismissed for 129 and bundled out of the tournament. <mask> decision to pull out of the match drew some criticism from the Australian press: "<mask> decision not to play was lamentable [...] this Australian team does not have a capable leader." On his return to Australia, David Hookes publicly advocated for Rod Marsh to be appointed Australian captain in <mask>' place, saying on Adelaide radio, "Maybe <mask> has got to be an apprentice to someone everyone respects."<mask> replied 'It's nice to know the Australian captain has got the support of his vice-captain." Under some pressure from cricket officials, <mask> was persuaded that he should stand down from the captaincy and a letter was drafted to this effect; he changed his mind the following morning. Once again, the Australian Cricket Board voted 8–6 to appoint <mask> as captain for the 1983–84 series against Pakistan. This time <mask> led a full strength Australian team, including former captain Greg Chappell and his fellow Western Australians, Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh. <mask>' Australians defeated Pakistan comfortably, two Tests to nil. <mask> himself scored 375 runs in the series, including one century at Adelaide where he "confounded the cunning Qadir". At the end the season, Chappell, Lillee and Marsh—the Australian team's most experienced players—retired from international cricket.Downfall
Australia was scheduled to tour the West Indies in 1984. The players selected for the tour were presented with official

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texts: contracts by the Australian Cricket Board. The contracts sought to bind the players to only play in ACB approved cricket for a period of twelve months after the expiry of the tour, without offering any additional compensation. To the dismay of the Board, <mask> stood by his team and with his lawyer drafted a compromise agreement that gave the players some financial security. The West Indies was commonly regarded at that times as the best team in the world and <mask>' new-look Australian team now had to take them on without the recently retired Marsh, Lillee and Chappell. Bob Simpson commented, "The saddest and hardest lot for any captain is taking over the remnants of a once-great team. I wouldn't be in <mask>' shoes for quids."In addition, the Australian team was badly affected by injury; Yallop withdrew with a knee injury and Kepler Wessels, Graeme Wood, Steve Smith, Rodney Hogg and Carl Rackemann all were unfit to play at times during the tour. Australia lost the series three Tests to nil. After managing to draw the first two Tests, they lost the next three; the West Indies did not lose a second innings wicket all tour. <mask> did not have a successful tour with the bat, scoring 215 runs at an average of 21.50. The pressure of the tour told on <mask>. In a match against Trinidad and Tobago, <mask> protested against what he saw as unreasonableness by the opposition by treating the remainder of the match with contempt; not attempting to win. Afterwards <mask> said he could not care less about the welfare of cricket in Trinidad and Tobago; the management fined him for this comment.In the second Test, Rodney Hogg threw a punch at <mask>, frustrated that he was not given the field


texts:
 he wanted by his captain. <mask> then enjoyed a rare overseas captaincy triumph, leading Australia to a 3–0 victory in a one day series against India. However there was no extended respite for the Australians; the West Indies returned to Australia for the 1984–85 season. The Australian team remained positive; Allan Border said, "We are thinking of beating them, Laugh all you want." Despite this attitude, the Australians lost the first Test by an innings and 112 runs. <mask> made only four runs in the first innings, out
playing the hook shot despite a pre-series pledge not to play the stroke. Again, the pressure from the media came; Ian Chappell used his newspaper column to heavily criticise <mask>.Chappell continued his criticism of <mask> during the standard pre-match interview before the broadcast of the second Test in Brisbane. The Test was another struggle for the Australians. Australia was bowled out for 175 and then <mask> then dropped two catches in the West Indian innings. In the Australian second innings, <mask> made only four. The next morning, before play, <mask> rang the Australia team manager and said "I want to quit as Australian captain." Relinquishing the captaincy
With assistance from Greg Chappell, <mask> wrote his letter of resignation. During the day's play, <mask> confided in his teammates, announcing his decision.Allan Border, his vice-captain, advised him to reconsider; <mask> refused. At the press conference at the end of the day's play, <mask> announced, "I have something to read." <mask> was visibly emotional while reading his letter and broke down in tears halfway through, leaving the rest for team manager Bob Merriman to read on his behalf as he


texts: quickly left the press conference. Australia went on to lose the match by eight wickets, with <mask> scoring 34 and 4. Press reaction to <mask>' resignation and his emotional state was mixed. Former Australian captain and television broadcaster Bill Lawry said "The demise of <mask> in Brisbane in a manner equal to be being dragged down like a dingo in the pack and devoured by your own, within and without, was a disgrace." The respected ABC radio broadcaster Alan McGilvray on the other hand was more blunt: "[<mask>] is a little boy who has not yet grown up."<mask> was widely mocked for his tears, which were seen as unmanly and un-Australian. Barry Humphries—the satirist behind Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson—wondered if "<mask>'s cricket box was on too tight" and claimed that a real Australian in that situation "would simply chunder". In 2002, a British journalist remarked of <mask>' tears as "one inadequate captain getting life so out of proportion as to make a complete clown of himself." It is claimed in the press from time to time that <mask> is now as much remembered for his tears as for his achievements in cricket. <mask> retained his place in the Australian team for the third Test in Adelaide under new captain, Allan Border. <mask> failed in both innings, scoring a duck in the first innings and only two runs in the second. <mask> joined the Australian team in Melbourne for the fourth Test.Despite warm support from the MCG crowd, <mask> made a humiliating pair; in his last innings he was out from the first ball he faced—a golden duck. He never played in a Test match again. He played in some of the remaining One Day Internationals but without success. When the

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 Australian team was chosen for the tour of England in 1985, <mask> was not included. Rebel and retirement
While the Australian team for England was being selected, the South African Cricket Union (SACU) was arranging a "rebel" Australian team to tour South Africa. As a result of the apartheid policy of the white minority government, South Africa was cast out of the International Cricket Council and subjected to a boycott. With his old adversaries Greg Chappell as a national selector and Rod Marsh playing an analogous role for the Western Australian team, <mask> felt that his options in Australian cricket were limited and he chose to join the rebel team as the captain.<mask> was one of the last players to join the rebel team; indeed he found out that many of the rebel squad had signed up with the South Africans during the 1983 World Cup, when he was confirmed as captain. At a press conference after the announcement of the team, <mask> announced:  <mask> was heavily criticised for his decision. Desmond Tutu called him a hypocrite and Prime Minister Bob Hawke called him a comforter of racists. The criticism was hurtful to <mask> who, seemingly puzzled, remarked to friends "People think I'm a racist." In South Africa, even before his team arrived <mask> was "a hero, larger than a Reagan ... [Australia's] most exotic export since Breaker Morant." The rebel team played two series against the South African team—in 1985–86 and 1986–87—and lost them both 1 "Test" to nil. In the first series, <mask> left himself stranded on 97 when the second "Test" at Newlands in Cape Town ended in a draw.In the following match at Wanderers in Johannesburg, <mask> was dismissed for a king pair; dismissed