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Cena entered the ring and battled Tarver. Cena shoved Tarver into the corner, then tagged in Sheamus while shooting a look to Orton. Slater tagged in and the red-headed kids battled in the ring. Sheamus slowed down the pace and knocked Slater to the outside before rolling him back into the ring. There just isn’t any energy to this match right now. Otunga tagged in to no reaction, then paced the ring and grabbed a basic side headlock. Sheamus and Otunga collided mid-ring, then Sheamus clotheslined Otunga, who tried posing in Sheamus’s face. Sheamus was then isolated – yes, the heel champion playing babyface in peril – as Nexus stomped away on him. Sheamus never made it out of the corner after a couple of hope spots and Slater eventually pinned Sheamus at 7:10. I don’t get that booking at all.

John Cena then came in hot and dropped the Five Knuckle Shuffle on Slater. He wanted the Attitude Adjustment and connected for a pin on Slater at 7:52. Wade Barrett entered next and dumped Cena to the outside. Nexus seized the opportunity to stomp away on Cena ringside. Barrett rammed Cena head-first into the announce table before rolling him back into the ring for a two count. Gabriel came in and landed some basic offense. Otunga then tagged in and showed how green he is in the ring before Cena countered a suplex attempt.

Otunga cleared Orton off the ring apron, but Cena sprung to life and slapped on the STF for a tap-out at 10:30. Gabriel then came right off the top with the 450 splash on Cena for a pin on Cena at 10:37. Orton then snuck in the back door and dropped Gabriel with the RKO for a pin at 10:52. Tarver came in next and took an RKO for another pin at 11:03. Barrett then hit the ring and dropped Orton with his overhead slam finisher. Barrett made the cover for the win at 11:14. Five decisions in less than one minute. Very fitting for this show. Barrett posed in the ring with a smile on his face as Cole suggested Barrett’s in control heading to Night of Champions. They signed off 12 minutes past the hour.

WINNERS: Team Nexus at 11:14.

Gallery Link:
- Promotional Photos > Official WWE Promo’s (HQ)
- WWE Related > RAW & Smackdown! Live Event Photography (HQ)
- WWE Related > Pay-Per-View Live Event Photography (HQ)

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RANDY ORTON vs. JOHN MORRISON vs. TED DIBIASE (w/Maryse) — triple threat match
Sheamus took off from his throne after the bell sounded. Cole also noted the history between Orton and DiBiase from Legacy. That seems like a distant, distant memory with how far DiBiase has fallen since WrestleMania. Cole also noted every title will be defended at Night of Champions. Lawler said he couldn’t think of a better place for NOC than Chicago. Earlier, he said he couldn’t think of a better place for Raw episode #900 than Boston. Orton absorbed an early beating from DiBiase, then ducked an attempted Flying Chuck from Morrison and dropped DiBiase with a trademark spike DDT from the second rope.

Orton stalked DiBiase for the RKO, but DiBiase shoved him off and Morrison blasted Orton with a kick. Morrison then went flying over the top rope to the outside trying to attack Ted. DiBiase tried to follow up on Orton with Dream Street, but Orton blocked and shoved him away. Morrison then tried a springboard splash on Orton, but Orton caught Morrison in mid-air with an RKO. It was a bit off (with Morrison’s foot hitting the mat before Orton hit the RKO), ala the mid-air RKO on Evan Bourne countering the Air Bourne, but the crowd popped big for the visual. Orton made the cover on Morrison for the win. Post-match: DiBiase tried to attack Orton, but Orton dropped him with the RKO for good measure. Orton still in control and looking strong.

WINNER: Orton at 4:42.

The Raw GM buzzd and Cole, annoyed, said he has received another email from the GM. Cole opened up the laptop and said the GM would like everyone to know he has upheld Barrett’s request. That drew a pop. But, that’s not at all. Cole read that Sheamus spoke of opportunity earlier tonight, so he’s giving four other wrestlers a title shot. So, at NOC, Sheamus will defend in a Six-Pack challenge. Sheamus had a great facial expression with his countenance dropping. He flipped out. Barrett was perplexed.

Also in the match will be…Chris Jericho. Jericho’s music hit and Jericho walked out on stage to the ring with a big grin on his face. Also, Randy Orton. Sheamus just closed his eyes and stared down at the mat as Orton slowly walked out to the ring with a half-smile on his face. Orton and Sheamus had a brief stare down, then Cole announced Edge as another competitor. Edge bounced out to the ring as Sheamus surveyed the scene. After a pause, Cole announced John Cena as the final competitor. Cena hit the ring as Sheamus wiped his brow.

All five challengers circled around Sheamus, who shoved Barrett into the circle. Cena, Edge, Orton, and Jericho circled around Barrett, who told them that Sheamus is the champ, so go after him. The announcers noted Barrett is usually the one circling up folks. Barrett tried to reason with Cena, who led a beat down on Barrett. Sheamus then chucked Barrett out of the ring, with Barrett smacking the ground head-first. Sheamus then turned around and took a codebreaker from Jericho. Edge speared Jericho, then Cena dropped Edge with Attitude Adjustment. And, finally, Orton dropped Cena with an RKO. Orton did his big IED wild flailing as the crowd popped big for Orton. Cole said Orton is “slithering his way to Boston” for episode #900 in control going to Night of Champions. Orton posed in the ring as they faded out.

Tokyo, Japan (August 21st, 2010) Randy Orton beat Wade Barrett.
Barrett came out first and cut a great promo, saying he’d been studying some Japanese. The crowd disagreed with his assessments of ‘Nexus-ichiban’ (number one) and ‘Japan-not ichiban.’ His lessons amounted to one word then. Barrett said he was sending out an open challenge and Orton obliged. They had about twelve minutes of a normal Orton match, solid if unspectacular. Toward the end, Otunga came out to interfere, but a miscue led to the Nexus members butting heads and Orton landing the RKO. He followed up with an emphatic second RKO before scoring the pin, which might not say good things about Nexus going forward. Barrett definitely looked comfortable with the big star though.

Gallery Links:
- RAW Houseshow – 08/21/2010 – Tokyo, Japan
- Special Tours > 2010 > Shanghai, China 2010

Randy Orton beat WWE champion Sheamus via DQ;
Sheamus retained the WWE Title. Orton was totally over. Only two people in the building were rooting for Sheamus, including my friend. For the finish, Sheamus pushed the referee to cause the DQ, with the win going to Orton. Afterward, Sheamus got a chair and tried to hit Orton with it, but Orton ducked and hit the RKO for a huge buzz from the crowd.

Gallery Links:
- Special Tours > 2010 > Tokyo, Japan 2010
- RAW Houseshow – 08/20/2010 – Tokyo, Japan

Randy Orton def. Sheamus via DQ.
Sheamus shoved the ref as Randy was getting ready to RKO him. After the match, The Miz came to cash his MITB, but got an RKO from Orton.

Gallery Link:
- Special Tours > 2010 > Honolulu, Hawaii 2010

Gallery Link:
- Magazines/Publications > WWE Magazines > September 2010

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RANDY ORTON vs. JUSTIN GABRIEL — If Gabriel loses, he’s out of Nexus
They came face-to-face after the opening bell and Orton glared down at Gabriel, who shoved him in the chest. Gabriel landed a few kick strikes, but Orton began dominating the match. Orton was in control, ready to take it home, but, suddenly, WWE champion Sheamus showed up ringside. Orton rolled to the outside and they started fighting on the outside before taking it over the guardrail to the front row. The ref reached a ten count and Orton was counted out, giving Gabriel the win. Meanwhile, Orton and Sheamus continued to brawl among the fans. Roberts then announced Gabriel as the winner, giving Orton pause.

Orton, having taken out Sheamus, then charged the rung, spun Gabriel around, and dropped him with the RKO. Orton wasn’t done, as he left the ring to find a chair to his liking. The crowd was hot for Orton, who blasted Sheamus over and over across the back with the chair. Refs tried to intervene as Orton shouted to let out his frustration from not winning the WWE Title at Summerslam. “Randy Orton has snapped here tonight,” Lawler said. The crowd chanted his name as he rubbed his face on the way out. Orton then stopped and decided he wasn’t done. Orton sprinted to the other side of the ring by the announcers and dropped Sheamus with an RKO on the padded floor. Orton pounded the announce table, shot a sinister grin to the crowd, and his music played. Orton looked at his hands and Cole said something at Summerslam sent him off. He posed on the entrance ramp to conclude the segment.

WINNER: Gabriel via count-out at 2:53. The needed emphasis was on Orton back on the WWE Title chase taking his game to the next level. Although these non-finishes are coming too frequently lately, this one served a bigger purpose. The crowd was hot for Orton, which really added to the segment. Meanwhile, Nexus goes to 3-0. Sure, it was no thanks to Gabriel’s effort, but that fit the group being heels distorting the truth and the match story was more about Orton-Sheamus.

« Screen Captures · Digitals »

Orton pounded the mat as Sheamus returned to the ring. He hit the DDT off the second rope and then played to the crowd some more. The crowd popped and some feared he was going to pop his shoulder out again. He went for the RKO, but Sheamus blocked it. Cole mis-called it and declared that Orton hit it before realizing he didn’t. From a certain angle it definitely looked like a typical RKO, but Sheamus did push him off. Sheamus went for a quick pin and got a near fall. He set up the High Cross, but Orton escaped. Orton went for an RKO again, but Sheamus escaped and thrust kick him in the face. Orton kicked out. Sheamus threw a fit as Lawler exclaimed, “What?! How did Randy Orton survive that?”

Sheamus grabbed a chair from ringside as Lawler wondered if Sheamus wondered if he beat Orton. The ref tried to yank the chair from Sheamus. Sheamus yanked it back and sent the ref tumbling to the floor. The ref called for the bell and DQ’d Sheamus. Sheamus smiled.

WINNER: Orton via DQ in 18:00.

-Afterward Sheamus held the chair and waited for Orton to stand. Orton ducked a swing and kicked Sheamus between his legs. Orton then picked up the chair. He yanked Sheamus to the floor, cleared the announce table, and then set up Sheamusf for a RKO on the table. The table didn’t collapse. Sheamus tumbled to the floor as Orton huffed and puffed.

Truth be told, the Irishman will have his hands full when he battles Orton in a WWE Championship Match at SummerSlam. While Sheamus attempts to retain his second WWE Championship, The Apex Predator has his flickering eyes hoping for his sixth.

But this time, by order of the Raw General Manager, if anyone interferes in the WWE Championship match, it’ll equal an indefinite suspension. And if Orton loses at SummerSlam, he’ll get no rematch, and will go to the back of the line.

For each Superstar, the path to a WWE Title Match has proven demanding. Sheamus was forced to best John Cena at Money in the Bank in a controversial Steel Cage Match that witnessed the meddling influence of The Nexus. Meanwhile, Orton earned his opportunity by defeating Edge and Chris Jericho in a punishing Triple Threat Match on Raw. The common thread between these two competitors being that each appears to straddle the tenuous line between aggression and transgression.

In the end, though, The Viper offers his opponent a thorny set of challenges as slithery and unpredictable as any in WWE history. And while Sheamus may appear as fair as his beloved Cliffs of Moher, he’s also just as rugged and unforgiving – and leaves Orton with a task equally as steep.

Gallery Links:
– Press Related Events > August 13th, 2010 – SummerSlam KickOff Party

Gallery Links:
– Press Related Events > August 13th, 2010 – SummerSlam KickOff Party

Last year, I spoke with WWE superstar MVP. During the interview, our conversation turned to who was the best worker in the WWE right now. I said, “Randy Orton,” and MVP stopped talking. After a moment of silence, he said, “There isn’t anybody better right now, is there? He does everything perfectly.”

In a business stuffed with major egos and competitive fire, that is perhaps the best praise you can earn. A year later, nothing has changed. Orton, a third-generation wrestler (His grandfather Bob Orton Sr. and his father, “Cowboy” Bob Orton, both performed) is, in many people’s opinion, still the best worker in the WWE. Well, OK, a few things have changed. For years, Orton, nicknamed “The Viper,” was the greatest heel working. He was a nasty snake in the grass with piercing blue eyes and a demeanor that screamed “evil,” and the crowd loved to hate him. But as with Triple H and a slew of vicious heels before him, that hate eventually turned to respect, and Orton was suddenly a fan favorite. This Sunday, Aug. 15, he heads into his WWE Championship match at SummerSlam (arguably the biggest WWE pay-per-view outside of WrestleMania) in Los Angeles against current heel champion Sheamus as a babyface. A ruthless, edgy babyface seeking his sixth championship belt in six years, but one nonetheless.

Recently, the usually private Orton granted us a rare interview, via phone, to discuss his upcoming match, how he and the business have changed, and much more.

MSN TV: Where are you right now?
Randy Orton: I’m home, briefly. St. Louis.

Can you talk about the travel for the WWE? How brutal is it, especially now that you have a child? [Orton's wife gave birth to a daughter in 2008.]
It’s hard. Any of us with family, it’s hard to be away so much. But the toughest part of travel is that it’s harder on your body than performing in the ring. Renting cars, driving 1,000 miles a week — which is what we average — the airports, which is five or six times a week … it’s tough. If you have a couple of good books and a computer, you can get through it. But with us taking all of the falls we do in the ring and landing on our back, dozens of times a night, all year round, and then sitting in a rental car or an airplane after a show, that is really the hardest part. You aren’t really able to wind down and get flat. There is no time to recover. The most important things when taking care of yourself, if you’re a body-builder or anybody in fitness, is diet, training and recovery. We have the diet down. We can make do with McDonald’s all day and figure out what’s healthy and get by. We all get to the gym. But we can’t recover, so we’re missing one of the key elements to keep your body in tip-top condition, and that is why we get hurt.

Being a third-generation superstar, you must have gotten a lot of advice from your dad and granddad about the business. Is it true your dad didn’t want you to wrestle?
The travel was different when they were wrestling. They used to drive around to territories, and then my dad settled in the WWE. There were a lot less airplanes, but they drove a lot more. I don’t know if it’s different. What’s worse or what’s better: Driving or sitting in an airport waiting for a plane? It takes four hours for an hour flight.

They just gave me tips and hints for living out of a suitcase. As far as the wrestling, my dad didn’t tell me “no.” That was my mom. [Laughs] My dad just tried to steer me away from it. I was in the Marine Corps for a year and a half, and that didn’t work out too well and I wanted to wrestle. At that point, he said, “OK, OK. I’ll call Vince McMahon.” So we had a tryout in late 1999, and the rest was history.

You are still the youngest superstar to ever hold the world championship. You were 24 when you did it. Looking back, can you talk about how you were then versus how you are now, six titles later?
A lot has changed. The biggest thing, for me, is my confidence in myself. Whenever I see footage from back then, like that match when I won my first championship, ohhh, it just makes me cringe. That’s kind of how we all are. We all evolve into a better performer, whether it’s on the microphone or in-ring abilities or your charisma or your facials. That last one is big with me. I believe that the audience, especially the TV audiences, you really let them in when you give the camera a chance to see your facials, to see what you’re thinking, and what’s going on in your head. I don’t have any flashy moves that I do. I don’t pick up wrestlers and slam them. I don’t jump off the third turnbuckle onto someone. I just think that if you have energy or emotion behind what you are doing, it doesn’t really matter what you’re doing. So, all of my stuff is pretty basic. And where I’ve come from, with all of my injuries, it’s better and safer to have good facials than an aerial stunt or picking a huge guy up. Usually the younger guys with bodies that don’t break as easily, they tend to learn this the hard way, as I did.

You’ve been a great heel for many years. Now, out of respect for your attitude and ability, fans basically forced you back into a babyface role. I’ve talked to Edge and Triple H, and both say they wanted to be heels forever. How does it feel to go from such a fantastic villain to someone who now gets huge applause?
I am one of those guys, too, like Edge and Hunter, who wanted to be a heel forever. In my mind, as far as how I act, I still am and always will be. It doesn’t matter whether I am heel or babyface, I’ll still be the same character … unless they put a mask on me [Laughs]. I’ve kind of worked myself into a corner, but I see it as a good thing. I got lucky. I am myself, I am Randy Orton. The only downfall is people see me on the street and think I’m a prick. [Laughs]. I’m not! I swear! For some reason, I’m able to come across as screwed-up in the head. It’s turned out to be what I’m good at. But as a babyface, I’m still that same guy. It’s weird to even say that, because I don’t even feel like a babyface.

Yeah, you’re pretty much the same guy …
Yeah, the only difference is I’m up against guys the fans don’t like. And if they put me in there with the wrong guy, I’d get booed. It’s up to the booking, the story lines and what the fans want, really. Around this past WrestleMania 26, the fans really just wanted to start cheering for me. They’d seen me evolve into this character, and I was up against Ted DiBiase and Cody Rhodes, and it was like, “Yeah, I’d kinda like to see this one guy kick these other two guy’s asses.” And that was a good start to the new direction: beating up two guys that nobody liked. It gave me momentum, and I hope it keeps going.

Well, right now, you are up against another guy the fans hate at SummerSlam for the WWE Championship: WWE Champion Sheamus.
Yeah, with me and Sheamus, the momentum should continue. Although new, Sheamus has got charisma and ability. He’s been pushed to the top very quickly because of it. Besides Brock Lesnar, I can’t think of a guy who’s rose so quickly here.

It looks like you are going to face him, but there is the Miz question. He’s got the Money in the Bank briefcase and therefore can challenge Sheamus anytime he chooses and perhaps become champion before SummerSlam. Do you care who you get?
I guess you are right. I kind of tend to forget about Miz, because he doesn’t seem like much of a threat. [Laughs] Bless his little heart. I just look at him and … yeah, no comment. No comment. I don’t want to bury the guy.

How creatively involved are you in your story lines?
Well, it’s no secret that we have writers. Those writers have to get with us, and they want feedback. Anything that we come up with, they will twist it so it comes off as their original idea, just like any good writer would want to do. From A-Z, as far a story goes, you can say whatever you want, any ideas you have. You can help as much or as little as you want. Whether or not they respond or it goes the way you want it to go, that’s not up to you at all.

As a newish dad, how do you feel about WWE switching to a more PG-rated format?
At first, I wasn’t very happy with the idea. I had just gotten used to that style and the way the story lines were going. But now being a father and keeping an eye on what is on the television, I can totally understand that it’s better for business and better for our fans, too. We have a lot of young viewers, and it’s better all across the board to be PG. There are going to be some people, some older fans, that are upset with that. Well, they can go somewhere else and get their blood. They can watch a 60-year-old man bleed all over each other, if they want. That’s fine. We’ll be displaying other things on our show. You don’t need to bleed on somebody to have a good match. We’ve proven that.

You are going to be in a movie next year, “That’s What I Am.” How was that experience?
It was my first experience on a movie set. I was down in New Orleans for a week. It’s not my movie. I just have three scenes. I don’t want people to get the wrong idea. Definitely go see it; I’m in it! But don’t expect to see me from beginning to end. Ed Harris is the star of the movie. I’ve always been a huge fan of his. So with him in it, I know it’s going to be good. Just to watch him work, to watch him prepare and get himself into character, it was just really, really fun for me. I was a mark. [Laughs]

Last thing: How did you create and start using the RKO? It’s easily the best finishing move in the business right now.
Well, if you ask Diamond Dallas Page that, he’d say I called him for permission and he granted me permission to use that. Because, you know, you got to ask “permission” from old-timers before you use their move, for Christ’s sakes. Anyway, that’s not what happened … I wanted a move that I could hit anybody with, no matter how short, how tall, how fat, whatever. I can hit the Big Show with the RKO. I can hit Rey Mysterio with the RKO. John Laurinaitis, Johnny Ace, used to use the Ace Crusher, which was pretty much the Diamond Cutter, which is where DDP got it. So Johnny Ace is pretty much my boss, besides Vince, and he was helping me out six or seven years ago. He said, “Hell, Randy, why don’t you just use the Ace Crusher?” I said, “What in the hell is that?” And I started playing with it. It’s a variation of a cutter, but I think the key is I can do it to everybody. With the injuries I had sustained so early in my career, this didn’t involve power-bombing a guy after a 30-minute match, you know, having to get a 300-pound guy up on my shoulders. I just jump up, grab his neck and fall. The only time it sucks is when I have to do it on the concrete or the steel grate. That’s not a lot of fun.

Gallery Links:
- Non Wrestling Related Televison Captures > 08/10/2010 – Lopez Tonight!
- Non Wrestling Related Televison Captures > 08/10/2010 – Lopez Tonight! Special Twitter Q & A