Randy Orton has revealed the reason that he uses the RKO as his finish in WWE, reflecting on an injury early in his career.
The move was originated by John Laurinaitis who wrestled as Johnny Ace who named it the Ace Crusher.
From the creation of the move in 1987, it would be adopted by Diamond Dallas Page as the Diamond Cutter and by Randy Orton as the RKO.
Orton would discuss the origins of his use of the cutter on the Impaulsive podcast, saying:
“Did you ever meet John Laurinaitis? He was head of talent relations for the majority of my career.
“He used to do a move called the Ace Crusher, very very similar to the RKO. Diamond Dallas Page, who I’m sure you’re familiar with, he did the Diamond Cutter, both those moves inspired me to come up with the RKO.”
In August 2022, it was revealed that WWE Head of Talent Relations Laurinaitis had been terminated by WWE following allegations against both him and Vince McMahon.
Orton would discuss moves that rarely feature in his repertoire and why the RKO works for him, adding:
“Essentially, I blew my shoulders out early in my career, I’ve had three shoulder operations. So, you can go back, and very rarely will you ever see me pick a guy up.
“If you look in the last 10 years, other than like a Rey Mysterio, or a Dom, I don’t pick guys up, I don’t do power moves, because I don’t need to do it.
“I can pick up a guy and slam him, my shoulders are healthy and fine, but when I blew them out early on, in my head I’ve got it where I’ve got to protect my shoulders.
“I go way overboard with protecting my shoulders, because I don’t want to be on the shelf with another shoulder injury.
“So I needed a move that I could do to everybody, Rey Mysterio or Omos. I wanted to be able to do that finishing move to everybody, and that was the best choice.”
In the interview, Orton would also look back at his attitude early in his career and how he was ‘a d**k’.
Since his return at WWE Survivor Series, Orton has had Judgment Day in his sights, defeating Dominik Mysterio is his first singles match back.
Orton would reflect on the evolution of Dominik Mysterio, saying it was a “pleasure to be out there with him” during their singles match.
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