10 Reasons Randy Orton Is "Mr. Survivor Series"

8. Survivor Series 2005

Despite a botched babyface turn that forced him to resort to his heelishness in early 2005, Randy Orton somehow found himself once again on the babyface side of the proceedings in that year's edition of Survivor Series. Orton was still a heel, but as a member of the SmackDown roster, he was portrayed as the underdog against the "A-show's" team.

Unlike today, where the RAW vs. SmackDown rivalry is portrayed as more-or-less a neutral battle for dominance, the 2005 Survivor Series saw a storyline that portrayed RAW as the bullies led by Eric Bischoff who believed in their inherent superiority vs. the scrappy underdog that was SmackDown. To drive this point home, the only babyface on RAW's side was Shawn Michaels, whereas, SmackDown not only had babyfaces Batista, Rey Mysterio, and Bobby Lashley, but also portrayed heels Orton and JBL in a sympathetic light.

Utilized this way, it was easy for the crowd to get behind Orton and team SmackDown. Once again, Randy found himself in a one-on-one situation against Shawn Michaels. Like in their 2003 encounter, thanks to outside interference, Randy managed to sneak the RKO on Michaels, securing the win for Team SmackDown, leading that show's locker room to flood the ring and celebrate with 'The Viper'. While still a heel at this time, this victory managed to be much sweeter than the previous year's as a weak babyface.