Randy Orton's failed babyface run was, in hindsight, as much to do with how innately detestable 'The Legend Killer' was as it was Triple H's tacit takedown of the entire aesthetic.
Orton was deeper than 6-foot under by the time he turned on Stacy Keibler and Jake Roberts in an effort to rebuild himself as a viable heel threat to The Undertaker's WrestleMania unbeaten streak - particularly as he was the first to openly target the legendary stat.
An unexpected banger was the eventual outcome. Undertaker had his best match since returning as 'The Deadman' a year earlier, whilst Orton looked better in this loss than he had every single time he'd looked at the lights for 'The Game' the prior summer.
Michael Cole was right all those years later, if for entirely different reasons. The Streak was over.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
