9. Randy Orton vs. Christian in a No Holds Barred Match for the World Heavyweight Championship – WWE SummerSlam 2011
The 2011 rivalry between Randy Orton and Christian may just be the best in-ring work of either man’s career (more on that later).
Christian regained the World Heavyweight Championship from Orton at Money In The Bank 2011 in controversial fashion, which led to a rematch under No Holds Barred stipulation at SummerSlam.
Orton and Christian’s former tag team partner Edge had an in-ring promo exchange with Captain Charisma that got into his head, but he still came out cocky about this bout.
Christian tried to use any underhanded tactic he could, but both men knew each other extremely well at this point. It was a counter for counter affair that then blended the stipulation in nicely.
Each competitor had some big time spots with Orton driving Christian through a table at ringside after hitting him with a steel chair, while Christian reversed a RKO into the Killswitch for a super near fall.
The crowd was fully invested in all the creativity on display, which played into the finish.
Just when Orton looked to set up for one final RKO, Christian nailed him with a kendo stick. He then went to the second rope for a springboard, but Orton caught him with a RKO on the steel steps for the win.
This stole the show at SummerSlam 2011 and ended this feud in a dramatic way.
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