WWE Backlash, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
This is still maybe my favorite angle this century in all of WWE. This was when Randy Orton became a Real Thing; 23 years old, mean-spirited, “killing legends,” and turning his attention to a retired Mick Foley. Foley took a ton of beatings from Orton, Randy spit in his face. And eventually, Mick challenged Orton to no holds barred, IC title on the line, Evolution banned from ringside. Orton had no choice but to accept.
Foley cut some great, classic style Foley promos leading up to this match. He had disappointed himself when he and The Rock lost to Orton, Batista, and Ric Flair at WrestleMania. So he went back and looked at his old barbaric matches, and he saw what he was missing, the drive in his eyes.
Foley’s promo about his old hardcore days was just phenomenal. “These were honorable men. They never spit in my face, they never took cheapshot, triple-team efforts to send me to the hospital. But the fact is, when I had the chance, I wrapped the arm in barbed wire and tore them apart!”
Orton brings some weapons out with him, and as he poses on the ramp, Jim Ross remarks, “Take a good look at his face. You may never see it in this condition again.” Foley is out in Cactus Jack attire; he is being called Mick Foley, but for all it matters, that is Cactus Jack again, one more time.
Orton tries to stand tall, but when Foley gets in there, the kid’s on the retreat immediately with Foley brandishing a barbed wire bat. But Orton gets the first real shots in, wearing Mick out with garbage can shots to the skull. Foley gets a foot up on a fourth attempt and drops the can over the back of Orton’s head on the floor outside. This is no holds barred, falls count anywhere.
Foley’s in good shape here; JR says his weight of 272 is as low as he’s been since 1989, and it shows with how well he’s moving around the ring. Foley dominates for a few moments, but Orton crawls away when Foley goes up for the Cactus Elbow to the floor. As Orton runs away, Foley catches up, but Randy hits him with a back suplex on the steel ramp. Orton then smashes the back of Foley’s head off the ramp, just flying him down hard by the hair.
Back in the ring, Orton tries to get “Barbie” into Foley’s head, and Foley mule kicks him in the nuts. Then he breaks out Socko, so OK, it’s not Cactus Jack. But then Foley lets the crowd decide: Socko or Barbie? They choose Barbie, and soon enough Orton is bleeding. With no blood in the WWE wrestling, today’s young fans of The Superstars will not learn the thrill of seeing a traditionally handsome heel get jacked up by a traditionally ugly angry babyface. I feel it’s valuable, but then I am ugly.
Orton has a look of pure terror on his face as he realizes he can’t run, and no one is going to help him. Foley tears Orton’s shirt off and legdrops Barbie into Orton’s groin, which the crowd loves.
Foley douses the bat in gasoline and intends to set it on fire, but ERIC BISCHOFF says he CAN’T??? Threatens him with the fire marshal shutting down the show. Bischoff preying on Foley’s weakness: his constant need for wrestling fans to like him. So Foley ditches the bat, but returns to beating the shit out of Orton … and fetches a barbed wire board-bed. But that backfires when Orton busts out the POCKET SAND and slams Foley onto the bed.
Orton hammers Foley down with forearms and boots in the corner, then carefully picks up the barbed wire bed and leans it in the corner. There is a HUGE gasp of anticipation when Foley reverses Orton’s Irish whip, only for Randy to re-reverse it and send Foley into the wire. Foley’s left arm is all ripped up.
Orton fetches a bag from the box he brought with him as JR and Lawler wonder what it could be. Of course, it’s thumb tacks. Orton practices lining up how to hit the RKO without himself landing in them, but when he goes for it, yes, Randy Orton, no shirt, takes the back bump into the tacks, and the ROOF BLOWS OFF.
Orton is marvelous selling the pain and fear he’s experiencing. But he kicks out at two, and JR puts over his toughness. Orton feebly slides out of the ring to pick tacks out of his flesh. He tries to leave up the ramp, but Foley runs him down. They head backstage,and we don’t follow, but they come back out in moments. Foley throwing right hands, then YEETS Orton off the stage and through some tables.
Officials tending to Orton, others trying to tell Foley that’s enough. Lawler has fully turned on Foley, saying Mick doesn’t belong in the business. And then Foley knocks a couple refs aside and dives off the stage with a flying elbow onto Orton in the rubble. After a delayed cover, Orton GETS A SHOULDER UP.
Eventually they get back to the ring, Foley dragging and punching Orton the entire way. Jim Ross has seen more than enough here; he had some fear of what we’d see coming in, but it has surpassed his expectations. Cactus hits the double arm DDT in the ring but Orton kicks out again.
Orton escapes ringside again, and manages to retrieve Barbie, hitting Cactus in the head. Foley’s now busted open above the eye with a smile on his face, and Orton wears him out with the bat. Foley finds Socko and gets the Mandible Claw on. Orton gets free, but gets it back on, AND THEN ORTON HITS THE RKO! They both stagger up, and Orton hits another one onto Barbie for the win. Flair and Batista come down to help the battered, bloodied, and victorious Randy Orton to the back.
This is it — the best match of Orton’s career, and the race is not particularly close. This match fully legitimized him as a true star on the rise, WWE calling on Foley to do sort of what he’d done with HHH as WWF champion, when Hunter was floundering in that role and Foley got him over the hump. It was credit then to HHH for having the great matches with Foley, just as it is credit to Orton here. Orton went above and beyond what he needed to do; the lack of doing that has long been a main criticism against him. Orton’s had a great, successful career, and has had some terrific matches over the years. But nothing comes close to the raw emotion of this match, and it’s really just one more confirmation of Foley’s greatness.
Tape Machines Are Rolling 
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