 Afterwards , Orton proclaimed himself " The Legend Killer " , a young upstart who was so talented that he touted himself as the future of professional wrestling . He embarked on numerous storyline feuds with " legendary " wrestlers and gained infamy for his blatant disrespect of many older , well @-@ respected names in wrestling history . With the help of his stablemate and mentor Ric Flair , he defeated Shawn Michaels at Unforgiven in the first of many high @-@ profile matches billed as " Legend versus Legend Killer . " Orton then spat in the face of Harley Race on the April 26 , 2004 Raw . During this time , Orton began using the move that would become his signature finisher , the RKO , a jumping cutter named after his initials . Orton soon defeated Rob Van Dam for the Intercontinental Championship at Armageddon on December 14 , 2003 . With this win , Orton started the longest Intercontinental Championship reign in seven years , holding the title for seven months . Orton continued to establish himself as a " Legend Killer " throughout 2004 , challenging the semi @-@ retired wrestler Mick Foley . Famed for his hardcore matches and ability to handle excruciating pain , Foley offered Orton a hardcore " Legend versus Legend Killer " match for his Intercontinental Championship . At Backlash , in a bloody match involving thumbtacks and barbed wire , Orton defeated Foley . Two months later at Bad Blood , he retained the Intercontinental Championship against Shelton Benjamin . In July , at Vengeance , Edge defeated Orton to win the Intercontinental Championship , ending Orton 's seven @-@ month title reign . After losing the Intercontinental Championship , Orton became the number one contender for the World Heavyweight Championship after winning a 20 @-@ man battle royal on July 26 . 
