Examining Randy Orton's Win-Loss Record Against John Cena

Randy Orton is by no means immune to the dominant way that John Cena is booked.

A look at The Viper's win-loss record against the man he will face at Hell in a Cell reminds us of just how precious a victory over Cena is. Cena has long been WWE's unstoppable force, the Goliath only occasionally falling to Davids.

Orton has slung a few stones Cena's way, but their rivalry is far from even statistically.

WWE clearly believes it best for business to have Cena win and win often. Even against Orton, a man who has been a marquee star for just as long as he has, the company is reticent to have Cena lie down for a three-count.

A look at the collected match info at CageMatch.net provides a deeper look at the gap between how Cena and Orton are presented.

After years of battling each other, stretching back to their days at WWE developmental, those two stars are at it again. That's consistently led to defeat for The Apex Predator.

Orton is just 2-12 against Cena in 2014. After outlasting the leader of the Cenation and four other challengers at Elimination Chamber in February, Orton has lost 11 straight times to him:

• John Cena vs. Kane, Seth Rollins and Randy Orton: Raw, Oct. 6
• John Cena and Dean Ambrose vs. Kane and Randy Orton: SmackDown, Oct. 3
• John Cena and Dean Ambrose vs. Kane and Randy Orton: Raw, Sept. 29
• John Cena vs. Randy Orton: Raw, Sept. 22
• John Cena, Chris Jericho and Roman Reigns vs. Kane, Seth Rollins and Randy Orton: Raw, Sept. 1
• John Cena vs. Randy Orton vs. Kane and Roman Reigns: Battleground 2014
• John Cena and Roman Reigns vs. Kane, Seth Rollins and Randy Orton: Raw, July 14
• John Cena and Roman Reigns vs. Kane and Randy Orton: Raw, June 30
• John Cena vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Roman Reigns vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Sheamus vs. Cesaro vs. Randy Orton vs. Kane: Money in the Bank 2014
• John Cena, Sheamus and Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt, Alberto Del Rio, Cesaro, Randy Orton: Raw, June 23
• John Cena, Sheamus and Roman Reigns vs. Bray Wyatt, Alberto Del Rio, Cesaro, Randy Orton: SmackDown, June 20

One of the bigger takeaways from this stretch is that Orton has faded from the spotlight to a degree as part of The Authority. He has to constantly share the stage with Rollins and Kane. He still hasn't had a one-on-one rematch for the world title after losing it at WrestleMania.

Instead, he's been one of many moving parts in a story that centers around Cena, Ambrose and Reigns before his injury.

The narrative has seen him often play on the losing team, not gaining as much individual momentum as he would otherwise.

Nevertheless, losing to Cena is nothing new for him.

In their many one-on-one matches, Orton is only 7-13 against him. In tag team action, his winning percentage worsens. Orton and his partners are 4-28 in tag team bouts when facing a Cena-led squad.

It's during pay-per-views that the story changes.

WWE pens happy endings on TV, but at the bigger events, the company is apparently more willing to branch out from the typical babyface-overcomes-heel story—at least when it comes to Orton.

While men like Mark Henry, Ryback and R-Truth have fallen to Cena on the big stage, that's where The Viper most often strikes. In their one-on-one pay-per-view contests, Orton is 5-3 against Cena.

Event	Date	Winner
Royal Rumble	Jan. 26, 2014	Orton (via pinfall)
TLC	Dec. 15, 2013	Orton (via retrieving titles)
Bragging Rights	Oct. 25, 2009	Cena (via 6 falls to 5)
Hell in a Cell	Oct. 4, 2009	Orton (via pinfall)
Breaking Point	Sept. 13, 2009	Cena (via submission)
SummerSlam	Aug. 23, 2009	Orton (via pinfall)
No Way Out	Feb. 17, 2008	Cena (via DQ)
Unforgiven	Sept. 16, 2007	Orton (via DQ)

That's not even including Orton's win over Cena and Triple H at WrestleMania XXIV, defeating both those foes again at Night of Champions 2009, and Orton's winning a Six-Pack Challenge that included Cena at Night of Champions 2010.

Throw in Orton winning this year's WWE title Elimination Chamber bout, and it's increasingly clear that WWE is more comfortable with letting him best Cena than most of the roster.

That comes with a caveat, though. There is so often an asterisk next to a Cena defeat.

Orton's win at the Royal Rumble event came courtesy of Bray Wyatt and family distracting the wristband aficionado. At SummerSlam 2009, he needed a referee bump and fan interference to win. At that year's Hell in a Cell, there were more ref-related shenanigans.

So, yes, WWE will allow Orton to beat Cena but usually due to mitigating circumstances that parents can explain to their kids. "Cena would have won, but..."

When the cage doors close at Hell in Cell 2014, Orton fans know that he has a better shot than most at coming out on top. History has shown that he is portrayed as being capable of conquering the 15-time champ—but usually with some help.

Kane and Rollins will be happy to provide that on Oct. 26 as the goons itching to gang up on Superman.