Cody Rhodes vs. Randy Orton Last Man Standing Winner, Top Highlights from WWE Crown Jewel 2026

Cody Rhodes beat Randy Orton in a Last Man Standing match at WWE Crown Jewel on Saturday.

In what was a brutally physical bout, Rhodes finally put Orton down for a 10 count by hitting him with his own signature punt:

Rhodes absorbed a ton of punishment en route to victory, including going through a folding table and the announce table, and taking a low blow:

The rivalry between Rhodes and Orton dates back to before WrestleMania 42 when Orton turned heel by viciously attacking his longtime friend ahead of their WWE Championship match.

Rhodes beat Orton at WrestleMania to retain the WWE title, but The Viper got the last laugh in many respects by laying Cody out with a punt after the match.

Orton disappeared from WWE programming for the next few months, but he resurfaced at SummerSlam to cost Rhodes in his WWE Championship match against CM Punk.

About a month later, Orton and Rhodes clashed in a grudge match at Sunday Night's Main Event, and Cody appeared to have Randy right where he wanted him.

The American Nightmare hesitated while preparing for a punt, though, allowing Orton to hit him with a low blow and RKO for the victory.

With the personal nature of their rivalry continuing to elevate with each passing week, Rhodes and Orton got into a number of physical and verbal skirmishes on SmackDown.

Rhodes eventually took it out on Baron Corbin by hitting him with a punt following a match that ended in a disqualification thanks to interference by Orton.

With that, Rhodes made it clear that he had the killer instinct needed to go up against and potentially beat Orton.

Orton accepted Cody's proposal of a Last Man Standing match at Crown Jewel, and although Randy did not seem to believe that Rhodes had what it took to beat him in such a brutal environment, The American Nightmare proved him wrong at Crown Jewel.