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On the July 2 episode of Raw, Runnels made his television debut, using the ring name Cody Rhodes, in a backstage segment with his father Dusty Rhodes and Randy Orton, where Orton introduced himself to Rhodes and then slapped Dusty as a sign of disrespect.[19] On July 9, Rhodes slapped Orton in return, and the following week, Rhodes faced Orton in his debut WWE match, but lost.[20][21] Rhodes appeared at The Great American Bash to prevent Orton from further attacking his father.[22] The next night on Raw, Rhodes challenged Orton to a rematch from the previous week, only to lose again. Orton followed this up by kicking Rhodes' father in the head, similar to how he had, in storyline, nearly ended the careers of Shawn Michaels and Rob Van Dam.[23]
Rhodes' next storyline was a rivalry with Daivari, after he pinned him on the July 30 episode of Raw, to keep his job.[24] In the midst of this rivalry, he also feuded with The World's Greatest Tag Team, defeating both members, Charlie Haas and Shelton Benjamin in singles matches.[25][26] The two feuds combined, when Rhodes, along with Paul London and Brian Kendrick, beat The World's Greatest Tag Team and Daivari in a six-man tag team match.[27] The following week, Rhodes teamed up with Mickie James to defeat Daivari and Jillian Hall, ending their scripted rivalry.[28]
Three weeks later, he began a feud with Hardcore Holly and lost three consecutive matches to him.[29][30][31] Rhodes eventually earned Holly's respect, impressing Holly during their matches with his persistence and several near-falls, and the two formed a tag team.[32][33] They earned a shot at the World Tag Team titles by defeating Paul London and Brian Kendrick and The Highlanders in a WWE.com exclusive match after an Alabama Slam.[34] They fought against the Tag Team Champions Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch at Survivor Series, in what was Rhodes' first on-screen title shot and pay-per-view match, but were unsuccessful.[35] On the November 19, 2007 episode of Raw, Rhodes faced Holly for a fourth time, and beat him for the first time, although they were both attacked by Randy Orton afterwards.[36]
On December 10, 2007, on the Raw 15th Anniversary special episode, Rhodes along with Hardcore Holly defeated Lance Cade and Trevor Murdoch for the World Tag Team Championship, marking Rhodes' first championship in WWE.[37][38] The following week, Rhodes and Holly retained their title, in their first title defense, against Cade and Murdoch.[39] They also successfully defended the championships against the teams of Santino Marella and Carlito and Paul London and Brian Kendrick.[40][41] In May 2008, Ted DiBiase began feuding with the duo, threatening to take their titles in his first match as part of the Raw brand |
