A week after attacking Ric Flair and calling out Triple H, Batista wasn't present for this week's episode of Monday Night Raw.

Instead, The Animal posted an Instagram video that was displayed on the jumbotron last night, when Triple H came out to defend Flair and condemn Batista for what he did to the Nature Boy.

In the Instagram video, Batista apologized to Triple H for not showing up and said it was because didn't like Philadelphia, which obviously upset the crowd. At the end, Batista said "The Game's Over," adding more tension to their renewed rivalry.

But according to Felix Upton of Ringside News, WWE originally had different plans in place for Batista. At first, the plan was for him to show up "via satellite," but WWE decided they wanted the segment to "focus" on The Game instead.

As Upton notes, the satellite segments don't always go as planned. There's always a risk of poor communication and the possibility of other superstars not being able to hear their opponent on the other side. It was simply an easier setup for Triple H to cut his promo, with Batista's Instagram video being aired during the segment.

RELATED: BATISTA'S RETURN TO WWE WILL BE VERY BRIEF [RUMOR]

Though the match hasn't been finalized yet, it's clear that WWE is building up towards another bout between the former Evolution pals at WrestleMania 35. Reports have suggested that this is going to be Batista's lone match in the WWE, before he heads back to Hollywood to continue his successful movie career.

Batista returned to WWE at the SmackDown 1000 episode, and teased a match against The Game - pointing out that he has yet to lose to his former evolution member. Four months later, WWE has started building up towards their first one-on-one showdown in 14 years.

What This Means

WWE is obviously being careful and smart with how they want to build up this match. Batista is portraying the heel once again, and this time Triple H gets to endure a rare run as the babyface. So far, the buildup has been excellent, and it'll be interesting to see how WWE plans out their meeting on Raw next week.

NEXT: DASH WILDER WANTS TO REVIVE A SET OF CLASSIC WWE TAG TEAM TITLES