Batista entering Hollywood after a tremendous career makes him one of the most important figures in recent wrestling memory. A top blockbuster movie actor having a Hall of Fame worthy career makes it easier to look back at the great times. Batista’s WWE career was defined by memories like beating Triple H for the World Championship or challenging The Undertaker’s streak.
However, there are plenty of other moments that fly under the radar and could be considered downright strange looking back. WWE viewed Batista as a top prospect from his debut and were proven right when he thrived in a top spot. Fans will get a kick out of looking back at the weird times that have been forgotten.
10 Stephanie McMahon Slapping Him
WWE made a lot of changes on the road to WrestleMania 30 when Batista had to turn heel and Daniel Bryan entered the title picture due to crowd reception. Triple H vs Bryan was booked with the winner entering the Randy Orton vs Batista title match to start a triple threat.
Batista having a promo exchange with Stephanie McMahon led to the odd moment of the two heels being at odds. Stephanie slapping Batista in the face felt unnecessary, but it was done to add to the issues with Triple H since they had to tell multiple stories.
9 Stealing Eddie Guerrero's Meal
The rivalry between Batista and Eddie Guerrero was strange in general when the heel Eddie tried to become best friends with Batista. One noteworthy segment that was quite underrated came when Batista stole Guerrero’s dinner backstage.
The duo was placed into unique scenarios of both men trying to mentally one up each other while outwardly treating the other as a friend. WWE ended up having a great series of moments between the two with Eddie seemingly turning face until he shockingly passed away before that story culminated.
8 Turning On Reverend D-Von
The first chapter of Batista’s career saw him being the Deacon character for D-Von’s Reverend gimmick. Batista was essentially a bodyguard for D-Von’s new persona since it was an easy way to introduce someone new.
Fans mostly remember this time going by fast, but the end of it doesn’t get much discussion. Batista violently turned on D-Von by attacking him to end their time together. WWE did this to make Batista look strong before a bigger push and to have D-Von return to the Dudley Boyz team a little too soon after they first aligned.
7 Ric Flair Gaining His Sympathy & Betraying Him
The breakup of Triple H and Batista to end Evolution ages better with time as a true masterclass in storytelling. Batista no longer trusted Triple H, but he wanted to trust Ric Flair since they were a former tag team, and it was harder to have disdain for an older legend he learned from.
Triple H taking a break from TV after losing his Backlash 2005 rematch to Batista saw Flair in harm’s way from other enemies. Batista standing up for Flair and mending fences with him put them on the same page. However, it was a huge swerve when Triple H arrived, and Flair hit a low blow to help set up the attack.
6 Representing SmackDown Vs Umaga At WrestleMania 24
WWE booked a stacked card at WrestleMania 24, but not everyone was placed in a great role. Batista had a lackluster spot on the card when facing Umaga with a unique story. Raw and SmackDown feuding led to each General Manager picking a representative to face off on the big show.
Teddy Long picked Batista to represent SmackDown against Umaga with the brand rivalry at stake. Batista had no real reason to care with his peers in world title matches, but he tried his best to make the story work.
5 Grudge With Shawn Michaels For Retiring Ric Flair
Another aspect of WrestleMania 24 involving Batista featured Ric Flair ending his career after losing to Shawn Michaels. The stipulation of Flair retiring after his next loss saw it coming on the grandest stage against Michaels in a great match.
Batista was livid at Michaels the following night and vowed to make him pay for retiring his mentor. The storyline made Batista come off as a heel without turning heel. WWE booked two matches between them with wins exchanged to make both look strong.
4 Teasing Randy Orton Feud At WrestleMania 22
Batista suffered an injury at the start of 2006 to end his World Championship reign by vacating it. Kurt Angle won a battle royal to become the new champ and eventually faced both Randy Orton and Rey Mysterio at WrestleMania 22.
WWE booked a backstage segment before that WM match with Batista confronting Orton. The exchange featured Batista teasing a match with Orton when he returned, but WWE never committed to that plan when Batista returned to the ring. That segment looks even weirder now since Orton and Batista didn’t feud until a few years later.
3 Getting Booed Out Of Building At ECW Show
WWE made a terrible decision when filming one of the ECW TV episodes at the Hammerstein Ballroom. This was the first show in an old ECW arena since the ECW brand changed from a reboot of a beloved promotion into a third-rate WWE brand.
Batista was called from SmackDown to appear on the ECW show and challenge Big Show for the ECW Championship. Fans booed him out of the building and attacked him with disrespectful chants. Any traditional WWE fans watching were likely stunned at a top face being booed that hard.
2 Helping Jim Ross Defeat Triple H
The rivalry between Batista and Triple H defined Batista’s career with many great matches and moments. WWE went a weird route that worked when having Jim Ross become part of the story. Triple H bullying Ross led to JR being forced to wrestle him in a singles match on Raw.
JR even got busted open to sell the violence of a non-wrestler having to face a wrestler. However, the ending made fans happy when Batista interrupted to save Ross. Batista even placed JR on top of Triple H to score the shocking pin fall victory.
1 Attacking Bret Hart For Vince McMahon
WWE bringing back Bret Hart in 2010 was a huge boost for the product with the legend returning for the first time in thirteen years. Shawn Michaels making peace with Bret was one part of the story before Hart moved into a feud with Vince McMahon over the Montreal Screwjob.
McMahon had a plan in his back pocket when Batista attacked Hart for trying to fight the boss one on one. Batista doing Vince’s bidding gained him a title shot against John Cena when he was weakened after an Elimination Chamber match to make their business arrangement clearer.