Thanks to Inside Pulse’s own Dan Hevia for sending this my way.
The following is an interview with 2005 Royal Rumble winner, Dave Batista. Sit back and give it a read.
THERE IS NO DOUBT ABOUT IT, DAVE BATISTA CAN BEAT YOUR ASS. I MEAN, LOOK AT HIM. CLOCKING IN AT 6’5″ TALL AND 300 POUNDS, HE IS A MAN YOU WOULDN’T WANT TO MESS WITH. BUT THERE IS MORE TO THIS WRESTLEMANIA-BOUND BEHEMOTH THAN YOU’D THINK. IN FACT, THE TERM “GENTLE GIANT” MAY NEVER HAVE BEEN MORE APPROPRIATE THAN IT IS IN THE CASE OF BATISTA. NEED PROOF? JUST READ BELOW FOR A LITTLE ONE-ON-ONE OUR VERY OWN WAYNE CHINSANG HAD WITH DAVE. AND IF YOU’RE STILL NOT SOLD ON IT, NO WORRIES. WE’LL JUST SEND HIM TO YOUR HOUSE TO PROVE IT TO YOU.
Dave Batista: Hey, Wayne. How’s it going?
Wayne Chinsang: Great. How was Japan?
DB: It was great. I’m still a little bit jet-lagged, but….
WC: When did you get in?
DB: Yesterday. We actually did Hawaii, Japan, Korea, and Anchorage, Alaska.
WC: Wow.
DB: Yeah.
WC: How much of that time is spent on a plane? (laughs)
DB: This week, a lot of time. We flew out of California into Hawaii, and then to Tokyo. The next day, we flew to Korea, and then back to Tokyo, where we picked up everyone else from the SmackDown! crew. And then we flew to Anchorage. (laughs)
WC: Wow.
DB: Yeah. We did a show there that night, and then we flew out to New York. And then I finally flew home from there.
WC: So you wanna get this over with and get some rest, I imagine.
DB: (laughs) I’m just running around doing errands now, so bear with me.
WC: So, I’ve got some general questions first, and then I want to talk a little bit about WrestleMania 21.
DB: Okay.
WC: So, you’ve been wrestling for awhile now, and I’m curious what you think makes a good wrestler.
DB: A good wrestler, or a good entertainer?
WC: Both, I guess. Because what you do is a marriage of both.
DB: Yeah.
Both: (laugh)
DB: Well, for one, to be a good wrestler, I think you should look like an athlete. You should be agile, have good endurance, and you should be… oh, what do I want to say? Not smart, but…. (laughs) No, you should be smart.
Both: (laugh)
DB: I wouldn’t call everybody on the roster smart, but some guys get it better than other guys do. For the most part, wrestling is entertainment, but there is a lot more that goes with it than that. If you want to be the total package– a good wrestler and a good entertainer– then you should have all those attributes. Plus, a lot of charisma, personality, and a real good look. Be witty, intense, aggressive, and intimidating. (laughs) All these factors in one package. And there are very few people in the world who have that total package, you know?
WC: Yeah. And that actually brings me to my next question. I know that when you first got introduced into the WWE [World Wrestling Entertainment], and even up until just recently, there was a vibe with your character that you were just the muscle behind Evolution. But now you’re portraying this character that can still kick ass, but now the fans are able to attach themselves to you, and they really like what they see. Was it hard when you first came into the WWE to just sit back and be the muscle guy?
DB: Yeah, it was hard because it just wasn’t who I am. If nothing else, I’m probably just a big goofball. (laughs)
WC: Right.
DB: I’m soft-spoken. I have a bit of a temper, but it takes a lot to get me going. But, for the most part, I’m a passive guy. And they wanted me to play this serious guy who was either silent or in a fit of rage. (laughs) It just wasn’t me. It felt unnatural, and it probably came across unnatural. And that’s probably why our audience couldn’t really relate to my character.
WC: Is it weird now to have people relating to your character, because you’ve gone for so long without that?
DB: It’s really weird having people cheer for me, because my whole career I’ve been a heel. I was a heel when I was in our training camp, OVW [Ohio Valley Wrestling], but people still cheered for me somewhat. But not like now. This is a whole new experience for me.
WC: I think what’s weird is that your character hasn’t really been doing anything differently other than going against the character of Triple H–
DB: Yeah, I was gonna point that out. I don’t think I’ve done a whole lot differently. I may speak a little more, I smile a little more, be myself a little more, but I’m still the same Batista. The thing is, now that I present that rivalry with Triple H, and that he’s so hated–
Both: (laugh)
DB: –that’s where the crowd’s interest comes in. They pretty much just want to see me kill Triple H.
Both: (laugh)
WC: Like you said, you’re not really doing anything differently. And when I would watch wrestling when I was younger, there were definite good and bad guys. But now that line has kind of been blurred.
DB: It’s more of a gray area.
WC: Yeah. And I know that you’re still technically “with” the bad guys, but does it feel good to be considered a good/bad guy, as opposed to just a bad guy?
DB: I didn’t mind being a bad guy. I don’t mind being booed. I always felt like when I was being booed, or if the crowd was really cheering for the guy that I was kicking the crap out of, I always felt that I was doing my job, and I took pride in that. The thing that I like that comes along with being a good guy, so to speak, is that I get to go out and do charity stuff. I get to go out and sign autographs, and I get to stop with fans and talk and smile. You know, stuff that I didn’t really get to do before. And that was one of the biggest reasons why I got in this business, because I wanted to do things like that. I wanted to do charity work and work with kids. It might sound a little mushy, but–
WC: No, no.
DB: –those are just a few of the things that come along with being a good guy character. But, like I said, I don’t see myself doing anything different. I’m still gonna be an ass-kicking machine.
Both: (laugh)
DB: I’ll just be whooping ass on the bad guys, so to speak.
WC: Right.
DB: And nobody really likes a Mr. Goody Two-Shoes Boy Scout, you know? (laughs)
WC: Yeah.
DB: So I’m pretty much the same character. It just all depends on who I’m beating up on.
Both: (laugh)
WC: So when you came to the WWE from the OVW, did you feel like you were starting out on the bottom rung of the ladder?
DB: I definitely started off at the bottom. I don’t think I was prepared for WWE at all. I think that they wanted me to be prepared, and they forced me to be prepared. But one of the first things they did was– because I always relied on my look and my body, because it’s my strongest attribute– but I think they kind of took that away from me when I came to the WWE, because they stuck me in a goofy suit. It taught me that I had to learn to be a little more charismatic and learn how to work it. They took my body away from me, so I couldn’t just rely on that. I wasn’t at all prepared for that, and I definitely had to start over. I started from scratch when I got to the WWE.
WC: When you get handed a character, how much say do you have in those characters that you portray?
DB: I had absolutely no say at all.
Both: (laugh)
DB: They pretty much called me up and said, “This is when you’re starting. Go out and buy yourself a suit, and show up on this date. And here’s what you’re gonna be doing: you’re gonna be carrying this big goofy box, wear this goofy suit, and you’re gonna be called The Deacon.” And I wasn’t too happy about it, but I did it; it was my job. And I hate to be reminded of it. Thank you very much.
Both: (laugh)
WC: I’m sorry!
Both: (laugh)
WC: Out of all of the characters you’ve played in the past, and they’re obviously all characters, do you feel the character you play now– which is actually your real name– do you feel he’s the closest to who you really are as a person?
DB: Yeah. And I think that’s why the people are connecting with it, because I’m pretty much just being myself. I’m pretty soft-spoken, a pretty passive guy, and really, really easy going. When my temper does pop, it pops big time–
Both: (laugh)
DB: –but it takes a lot to get me there. But they pretty much just let me be myself. A little goofy, a little easy going, and I think people are connecting to it because they feel comfortable with it. It’s natural. It’s me. With the way my character was before, I was either dead silent, or I was in a fit of rage. And that just wasn’t me, and I think the people felt that, and that’s why they couldn’t connect with the character. Besides, I never spoke. They never heard me say a word.
WC: Yeah, it’s kind of weird. I’ve only been watching it for a little over a year now, but it has been weird to see a character that nobody could stand–
DB: (laughs)
WC: –turn into someone that people are rooting for all of a sudden. We watched RAW last night, and it was really weird to see people in Japan holding up signs that read “Batista”.
DB: Yeah, that was really weird. You know what was even more strange? Korea, because their TV programming is, like, seven weeks behind. So they hadn’t seen a lot of the stuff that I’ve done recently, especially the thing with the flagpole. [Batista recently shoved a flagpole up La Résistance tag-team partner Rob Conway’s ass on a recent episode of RAW.]
Both: (laugh)
DB: That won me a lot of fans. But they hadn’t seen that yet, and they were still getting behind me, so that was pretty cool.
WC: I know you’ve been wrestling for awhile now, but does the sport continue to achieve things that keep it fresh for you?
DB: Yeah. God, man, I learn stuff every week. And even guys like Triple H have told me that he never stops learning things. Vince [McMahon] has never stopped learning things. You can never get it all. There is always something to learn in this business.
WC: If you hadn’t started wrestling, what do you think you’d be doing?
DB: Ah… I really don’t know. Probably working as a personal trainer somewhere, probably still bouncing a little bit here and there. But I definitely would have given up on the bodybuilding thing.
WC: Really? Why?
DB: Yeah. I just never really had that big of a passion for it. I loved being in the gym and working out, but I never liked the competitive aspect of it. And everything that went along with it was a bunch of B.S. But that’s probably what I’d be doing. You know, I’d like to say, “I would have gone back to school and continued an education,” but I probably wouldn’t have.
Both: (laugh)
WC: When you were involved in bodybuilding, was there a general vibe of what they thought about wrestling?
DB: I wouldn’t have known about it then, but now it seems like every bodybuilder I talk to plans on going into wrestling at some point. (laughs) Bodybuilders are just overly-muscled prima donnas, I think. They’re just on this regiment… I don’t want to put them down, but…. (laughs) They’re just on this damn regiment where they have to eat every hour, and… they’re just not the best athletes in the world. Every bodybuilder that I know that has tried to crossover into wrestling has not even come close to it. There is definitely a connection there, because of the physical attributes of bodybuilders and wrestlers. Although, a lot of people think I’m huge, but not by bodybuilding standards, because I’ve met a few bodybuilders that I don’t feel very huge standing next to.
WC: Right. So, WrestleMania 21 is coming up soon. But once that comes and goes, are you at all worried about reaching a plateau with the sport?
DB: No. I’ve been working out all these years for this, and this is just the beginning for me. It hasn’t even entered my mind. I hope I’ll have many WrestleMania main events. I won’t get my hopes up for that, but I hope there will be more to come around after this one. But I’ll be around. I recently signed another five year contract with WWE.
WC: Congrats. That’s great.
DB: Thanks.
WC: So when did it start to become clear to you that the storyline and the path of your character was leading you to a main event at WrestleMania?
DB: Well, I never thought about it. We did a show where we teased about me possibly splitting off from Evolution when I had a conflict with Triple H, and it just got such a crowd reaction that the writers said, “Hey, we’ve got something here.” (laughs) And they just went with it. I don’t think that they really planned it. I was just lucky enough that the crowd responded the way they did; they seemed to be very much into it.
WC: As the build-up to WrestleMania continues, are you getting nervous at all, or are you totally ready?
DB: Right now, I’m way too busy to be nervous. I’m sure the week of it I will feel anxiety and nervousness that I didn’t know was even possible to have. But as of right now, I’m just too excited. Right now, the biggest concern on my mind is what show I’m gonna be on. (laughs) I really don’t know. I know I will be in WrestleMania. Which roster I’ll be on, I don’t know. I’d like to have an answer, too.
WC: Obviously, the fans are kept in the dark until the event gets closer, but is it weird for you that you’re kept in the dark?
DB: It’s a little strange, but it’s something I really don’t mind, you know? I pretty much just show up to work, and, day by day, I just love it. I’m not the type to complain. Wherever they want to go with the show, I’ll go in that direction. I’m pretty flexible. And it’s kind of cool being surprised. It adds excitement to it. If you know what’s going to happen, you don’t get as excited about it.
WC: I read an interview with you where you talked about SmackDown! and their talent, and you said something about how it didn’t seem like they were serious, and that they were just there to showboat–
DB: You know, I had attended a taping, and I did make some statements. I’m very familiar with which interview you’re talking about, because I got a lot of grief over it.
WC: Oh, did you?
DB: Well, I made some statements that were real general, and I did that because I didn’t want to name names. But what I did was leave it open for anyone on the roster to think, “Well, is he talking about me?” And I insulted a lot of people; a lot of good friends and a lot of very talented wrestlers who are very passionate about this business. And I apologized for it. But there are that small group of guys who just don’t really give a damn. They just want to be on TV and go party afterwards, and there are guys like that on RAW, as well. But it’s not a SmackDown!/RAW thing.
WC: Would it save you a bunch of drama if I struck all this stuff from the interview?
DB: No. I mean, everyone knows what I said, and I’ve talked about it with, you know… well, Undertaker, for one, and he pointed out some things that I said, and why they were wrong. He made very valid points, and it was kind of a lesson learned kind of thing. Also, a lot of things in that interview were taken out of context. They weren’t put into the context of the conversation. There was a conversation we had about a rivalry between SmackDown! and RAW, but a lot of that was left out. Only the general quotes that I said were put in, and it just made me seem like I was burying the whole show.
WC: Well, we transcribe our stuff exactly as it occurred, so hopefully you can clear your name. (laughs)
DB: Yeah, I mean, I’m very proud of our show, and of course I’m gonna say it’s a better show.
WC: Well, of course, because you’ve helped build it.
DB: And I don’t think SmackDown! is a bad show; I think there is some awesome talent over there. But I take very much pride in RAW, so I have to believe that we’re the best.
WC: Right. So, this is kind of an odd question, but in the promo for SummerSlam you did some break dancing.
DB: (laughs) I did.
WC: Was that really you?
DB: (laughs) That was really me. And the way that came about was that my mother had actually mentioned in passing to Vince that I used to break dance when I was a kid, and for some reason (laughs) he automatically assumed that I could still do it.
Both: (laugh)
DB: But I put on a couple hundred pounds since then. (laughs) So, yes, that was me flopping around on the floor.
WC: Wow. That’s hilarious. I was talking to another guy here, and he made some reference that during an interview you talked about someone’s old school shell-toed pair of Adidas, and he thinks you might have been an old school b-boy back in the day.
DB: Sure, yeah.
Both: (laugh)
DB: I’ll never live that down.
Both: (laugh)
DB: But yeah, it’s actually kind of come back in style. I still have shell-toes in my closet.
WC: Do you?
DB: Yeah. I was definitely a b-boy breaker.
WC: Were you really? Aw, man, that’s awesome. What stuff were you listening to back then?
DB: I’ve always been open-minded about music. It’s just the way I was brought up. I listen to everything, from metal to rap to opera. The only thing I wasn’t really brought up on was country. But I listened to a lot of old school Motown. I have very well-rounded musical tastes. At any given time in my CD player I’ll have Ludacris, Metallica, and Rage [Against The Machine], with a little bit of Lauryn Hill thrown in, too.
WC: That’s awesome. So, just a few last things. I grew up watching wrestling during the Eighties, and it seems as if now a lot of those people that were wrestling during that time went on to have somewhat tragic post-wrestling lives. Not all of them, obviously, but there were a lot of hardships for certain people. Is that something that people in the industry are now more conscious of?
DB: Yeah, I think it is that way now. Our locker room has completely changed. We even have a dress code now. Our company is corporate, and we try to keep a very respectable public image. Drugs are obviously frowned upon. There are a lot of guys that are very educated, and I don’t want to say that we’re necessarily a clean-cut group of guys; we’re a bunch of roughnecks. But we’re not getting thrown in jail every week, we’re not getting high and passing out in the streets, and we’re not out taking advantage of girls who don’t want to be taken advantage of.
Both: (laugh)
DB: We’re pretty much all respectable guys; a lot of family guys on our rosters. In our locker rooms, we got rid of the assholes and the troublemakers. We just all want to make a living, we want to be proud of our company, and we wouldn’t do anything to disgrace the image of our company.
WC: That’s pretty cool, that it seems like such a family.
DB: Absolutely.
WC: So, when everything is said and done as far as your wrestling career goes, how do you want your fans to remember you?
DB: Um… you know…. (laughs)
WC: Maybe it’s too early in your career to be asking you that.
DB: You know, I remember a handful of wrestlers from when I was a kid. I’ll hear a name or see a face, and think, “Yeah, I remember that guy.” But there were only a few guys that stick out in my head that I actually remember. And I’d like to be one of the guys that people remember in 20 years, but I’d have to be really bold to say that. Right now, I just want to be the best all-around package that I can be; like Triple H, I think he’s a total package. Guys like Ric Flair, Stone Cold [Steve Austin]… those guys are total packages. And that’s what I aspire to be, and hopefully people will remember me by that. But we’ll see. I’m a day-by-day guy, so it’s very new to me. I’m just striving every day to be a better performer.
WC: Well, the last question I have for you is one that has nothing to do with wrestling, and it’s one we ask everybody we interview.
DB: Okay.
WC: The question is, “http://www.tlchicken.com/doglip.php”
DB: Do dogs have lips? (laughs)
WC: Yeah.
DB: You know, I don’t know scientifically if they have lips, but I would have to say yes, I guess. I have three dogs, and it looks like they have lips to me. I don’t know… now I’m gonna go home and inspect their mouths.
Both: (laugh)
DB: It looks like they have black lips to me.
WC: Yeah.
DB: That’s an odd question.
WC: Yeah, it started back in 1999, and we’ve asked almost 200 different people that question since then.
DB: That’s cool. I’ll ask my dogs when I get home whether they have lips or not.
WC: (laughs) Alright.
DB: What’s the general response you get from people?
WC: Well, it’s really weird. Sometimes we’ll just get one-word answers from people, and other times people will be familiar with the question and know it’s coming, so they’ll come to the interview prepared for it.
DB: (laughs) They’ll have scientific explanations as to why dogs do or do not have lips.
WC: (laughs) Exactly.
Go here for the article as well as an unbelievable illustration of Batista.
Credit- tasteslikechicken.com
