Eye-witness details of the Batista/Booker T fight on the 15th May at the SummerSlam commercial shoot have come to light.
It is thought that the issue may have stemmed from the recent Australian tour, where Melina, a friend of Batista, was sentenced in the ‘wrestler’s court’ for her attitude and behaviour towards others, in particular Booker’s wife Sharmell. Booker also felt that Batista had an attitude problem, viewing himself as being better than the rest of the roster and on the same level as the likes of Triple H and Ric Flair. Considering the relatively short amount of time Batista has spent in the main event, and the relatively quick manner in which it happened, such aloofness has rubbed many people the wrong way.
Upon arriving at the shoot, Batista only went up to certain top guys, plus Fit Finlay, to shake their hands and is said to have pretty much ignored the rest. This is against locker room etiquette, particularly since Batista is meant to be the figurehead for the brand and yet has been absent with injuries for several weeks, which prompted Booker to say something and it then quickly escalated into an argument. Booker mentioned that Batista felt JBL was deliberately ruining their program when he first came to Smackdown (something Batista had confided to Eddie Guerrero) and brought up the notorious interview Batista gave to The Sun newspaper in the UK. Batista mentioned how Smackdown ratings had decreased without him around, which only served to further distance the locker room from him. Batista told Booker he could take him out anytime. Booker said they could go into an empty room right now, close the door and go for it.
Numerous people tried to talk them out of it, particularly Rey Mysterio, yet despite their ages and Batista’s vulnerability due to his surgery, they still wanted to fight. They went into the empty room and, according to Booker, he was sucker-punched as he closed the door. After about 30 seconds, the door was opened and people saw Booker had pinned down Batista and was pounding away on him. They dragged him off but Batista was screaming to let it continue and they did. Again, Booker got the upper hand, despite Batista pulling on his braids. Finally, as it was pulled apart by Angle, JBL, Finlay and others, Batista landed a good punch that led to Booker’s swollen eye.
Booker was furious, swearing revenge. Batista claimed Booker was a locker room cancer. Booker challenged anybody to say if they agreed with that but nobody did, which is said to have surprised Batista. Booker singled out Lashley, who said that Booker had always helped him out and given him good advice. The general consensus is that Booker is a laid-back guy that doesn’t usually bother anybody or start trouble.
The two did do a personal appearance together later, posing for pictures for WWE.com, and, despite lingering bitterness, have agreed to try and put it behind them.
At the moment there are no plans for the pair to work an on-air program.
Credit: Wrestling Observer Newsletter (click here for subscription information)
