2012: Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, after being approached several times and keeping a semi-healthy relationship with Vince McMahon, gets to walk back into the WWE and Main Event Wrestlemania. The build wasn’t too bad, they didn’t shoot him straight to the top of every card (because he was making like eight movies) and, well, folks were happy to see Ol’ Dwayne back in the ring. Pitting him against John Cena didn’t hurt his cheer-to-boo ratio either.
In 2013, The Rock squared off against John Cena in Wrestlemania 29 for “one more” run with the WWE title.
Personally, I was happy with The Rock’s brief yet semi-lingering presence in the WWE. It was an example of a homegrown WWE entity coming back for a couple of good matches while promoting his current endeavors then packing his bags and going home.
The Rock may not have been his polished late 90’s self when facing off with John Cena or CM Punk but no matter how anyone feels about him, Johnson is Attitude Era royalty. That comes with plenty of perks. Headlining Wrestlemania is included in that package.
Enter The Animal.
It’s 2014. By now, we’ve all heard rumor of Dave Batista doing some acting in such films as Wrong Side of Town (he’s on the cover but barely in this movie), Man with the Iron Fists and Riddick just to name a few. There was also some MMA involvement (?) Batista was seemingly quite busy for a couple of years before and during his departure from the WWE.
Big news broke in the world of the nerds that we would see a Guardians of the Galaxy movie…guess who’s playing Drax the Destroyer? Dave Bautista! But guess who’s rumored to come back, have himself an even bigger year in 2014 and be shot from a cannon into the Main Event at Wrestlemania XXX? Dave Batista.
The Animal rumors are getting stronger. He shows up on Raw. He confronts his former ally Randy Orton. There is minimal crowd pop. He’s immediately thrown into the Royal Rumble (unlike someone with a prominent beard who needed to be in there). He doesn’t get eliminated. He is one of the last two in the ring. He has approximately 14 ½ minutes to put on a decent finish for the fans with a young, up and rising superstar who we will all relatively soon be recognizing as a top guy. He throws him out in two minutes. This ends the Pay-Per-View. People are pissed. He wonders why. He gets upset. He flips people off.
Well, Dave, the times, they are a changin’.
With the rising popularity of hard workers like Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler and CM Punk, not very many people want to see Batista headline the celebration of the 30th year of Wrestlemania. Some say the choice to let Dave just have the keys to the kingdom was what could have pushed Punk over the edge and out of the company. It’s all speculation at this point, but I wouldn’t blame Punk if this were true. Why? Simple; CM Punk’s popularity and work ethic has eclipsed Batista’s in-ring career multiple times. He would be the better headliner for Wrestlemania.
Am I saying that it’s not a GREAT business decision by the WWE to have a hot star on their card for Wrestlemania XXX? No. It’s an excellent business decision. I’m saying put him on every single card possible, place him in some good matches, pay him well, thank him for his time, let him move on down the road. Many folks, myself included, would be more than happy to watch a Dave Batista match, just not the Main Event at Mania.
Where would a title run featuring The Animal take us? He obviously doesn’t need to put Orton over. Why won’t the WWE use this opportunity to ask Dave to give back by putting a guy like Dolph Ziggler over? Or Daniel Bryan? Or Roman Reigns? Hell, I’d be just fine if Batista came out once a week and beat the brakes off of the 3-Man Band. Maximum cheers, minimum effort, you’re selling tickets in the movie theaters anyway, Dave…
He’s not as big as The Rock, he’s not as well loved as Chris Jericho and he’s yet to reach anti-hero cool status like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin but Ladies and Gentlemen, your celebrity wrestler for 2014 is Dave “The Animal” Batista. Don’t expect to see him at House Shows but expect to see hundreds of highlight reels of him on the Road to Wrestlemania.
