Is Batista the problem?

[S.J. Maximus]

It's no secret that fans and wrestling personalities alike are upset with WWE's main event scene at the moment. A ppv that saw a former top face return after 4 years and win the Royal Rumble was widely regarded as one of the biggest travesties and injustices in WWE history. The Yes Movement is upon us and it is very clear that most people want to see him on top and positioned to be the face of the company.

That however, is not the case, because Dave Bautista won the 2014 Royal Rumble and (as of now) is slated to face WWE World Heavyweight Champion Randy Orton in the main event of WrestleMania XXX. For Dave, his "long-awaited" return has been met with vicious boos and a tremendous amount of heat from the WWE Universe. Let's step back for a moment - Batista had a very good career that included 6 world title reigns, 2 WrestleMania main events, and participation in the greatest WWE faction of the 21st century. He was appreciated, and when he left in 2010 the fans missed him, just like fans are missing CM Punk now.

So when you see Batista and boo him or bad-mouth him, are you booing Dave Bautista? The Batista character? Or is he a symbol of Daniel Bryan's struggle? Do people just boo him because he is in the spot that they think Daniel Bryan would be better suited for, or do they think Batista is unworthy of the respect that WWE Creative clearly has for him. No one booed Rock's title win last year, nor did they boo Brock when he returned or the NAO when they won the tag titles last month. So why boo Batista? Please explain

 

[lil steroid meat]

The character Batista is booed because Daniel Bryan is the most over superstar since the Attitude Era and he might not ever get this white hot again and Batista is taking his spot based on an outdated stereotype that people tune in to see big mastadons rather than entertaining and/or exceptionally talented in-ring personalities. He also is an easy scapegoat (along with Cena + Orton) for that OVW Class of 02/03 (can't remember) PG Era "You're Gonna Like What We Give You Because There's No Competition" Vince + HHH mentality. If there was no WCW to snatch up the Lugers, Hogans, Savages then we might have never seen the Austins, HBKs, HHHs, Rocks. We are seeing WWE in the early 90's right now with no WCW to force them to step their shit up, Cena/Orton/Batista are Hogan/Savage/Warrior, except this time WWE made them main event talent when they were relatively green so they are JUST now hitting their primes, we still have a long way to go before the WWE is forced to let new stars shine.

The fact that Batista is HHH's friend also doesn't do anything positive for certain stereotypes.

I hope people don't have a problem with Dave Bautista the man. He didn't ask for this. Plus he gets cool points from me for having enough Air Jordan XX8's to wear as wrestling boot replacements.

 

[DB2CMPUNK]

I don't believe it is Batista fault. It just that he was inserted on the wrong time when guys like Daniel Bryan and CM Punk are hot. They want the youth movement, the fresh faces. No more of this aged animal or same story RKO. Evolution story is 10 years ago and I'm tired of it.

I want new faces and fresh story. No more of this crap.

 

[Kitten Cutter]

I boo Batista for two simple reasons:

1. He's a false big man

For all the talk of Batista and his "strength,' the truth is he's not that strong. He's purely a glamour wrestler who can toss around guys smaller than him, but he never had the power to deal with the Big Show or Mark Henry like Cena, and it's almost pathetic that a guy can be put over so big when he barely has the strength to compete against larger competition even though they bill him to be.

2. He's an asshole in and out of the ring

The guy was flipping off people the night he came back and won the Royal Rumble. It's documented fact that he's a jerk backstage, and there's two other matches where he openly yells at fans and is a complete dick to some fans who approach him. I don't see anything to like about in the ring (his match against Del Rio was absolutely pathetic; he was out of breath and unable to effectively put off more than 5 offensive moves.

We all know his match vs. Orton is going to be slow and ploddy, and the live crowd is going to riddle it with loud chants and very little respect.

 

[kumarjtk]

The authority burried bryan so much past six months. So wwe fans completely behind him. Batista takes bryan spot so fans hate batista. Any one who against bryan is against fans. Its not batista problem, its creative problem.

 

[AegonTargaryen]

I do not like the fact that guys like The Rock and Batista decide to be WWE champion at so-and-so event and from then on it's as if providence will act in their favour. Only in The Rock's case, he is a hundred times more charismatic and a better wrestler than Batista. I doubt the fans would' ve been so disappointed had it been the Rock who would return(surprise) and win the Rumble. The Rock simply has a much bigger presence and mind for the business than Batista ever did or will. But I digress.

I do think Batista is average at best, and was shoved down our throats in a 2-championship era. Had it not been for Smackdown's WHC, Batista would at best have been Number 3 to Orton and Cena. And yeah being HHH's buddy might also be in his favour.
Seriously , WM XXX and you've got Batista vs Randy Orton for the WWE WHC which has been unified for the first time since Wrestlemania 18??? Absolute horror. It wouldn't have been that bad had Batista not been gone for 4 yrs to return and be inserted in this position . This main-event is blatantly abominable and abhorrent. No novelty, no grandeur or spectacle as deserving of a WM XXX Whatsoever.

And just to make myself clear, I don't give a fuck about Daniel Bryan not getting a main-event shot because quite frankly, CM Punk deserved to close WM this year, if anyone. And the last person who deserved it was Batista. I'm glad Punk defecated on Vince Mcmahon and left, and I do want him to urinate on one selfish egotistical piece of shit HHH. HHH is the most despicable person to be involved in wrestling.

 

[Sabutage]

To elaborate on the vote option I chose, I like Batista, but he didnt deserve to win the Rumble more than Daniel Bryan. I have no problem with him having a prominent role at Wrestlemania, main event or otherwise. I like him as a wrestler, especially because of his entrance and finisher which will always be awesome to me. I dont think he deserves the crowd reaction, but hes just the lightning rod for those unhappy with WWEs decisions. Making him a heel should have been done already, so at least he can milk the situation and even address it, rather than fighting a losing battle to be a face.

 

[Sheamus' Suntan]

Your vote options, to clarify are; yes, yes, yes, yes and no. Bit one sided?

Batista isn't even the problem. The problem is how shortsighted Vince and Paul believe fans are. They think by bringing back a part timer and have them take control of the main event picture, the fans will be happy. They're taking the same approach as they did with the rock, only the rock had popularity on his side.

You look at Batista. He wrestled. He tried mma. He failed. He tried films and ended up in b or c parts. He landed his first decent role. Then came back. Batista has little to no popularity with people a way from wrestling. To wrestling fans he's been hotshotted to the title because hes returned.

But none of that is Batista's fault. Its just bad booking. He should never have won the rumble and instead should have returned as the shining light against lesnars tyraid of evil.

His booking has been short sighted. He's probably requested a wm main event in his new 3 yr contract and they gave it to him right away.

 

[pik]

The most OVERRATED wrestlers around are CM Punk and Daniel Bryan and his fans make me sick. Batista is physically much bigger and more distinguished name as a wrestler Batista is a 6 time world champion, 4 time tag champion, 2 time (now)Royal Rumble winner, and was ranked the #1 wrestler in the world by PWI in 2005 and he deserved the Rumble victory. All you Bryan marks better just get over it and accept the fact that Bryan has never drawn a dime in his life and he is nothing more than an internet darling. Bray Wyatt has much more potential, as does Roman Reigns and they both outshined Bryan at the Rumble with their performances, not their immature mark fans. Bryan should just face Sheamus at WM 30 because both of them are enhancment main eventers and have been transitional champions..The truth is HHH will never make Bryan the man, because the last great worker whom the fans wanted as champion was Benoit and that didnt end well.. HHH knows everything Bryan does will catch up with him and the end to his story will not be pretty much like the Dynamite Kid..The Miz deserves a title shot more than Bryan does at this point.........I feel horrible for Batista because he deserved a better reaction for his return and victory after making some great movies and accomplishing so much in WWE and venturing into MMA. Orton vs Batista sounds like an AMAZING WM main event and if you cant appreciate that fact then just stop watching wrestling because you obviously cant appreciate real WRESTLING.*'The Animal' returning and cementing his spot in the main event at WM 30, was truly unforgettable! Thank god Punk left so we can get more Cena and Batista...WWE Performance Center makes superstars like Wyatt and Reigns. ROH makes midcarders like Bryan and Cesaro a long with cry babies like CM Punk and guys who cant even hack it like Chris Hero.one thing that holds Cesaro back is his look.... He looks like my half mexican half italian balding uncle or something.Daniel Bryan should get on the gas, wear skinny jeans, get a belly button tattoo and then MAYBE he could be a main eventer

 

[Wald]

I don't think Batista is the problem and I feel he was let down by WWE Creative's booking and management's short-sightedness.

Consider this, because in a kayfabe sense this is what happened. The Authority spent months holding back Daniel Bryan and screwing him out of the title at every turn. The fans only got louder the more Bryan got screwed but still the Authority was booked to openly say what they want isn't what the fans want and what they want goes. All well and good if you're telling the story of the underdog overcoming the odds against evil heel authorities but Vince's new idea of everyone being a tweener shot that angle in the foot.

Instead of the Authority being full on heels they've tried to play themselves as tweener characters doing 'what's best for business' whilst edging on the side of being heels for the most part. This has led to confused booking that hasn't done Orton or Bryan any favours and has led to Orton, in particular, taking the brunt of it.

Into the mix then the heel/tweener Authority group invite back Batista from Hollywood, announcing him as their personal friend and insert him straight into the Royal Rumble. Only problem is is that he is coming back as a face. That problem is compounded (and here Batista can take the blame) when he marches out in ridiculous, heat seeking clothing and plays the cocky character that worked well for him five years ago. Only problem is that wrestling has moved on in the last five years and seemingly everyone forgot to tell Dave that.

The only surprise to all of this is that WWE seem genuinely surprised that people would boo Batista in this scenario. I think they either overestimated Batista's star power, underestimated Bryan's star power or a combination of both and it has backfired spectacularly. I genuinely hope they don't book Batista vs Orton at Wrestlemania because it will be a car crash and I think both wrestlers deserve better than that.

 

[Adam Rush]

The most OVERRATED wrestlers around are CM Punk and Daniel Bryan and his fans make me sick. Batista is physically much bigger and more distinguished name as a wrestler Batista is a 6 time world champion, 4 time tag champion, 2 time (now)Royal Rumble winner, and was ranked the #1 wrestler in the world by PWI in 2005 and he deserved the Rumble victory. All you Bryan marks better just get over it and accept the fact that Bryan has never drawn a dime in his life and he is nothing more than an internet darling. Bray Wyatt has much more potential, as does Roman Reigns and they both outshined Bryan at the Rumble with their performances, not their immature mark fans. Bryan should just face Sheamus at WM 30 because both of them are enhancment main eventers and have been transitional champions..The truth is HHH will never make Bryan the man, because the last great worker whom the fans wanted as champion was Benoit and that didnt end well.. HHH knows everything Bryan does will catch up with him and the end to his story will not be pretty much like the Dynamite Kid..The Miz deserves a title shot more than Bryan does at this point.........I feel horrible for Batista because he deserved a better reaction for his return and victory after making some great movies and accomplishing so much in WWE and venturing into MMA. Orton vs Batista sounds like an AMAZING WM main event and if you cant appreciate that fact then just stop watching wrestling because you obviously cant appreciate real WRESTLING.*'The Animal' returning and cementing his spot in the main event at WM 30, was truly unforgettable! Thank god Punk left so we can get more Cena and Batista...WWE Performance Center makes superstars like Wyatt and Reigns. ROH makes midcarders like Bryan and Cesaro a long with cry babies like CM Punk and guys who cant even hack it like Chris Hero.one thing that holds Cesaro back is his look.... He looks like my half mexican half italian balding uncle or something.Daniel Bryan should get on the gas, wear skinny jeans, get a belly button tattoo and then MAYBE he could be a main eventer

Um...what?

As for the actual response to the question, firstly, I've been a supporter of Daniel Bryan since day 1. He's just really amazing to watch. I've also never really been a Batista fan. He's standable, but there are better superstars.

Now, is it Batista's fault? Yes and no. Let's start by saying that it's one of those wrong place, wrong time situations. Batista came back and won a Royal Rumble upon return in which Daniel Bryan wasn't even involved with. This caused Batista to take a lot of crap from the WWE Universe. He has now become the symbol of the old "bigger-guys-win" school of thought as well as drawing the Daniel Bryan fans' ire.

At the same time, though, Batista could have come back to put guys over. Or he could have at the very least come back in better shape. It's well-known that Batista's also a bit of a jerk in real life, proven by his flipping off of the crowd in Pittsburgh. It's not like Batista's making any friends out there.

So I feel like it's a combination of factors.

 

[Mongoose McQueen]

I think the main issue the WWE have is that over the years, they have failed to establish real main event superstars. Since Batista left in 2010, WWE produced very few top guys, John Cena, Randy Orton and CM Punk were the top guys and now CM Punk is gone, that leaves Cena and Orton. In my personal opinion, Orton is not a top star because he's just too damn boring to be one. He should be in the upper mid card with Sheamus, he's average at best.

For WrestleMania should headlined by top names like The Undertaker, John Cena, Brock Lesnar and even Batista. Problem with Batista is, he returned at a time when other stars were getting spotlight and now he "supposedly" has stolen that spotlight from Daniel Bryan which I completely disagree with. It's a booking issue IMO, Batista vs Brock Lesnar could of been a good program for WrestleMania, Batista does not need the WWE World title, that's the truth.

The issue you face is that if Batista had not returned, we'd probably be looking at a triple threat main event between Cena, Orton and Bryan which would of been great. WWE failed to truly build more main event stars and so they bring back Batista, which in turn the smarks take their hatred out on him because Bryan is not a big enough name to headline WWE's superbowl.

 

[Kamala316]

I boo Batista because he can't even make it to the ring without being winded (see his entrance last night). Plain and simple - his heart's not in it anymore, he's in it for the pay day. Don't get me wrong, Brock is probably in the same boat ($$$), but he at least takes some pride in his craft.

 

[boywithbluehanger]

WWE is just in a bad place because they felt the need to put Daniel Bryan in the main event scene when they could have just thrown him into the IC and (what was then) the WHC scene. The moment they chose to make him a main event star, they created the same problems that they had with CM Punk. Once you let an "indy" guy accumulate support against a main eventer, the smarks come to more shows and "hijack" them. The only way to control it is to keep the smaller indy stars in the midcard where they can win as much as the smarks would like and eventually people will accept what they're given. But when you tease that the internet favorites can become main event champions, you open the door for all of the backlash whenever they're not.

The creative team screwed themselves again because now they have 2 main event caliber dudes who should already be multi-time WWE champions, who have to take a backseat to a guy who the writers never really wanted in that role. The "YES! movement" (dumb name) would have been safely in tact still if Bryan was in the midcard. People love chanting and they love a good wrestling match. Batista and all of the tall, muscular, guys should be in the main event. The smaller, less muscular guys, should be in the midcard almost indefinitely. Sure people can cross over from the main event scene to the midcard to help those guys out but the only midcarders who should EVER leave the midcard, should be ones with a lot of charisma or appeal. Also, it should only be for short spurts (like Chris Jericho). The only exception to this rule would be the tall, muscular, or monster wrestlers who "earn" their way to the main event scene through the midcard (which I normally find unnecessary).

If they would go to that method of handling people like Bryan, they wouldn't have suffered having to yo-yo him around for the sake of keeping fans hopeful of a WWE WHC reign and keeping people interested in his underdog appeal. Batista would have been able to come back and run this program. And someone like Roman Reigns or Sheamus could have taken the title.

 

[BigGreen73]

I think the main issue the WWE have is that over the years, they have failed to establish real main event superstars.

This says it all and I have been sayin it for years. WWE is cluelss and has lost touch with their fans. They still do what they want and what they think the fans want, not what the fans actually want. This is why Wrestlemania is so reliant on the part timers. Used to be about rewarding the workhorses and those that busted ass all year. It was about finalizing fueds and big pay offs, not stroking egos.

The WWE hasn't built anyone that the fans care about in a long time. Booking in inconsistant and pretty dumb at times, titles have lost all meaning, and the mid card is in shambles IMO.

This is why the fans latched on to DB. He is exciting in the ring, has something the crowd can chant, and worked his ass off in 2013. Now they are sticking w/ him (for now anyway). He's believable and the fans can relate.

I don't have an issue with Batista. I have an issue with him coming back for a week, winning the RR, bypassing the entite locker room, and is now off to Wrestlemania. And that's what a lot of people have an issue with.

There is no doubt in my mind that as part of his contract, we will be winning and running with the World title at some point and it wouldn't surprise me if he walks out of WM XXX w/ the title.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Even before witnessing the success of the Rock in his 2-year plan, WWE management was enamored of the idea of bringing back guys who used to work here. They sought old-time legends to address the crowd, and to sometimes even wrestle a low-impact match (ex: the guys who took turns beating up Heath Slater). Even better, though, the company wanted to bring aboard guys who could still work a match, like the New Age Outlaws.....and Batista.

The impression I got is that the Outlaws were probably thrilled to have something to do in their old stomping grounds and were contractually easy to handle.....but it might have been an entirely different matter with Batista.

Perhaps WWE had to pay him more than they wanted to....and worse, to cede booking issues, like winning the damn Royal Rumble right from the outset of his tenure. The powers-that-be might have known better, but Batista, as pathetic as his acting career may be, seemed to be finding a way to make a living outside pro wrestling. Maybe.

Do I think he came back strictly for money? Yes; perhaps the acting roles were drying up.....and he's probably attained a lifestyle he wants to keep, in effect forcing him to return to WWE.

If he was able to maneuver WWE into giving him everything he wanted, then yes, you could call all this his fault. But if Vince McMahon's desire to have Batista back caused him to cater too much to the man's wishes, it's going to come back on McMahon the way it did last night at EC.

After watching Batista's negative reception at EC, I wonder what they're going to do next. I also wonder what Batista thinks of all this. Either he's shocked, figuring the fans were clamoring for him to come back......or he's laughing all the way to the bank.

 

[Trance Metaphor]

My reasons for not liking Batista are similar to all the common responses. After he left, he repeatedly claimed that he didn't want to return to the WWE because he didn't like PG WWE or its direction or something along those lines. Yet, here he is anyway. He just wanted to stay relevant. Also, he's 45 and just looks odd competing immediately at Main Event level. Seriously, he wins the Royal Rumble after multiple years of absence and gets catapulted into the main event of WrestleMania. There are younger stars that should be getting that opportunity. What did he do to deserve all of this after continuously giving off this entitled vibe that he was too good for the WWE or something. That takes us to this personality. I heard he was a dick. His tweets are an example. I can't say much more about that, but I'm not a fan of the way he carries himself.

 

[Ubermensch]

At this point, the fans are going to boo anyone that isn't Daniel Bryan getting into the title hunt.

Despite, that I don't think Bautista's push was the smartest thing they could have done. He clearly came back with a worse physique than before and hasn't done much in the way of showmanship.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I can honestly say that I've never been much of a Batista fan. I think he's someone that has a great look & physique but is pretty mediocre when it comes to the rest of what he brings to the table. That being said, he was pretty popular during the mid to late 2000s and he obviously made money for WWE.

However, Batista's been gone from WWE for close to four years and things do look to have changed. I don't know if it's purely because fans believe that Batista is stepping into a spot that they believe should go do Daniel Bryan, if they're just simply not as into him as they once were, if their tastes in who they want to see have changed since the rise of guys like Punk & Bryan, if it's some combination of all of the above, etc. But people just ain't diggin' Batista all that much these days.

Over the past 5 or 6 months, I think that fan reaction to some guys have genuinely thrown WWE management for a loop. When you look at Daniel Bryan, he doesn't "seem" to be the sort of guy that so many fans would rally around the way they have. When compared to Orton or Cena, Bryan doesn't have a great look, he doesn't have an over the top personality that's common among wrestling personas and he doesn't toss out catchphrases left & right. However, a LOT of people like Daniel Bryan because he genuinely seems to be a likeable, hard working, passionate wrestler who loves being a pro wrestler. He doesn't seem like he's a character, he seems genuine and that's something that resonates with people. It certainly doesn't hurt that Bryan's literally among the top in-ring guys in the world. In a world, and I'm talking about the world in general, finding something that's "genuine" is becoming increasingly hard. Bryan's something of an "every man" type of guy and the "every man" type of guy isn't "supposed" to make good. Guys like Batista, on the other hand, are the Ubermensch; Batista looks like a friggin' superman. He's someone who, just by sheer appearance, "looks" like a "star" or "looks" like he's someone "special". And quite a bit of the time in life, it's a Batista who gets all the breaks & opportunities rather than a Daniel Bryan. There are FAR more of the "every man" type than there are of the Ubermensch types in the world and damn near every one of them knows how it feels to be told or to be made to feel that they're not good enough or they can't do it. That makes Bryan an underdog and everyone loves an underdog, especially when they've got heart and ability.

It's not really Batista's fault, it's just that he's simply not who a majority of WWE fans want in this position. It's all but certain that Orton drops the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XXX and most fans simply don't want Batista to be the guy who takes it. Personally, I think WWE management heavily overestimated Batista's star power and underestimated Daniel Bryan's popularity. As a result, if they go through with Orton vs. Batista, it'll be hijacked by a hostile New Orleans crowd management will have nobody to blame but themselves.

Another problem, at least from my perception, is that a lot of fans are burned out already on the idea of big names coming back and "stealing" the spotlight after having been gone for years. If you consider the reaction The Rock got on the post WrestleMania Raw last year by not showing up and the decidedly mixed reaction his name has gotten the handful of times his name has been dropped, I think the "magic" has worn off. I honestly believe that a lot of fans realized what many of us already knew: The Rock wasn't "back to stay" and that his claims of "never going away again" were all bullshit. He was back for a big paycheck and to have a large audience when hyping his movies. And since Batista isn't nearly on the same level as The Rock when it comes to genuine star power or overall ability, it just makes things all that much tougher on him.

 

[bioshock]

The character Batista is booed because Daniel Bryan is the most over superstar since the Attitude Era and he might not ever get this white hot again and Batista is taking his spot based on an outdated stereotype that people tune in to see big mastadons rather than entertaining and/or exceptionally talented in-ring personalities. He also is an easy scapegoat (along with Cena + Orton) for that OVW Class of 02/03 (can't remember) PG Era "You're Gonna Like What We Give You Because There's No Competition" Vince + HHH mentality. If there was no WCW to snatch up the Lugers, Hogans, Savages then we might have never seen the Austins, HBKs, HHHs, Rocks. We are seeing WWE in the early 90's right now with no WCW to force them to step their shit up, Cena/Orton/Batista are Hogan/Savage/Warrior, except this time WWE made them main event talent when they were relatively green so they are JUST now hitting their primes, we still have a long way to go before the WWE is forced to let new stars shine.

The fact that Batista is HHH's friend also doesn't do anything positive for certain stereotypes.

I hope people don't have a problem with Dave Bautista the man. He didn't ask for this. Plus he gets cool points from me for having enough Air Jordan XX8's to wear as wrestling boot replacements.

Well said. I do agree Orton/Cena/Batista are the modern day Hogan/Warrior/Savage group for the most part hogging the spotlight from then guys like Perfect, Bret, Duggan, Roberts, Bad News, Honky, Dibiase, Earthquake, Rude, Bam Bam ect.. and all the other talent that never seen the spotlight or belt.

Only difference. Fans speak there opinion now. If they think your boring, lame, stupid, ugly, out of shape, paste your prime, cant wrestle ect.. they will let you know it Batista. Back when Batista was winning belts the people didnt have such a vocal opinion, they were still just chanting WHAT. But now they got the YES, NO, YOU SUCK, BORING, BOOOS, and far more to throw at you. For those 3 guys, its only going to get worse.

And to the OP's question. YES Batista is the problem. I don't blame Bryan in the very least.

Batista should of never won the Rumble in the shape he is in. Was he a big draw 4 years ago? Yes. He was also BIG, but now the guy is OLD and out of shape, hes very old, stale, and out of shape. No fans want a 45 year old unactive flabby former wrestler winning crap. Had Batista kept his build up, then sure, back when he use to be the biggest guy on the roster with his huge muscles, but now Orton is bigger than him. He doesn't look like any animal anymore, and doesn't dress like one either, his attire sucks on top of things, so why shouldn't the fans dislike him.

 

[Dudeluv]

Batista definitely isn't 100% of the problem but he for sure is part of it. I think a lot of it has to do with the fans getting sick of the WWE bringing back the past and favouring them over the talented superstars they have now. They have many "over" stars that could easily be pushed into the main event scene. Bryan is already there and it's just a matter of time before he's the champion so that can be left alone. But there's the recent uplifting of cesaro, roman reigns is on his way up at a high rate, and if anyone watched the elimination chamber PPV last night you have to say everyone in that 6 man tag between the Wyatt's and the shield was amazing. All the guys in that match are potential stars.

The point has been made clear that WWE doesn't build up what they have and just rely on bringing back the past for "big time" matches.
Now I got no problem seeing guys like lesnar or rock come back and doing a few things here and there. But Batista was gone for 4 years. That's a long time to be away. Yes he had a good career while he was at the top before he left but that was then and this is now. It's time for other guys to step up and be "the guy" . If Batista didn't want to give up his top spot he shouldn't have left in the first place. I understand people want to do other things I got no problem with that but did he really think that relying on his look alone would make him a good actor, c'mon Dave. Then he gets all mad when fans boo him and flips them off like he expects to get a huge ovation. Doesn't make sense.

HHH is the one that booked him so it's not all Batista for sure and he would be somewhat of a fool not to accept that slot when it was offered to him but he better not get mad at the fact that fans aren't happy with that because there are at least 5 other guys that could be in his spot. It would have been smart for him to decline what he was given and start will a lesser role at first. So that way he could try and gain some respect back from the fans by wrestling in a few matches and having a couple of feuds before shooting to the top and his face run would actually work.

 

[themick]

I think the issue is that the booking of Batista in particular makes the full time roster look weak. The fact that Batista won the RR after a 4 year layoff just looks bad from a kayfabe standpoint. It's almost as if they're saying that the roster is so mediocre that any "star" from yesteryear can just come back and reclaim his top spot. I suppose the same could be said for Rock beating Cena at WM and Punk for the title or even Undertaker beating Punk at WM, but at least in those cases the storylines made sense, to me at least. More importantly, they didn't make the full-timers look weak.

With Batista, he comes in, wins the RR, and then destroys Del Rio in 8 minutes. I know a lot of people don't like Del Rio, but he's been pretty prominent on WWE programming and a borderline main eventer for the last few years, so for me it's almost like the message to the fans is: If Batista (or Rock, Brock, Taker, etc) was here they'd still be better than 90% of the current full-time roster. In other words, the product we've put on the last few years isn't of the highest quality. That's an enormous problem and speaks to the lack of stars the WWE has created as of late.

 

[justinept]

Dave Batista is just in the wrong place at the wrong time. A lot of people have been clamoring for this guy to come back since he left. Even more people have deemed multiple wrestlers to be 'the next Batista" - first with Mason Ryan and then with Roman Reigns. So it isn't as if this guy didn't make an impact on the fans during his first tenure with the company. It isn't that people genuinely dislike the guy. There just happen to be a number of other factors that play into his reaction thus far:

1) People want to see Daniel Bryan in the WWE Title match at WrestleMania. He has done everything to earn that opportunity ... and the fans were patient in their pursuit of the pay-off up until Rey Mysterio was announced as the 30th entrant into the Royal Rumble, or as I like to call: the moment all hope for a Daniel Bryan WrestleMania payoff was lost (at least, initially).

2) He's a Triple H guy. It's not just that he's friends with Paul Levesque or that he ran with him during the Evolution days. It's that he's legitimately everything Bryan isn't. He's an overly built, larger than life monster. He's not a wrestler so much as a body-builder who can get by in the ring. He's a representation of what the WWE wants and a reminder of how far off their vision is from what a majority of the fans seemingly want. In other words, he embodies the real-life, backstage obstacle in Daniel Bryan's pursuit of being the champ.

3) The perception is that he only came back for the WrestleMania paycheck. This one likely isn't true - he signed a two-year deal, is wrestling house shows, and he appears to be back for the long haul ... but that his first match guaranteed him a spot in the main event of WrestleMania really steers the perception of his situation from the reality of it.

4) He isn't The Rock. For two straight years, the Rock main evented WrestleMania despite not putting in the same level of time as the guys he was bumping down the card --- actually three straight years if you count the Cena/Miz main event he hijacked in 2011. If you guys remember, The Rock received a lot of heat from fans last year for getting the WWE Title and barely showing up on Raw leading into 'Mania (yes, he had a valid excuse with movie promotions...) Well, if being thrust into the WWE Title match at 'Mania could cause some people to turn on The Rock, imagine how much worse it would be for someone like Batista who is getting similar treatment.

 

[LoudClearVoice]

It's partially about Batista because he flat out stinks, as was evidenced last night in the ring. However, it's moreso about DB smarks that are upset that he doesn't have the belt and feel that he should have won the Rumble. Hell, they'd be booing Undertaker if he were in the title match over DB.

 

[Pedigree1]

My Problem with Bautista is the same its always been. I will give him this much credit though on this thing. When he is focused on his character,in the ring and outside there is no one more entertaining than him. His heel run of a couple years ago,was his best work ever.

But to quit,literally walk out for a damn there 4 year hiatus,because you didn't like the direction the company was headed. Batista is a dick outside the ring a complete selfish asshole,who's only in it for himself. Being Trips buddy,has its effects. Its no secret we dont want Batista vs Orton at WM,if thats going to be the case i can imagine a lot of people will skip WM this year even on the network. Batista did not deserve to win the Royal Rumble,he is being handed the keys to the kingdom..

Guys like Bryan,and Punk work their asses off for a shot at the ME of WM,but people like Bautisa can walk in,after a 4 year layoff and be handed the ME of WM? Really you fucking serious? I know no one in their right mind,would say no to a ME of WM after such a long layoff,but Bautista somewhere deep down has got to know he doesn't deserve this spot or at least I hope he does..

I dont have a problem with Bautista being at WM,but not the ME spot hell no to that. Daniel Bryan,deserves his moment in the sun,he deserves 80,000 plus people,chanting yes yes yes that potentially outside of him ending the streak,could be the biggest WM ever. It was bullshit how DB championship reign ended at WM a couple of years ago,he deserves to capture that WWE WHC at WM,and go on a long long run.