John Cena vs Randy Orton vs Batista: Closest We Have to Austin/Rock/HHH?

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

I have been wondering for a long time now why we have never seen a these three(to my knowledge) ever have a triple threat match. To be honest I think it's the PG equivalent to the attitude era's Rock/Austin/HHH which never happened. They really had tons of chances to have both of these matches actually. Sure Austin broke his neck at SS it would have made so much more sense to have the triple threat match at WM17 where Austin would turn heel with Vince and HHH. You can ever argue that it could have happened at WM19. Cena/Orton/Batista on the other hand is something that could of happened way more times than the last match. The similarities between the three and their careers are uncanny. All debuting in 2002. The feuds they've had with each other were great and I think even kids would realize if this match were happening before their eyes that this is something truly special. So what do you guys think, is it the closest thing we have to SS 99? Will it ever even happen?

 

[FanSince99]

I do agree that Cena/Orton/Batista was and is this eras HHH/Rock/Austin. It sucks that neither of those matches ever took place and I doubt it ever will. Also makes me wonder why we never saw a Hogan/Savage/Warrior match either which no doubt would have been epic. I guess WWE just never wants to put the 3 top stars in the same ring...ever.

 

[GLOBAL ICON]

I would love it. I thought that this match could have taken place in the time period between 2005-2007 but after that, it wasn't possible. All 3 men were at the top of their game and one winning over the other two just ruins the losers momentum. And, those 3 were the most valuable players in the WWE at that time.

But, I do think the next generation will have a top 3 match. Maybe Sheamus-Barrett-Ziggler or Ziggler-Barrett-Cody or any of those combinations depending on who's the top 3 at the time.

 

[MizMark]

The problem with that is that HHH/Rock/Austin were arguably the biggest stars of their time(and possibly all time).

Problem is that CM Punk is a far bigger star right now than Batista has been, and is more over with the crowd than Batista.

If the match happened 2 years ago then yes it would be huge, but if it happened right now it wouldn't be right, as Punk is more over than Orton and Roidista.

 

[theBec2101]

We had Jericho/Austin/Rock. I thought that was pretty damn good and who would of thought of that outcome.

And I would much rather of seen HBK/Edge/Orton, HBK/Jericho/Orton, Edge/Orton/Jericho or Cena/Orton/Edge. but as for Cena/Batista/Orton I wouldnt even compare it to HHH/Austin/Rock. I just dont think Cena and Batista even with Orton would be good.

 

[Zodiac_X]

The problem with that is that HHH/Rock/Austin were arguably the biggest stars of their time(and possibly all time).

Problem is that CM Punk is a far bigger star right now than Batista has been, and is more over with the crowd than Batista.

If the match happened 2 years ago then yes it would be huge, but if it happened right now it wouldn't be right, as Punk is more over than Orton and Roidista.

Again with the Punk thing? Come on....get a life
Coming back to the topic, to me Austin Vs. Rock Vs. HHH feels a bit odd for some reason. Having the top 3 stars in a single match is a bad choice.
HOWEVER, as much as I despise Cena and Batista, a 3 way match with Orton would have been pretty cool.

 

[S.J. Maximus]

A major difference between the two trios is that when the Attitude one faced off, it wasn't that definitive that they were the 3 biggest stars in the WWF at the time. If they faced off in 2001 (like at WM17 like the OP suggested) then yes, all 3 men were at the top of their game then. However, they faced off in 1999 and really used the feud as a way to make HHH a top guy, which was extremely successful. Austin had already been the top face for about 2 years and Rock had just passed Austin in merchandise sales so they were quite established and their used their star power to give HHH star power.

As for the other trio, having them face each other wouldn't put any of them over because they all basically rose to the same point at the same time. One could argue that Orton rose first, becoming champion in 04, but he lost the title so quickly and didn't really do anything noteworthy until WM21 - which is where Cena and Batista cemented themselves as top guys. WM21 was where Cena, Orton, and Batista were in the most important matches of the night - 2 world title matches and the Streak match. There never was a point to use the match to elevate one of them, but I do agree it would've been very fun to see. Instead the WWE gave us Edge, Michaels, Triple H, and Jericho to throw into triple threat matches with those guys because I don't think they ever really had the sense to know that Cena vs. Batista vs. Orton would be huge

 

[LilShippy97_WWE]

We did get Triple H, Cena, and Orton at WM 24. Although Orton and Cena were younger in their careers and just beggining their prime at that time. If we had THAT match maybe a year or two ago it would be sweet.

But HHH/Austin/Rock definently was one i would have liked to see.

Past- HHH/Austin/Rock
Now- Cena/Punk/Orton or Jericho
Next Generation - Punk/Ziggler/ Rhodes

 

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

We did get Triple H, Cena, and Orton at WM 24. Although Orton and Cena were younger in their careers and just beggining their prime at that time. If we had THAT match maybe a year or two ago it would be sweet.

But HHH/Austin/Rock definently was one i would have liked to see.

Past- HHH/Austin/Rock
Now- Cena/Punk/Orton or Jericho
Next Generation - Punk/Ziggler/ Rhodes

Not the same at all. HHH/Orton/Cena did not live up to the build at all. I remember being so exicited for that match but it dissapointed me.

 

[Jaystrong322]

Unfortunately no...not only because of the star power that Austin, Rock and Triple H have compared to the other 3 but they simply could not put on a match like Rock, Austin and Triple H could. It's a big problem with the main event stars that the WWE has pushed. They simply can't entertain. I would much rather see Bryan vs. Ziggler vs. Punk than Cena, Orton and Batista as they are the only 3 guys in the company (excluding Rhodes) that could come close to putting on a match like Rock/Austin/Triple H could.

 

[The Scarred One]

If Batista hadn't gotten injured around the time for WrestleMania XXV, I think Batista/Cena/Orton would've been a possibility. Considering all three of them were on the RAW brand at the time in 2008-09, it would've been perfect. That match, for the World Heavyweight Championship, could've been the main event while Edge and Triple H would've fought for the WWE Championship.

But I guess it never happened because the WWE didn't know who would go over, considering they were the three top stars at the time. It's too bad. Despite what people have said about the match, I think it would've been very exciting to see.

 

[mrfantastic111]

We had Jericho/Austin/Rock. I thought that was pretty damn good and who would of thought of that outcome.

And I would much rather of seen HBK/Edge/Orton, HBK/Jericho/Orton, Edge/Orton/Jericho or Cena/Orton/Edge. but as for Cena/Batista/Orton I wouldnt even compare it to HHH/Austin/Rock. I just dont think Cena and Batista even with Orton would be good.

HBK/Edge/Orton did happen on a RAW a few weeks before WM23. It was quite forgettable, and was in the stage that Orton wasn't that big yet, Edge was losing momentum after losing the WWE title to Cena in Toronto, and HBK had briefly lost relevance after DX fell apart. Plus there was absolutely no build, and the match was simply a prelude to the HBK/Cena storyline.

People tend to hype Cena/Orton, but I honestly thought that Cena/Edge was much, MUCH better. Cena still had some attitude, Edge had lita and brought a great sense of the attitude era with him, and their chemistry on the mic was fantastic. Don't get me wrong, Orton is great, I just tend to zone out during his promos, as his 'silent but deadly' type character tends to restrict alot of what he can do on the mic. It also didn't feel like a forced storyline, as it just kind of built itself and turned into something incredible. I guess people don't remember it as much because it was during an odd transitional period where WWE was on the verge of developing these talents and moving towards PG.

I think that the WWE are trying to save Orton vs Cena until WM30, as at this point it is probably the biggest main event that they could use to follow Rock vs Cena, so long as they plan to use PG era talent. By then Orton and Cena would have been solidified as new age icons.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

I do not think that the trio of Orton/ Batista and Cena has been like the HHH/Rock/Austin trio. Mostly because Cena has had far superior starpower than the other two at most points in the overlapping careers of all three men. It was much more even in the case of Austin/Rock/HHH. Also, when you take the PG era into consideration as a whole, you would have to say that these three guys are the biggest stars of the PG era but there hasn't been a single year where you could say that these three guys are the biggest stars of this year. Well, except for 2005 probably. That is why I think that even if this match would have happened, it would not have had the same feel as a HHH/ Austin/ Rock match. In fact, I believe that the closest thing we could have had to that match would have been a Cena/ Undertaker/ HHH match.

The biggest reason why we haven't had this match is because of the brand split. Like you said, these guys are the biggest three stars of this era and it would not make sense to have all three of them in the same brand.

If this match were to happen now, it would not have the same feel because Batista has fallen way off the radar as compared to Orton and Cena, who are both going strong at this point.

 

[Cats Pajamas]

I would have preferred an Orton vs Cena vs Edge matchup. Batista was awesome in his last storyline with Cena before leaving, but before that he was easily my pick for "most overrated". Besides a Mania match against the Undertaker, I couldn't even stand to watch most of his matches because of his pace. He took more breaks than a fat kid on a mile run. While he made Steiner and Khali look like 2x4"s in comparison, he was ages upon ages away from being a "wrestler".

Edge already had novels worth of rapport with Cena and Orton, plus he was by far the more talented wrestler. His character was leagues deeper then Batista's too.

 

[Jamey]

I just cannot take Batista seriously. Dude has a tattoo around his belly button.