WWE Legend Batista belongs to perhaps the most dominant batch of recruits from OVW to the WWE in the year 2002. Recently, Randy Orton celebrated his 20th anniversary in the company and now it’s time for another one from that class in the form of Dave Bautista.
Social media is buzzing on the occasion of the former WWE Champion’s 20th anniversary in the WWE. 20 Years ago today, Batista’s official WWE debut aired on SmackDown where he featured as the muscle man for D-Von Dudley. He eventually transitioned to a singles superstar and thereby joined Evolution formed by Triple H to move forward in his career.
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Triple H, who faced Batista at WrestleMania 21 and 35, tweeted the following on the 20th anniversary of the latter’s debut in the WWE,
“In the 20 years since @DaveBautista was first introduced to the @WWE Universe, he has never stopped growing and evolving. A main event player, multi-time champion and Hollywood star, one thing has stayed the same: he never stopped chasing his dreams. Congratulations Dave! #Proud”
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John Cena who faced Batista at Wrestlemania 26, also took to Twitter to remember the occasion,
“20yrs ago @DaveBautista began turning skeptics into believers. Crafting a remarkable legacy in @WWE and continues to amaze with his incredible work as an actor. He’s outspoken, honest & 1 of the nicest, most giving people I’ve ever met. Happy 20yrs from an OWV classmate. Cheers!”
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Batista has not been seen in action in the WWE since losing the No Holds Barred match against Triple H at Wrestlemania 35 in 2019. He also announced how this match marked his official retirement from in-ring competition. Later, WWE also announced him for a Hall of Fame induction but that’s yet to be done. That might happen next year when HOF takes place from Hollywood.
Below are Batista’s achievements in his professional wrestling career,
– 2x WWE Champion
– 4x World Heavyweight Champion
– 3x World Tag Team Champion
– 1x WWE Tag Team Champion
– 2x WrestleMania Main Eventer (21 & 30)
– 2x Royal Rumble Winner (2005 & 2014)
– 1x OVW Heavyweight Champion
Currently, Batista is done with the filming schedule of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 which is set to release in 2023. He also opened his own tattoo parlor, last month.
