Training and early career (1999–2000) Bautista tried out at
World Championship Wrestling's
Power Plant, where trainer
DeWayne Bruce told him he would never make it in the wrestling business. He then went to the
World Wrestling Federation (WWF), who advised him to train with
Afa Anoaʻi at the Wild Samoan Training Center, where he trained and later competed in Anoaʻi's
World Xtreme Wrestling (WXW) promotion. He wrestled his debut match under the
ring name Khan on October 30, 1999, less than three months before his 31st birthday. He also trained with Marrese Crump in
Muay Thai and
Eskrima.
World Wrestling Federation / World Wrestling Entertainment / WWE (2000–2010) Ohio Valley Wrestling (2000–2002) Upon signing with the WWF in 2000, Bautista was sent to
Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), a WWF
developmental territory. He made his OVW debut later that year under the ring name
Leviathan,
Early storylines (2002–2003) While still in OVW, Bautista began appearing on non-televised WWE events. He began his televised WWE career on May 9, 2002, on an episode of
SmackDown! as Deacon Batista, a
heel enforcer for
Reverend D-Von. He made his WWE in-ring debut in a
tag team match teaming with D-Von against
Faarooq and
Randy Orton,
pinning Orton. Over several weeks, Orton tried to beat D-Von and Batista with different partners, but ultimately lost each time. Batista suffered his first loss in a match against
Rikishi after D-Von accidentally punched him, allowing Rikishi to take advantage and pin Batista. Batista and D-Von argued over the forthcoming weeks, with Batista eventually turning on D-Von. On the November 14 episode of
SmackDown!, Batista defeated D-Von to end their feud. After splitting with D-Von, he was assigned to the
Raw brand and was renamed Batista. He aligned himself with
Ric Flair and
feuded with
Kane, whom he defeated at
Armageddon on December 15.
Evolution (2003–2005) In January 2003, Batista joined
Triple H, Ric Flair and Randy Orton to form the heel stable
Evolution. Batista, however, was sidelined for much of 2003 after he tore his right
triceps muscle at a
Raw live event in a tag team match alongside Orton against
The Dudley Boyz. While training after the injury, Batista re-tore his triceps, extending his stay on the sidelines. Batista made his return on the October 20 episode of
Raw, interfering in a match between
Goldberg and
Shawn Michaels. At
Armageddon on December 14, Batista and Ric Flair became the
World Tag Team Champions after winning a Tag Team Turmoil match, while Triple H won the
World Heavyweight Championship and Randy Orton the
Intercontinental Championship. Batista and Flair held the titles until the February 16, 2004, episode of
Raw, when they were defeated by
Booker T and
Rob Van Dam. They later defeated Booker T and Van Dam on the March 22 episode of
Raw to regain the titles before losing them to
Chris Benoit and
Edge on the April 19 episode of
Raw. In late 2004, the relationship between Batista and Triple H began to deteriorate in
kayfabe. After a loss to
Chris Jericho, Triple H verbally insulted Batista. Batista teased leaving Evolution that night, but declared that he was still part of Evolution and that they tricked everyone. Despite this ploy, Batista began behaving more like a
face over the next few weeks in comparison to Evolution's heel tactics. One particular moment saw Batista express disgust as Triple H and Ric Flair boasted about how they had intimidated and/or beat up
Jim Ross,
Danny Hodge, and
Stacy Keibler. Regardless, he continued to show his loyalty to Triple H and Evolution by running down to the ring and assisting them in matches. As 2005 began, Triple H realized the possibility of Batista becoming a threat to his World Heavyweight Championship. Triple H suggested that he not enter the
Royal Rumble on January 30, claiming that it would be selfish of him to do so, and to simply focus on Triple H retaining the title. Batista entered anyway and went on to win the Rumble earning the right to participate in the main event of
WrestleMania 21 on April 3 against the World Champion of his choice. On the February 14 episode of
Raw, in an attempt to persuade Batista to challenge
WWE Champion John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) and challenger
John Cena in a triple-threat match rather than him, Triple H concocted a scheme to have Batista
run over in a
limousine resembling the one used by JBL. Initially, Batista did not want help from Evolution and wanted to confront JBL by himself. Triple H insisted that Evolution stick together and accompanied Batista anyway, saving him from the oncoming vehicle. Batista became aware of the plot while sneakily eavesdropping on fellow Evolution members and signed a contract guaranteeing him a match with the World Heavyweight Champion Triple H at WrestleMania 21, thus leaving Evolution and officially turning face. Batista initially pretended that he would sign with SmackDown!, giving Triple H and Flair the "thumbs up", but turned it into a "thumbs down" before attacking the pair. He emphasized his departure by
powerbombing Triple H through the table used for the contract signing.
World Heavyweight Champion (2005–2008) in September 2005 Batista won the World Heavyweight Championship on April 3 by defeating Triple H in the main event of WrestleMania 21. WrestleMania 21 received 1.09 million pay-per-view buys worldwide – the then-highest ever number of buys for any non-
boxing pay-per-view. Batista's match with Triple H was described by
sports journalist Dave Meltzer as "the peak of one of [WWE's] best storylines in years". Batista won a rematch with Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship at
Backlash on May 1. After Batista retained his title against Edge on the May 23 episode of
Raw, he was betrayed by Ric Flair, who helped Triple H viciously attack Batista as Triple H challenged Batista to a
Hell in a Cell match at
Vengeance on June 26. Batista won the match at Vengeance, retaining his title yet again. With this win, Batista became the first wrestler to pin Triple H in a Hell in a Cell match. On the June 30 episode of
SmackDown!, Batista was drafted to the
SmackDown! brand as the last pick in the
2005 WWE Draft Lottery, making a surprise appearance to thwart
John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL), who was celebrating his victory in a six-man elimination match to crown the inaugural "SmackDown! Champion". This resulted in Batista bringing the World Heavyweight Championship to
SmackDown!. JBL defeated Batista at
The Great American Bash on July 24 by disqualification after the referee saw Batista use a steel chair. They had a rematch at
SummerSlam on August 21 in a
No Holds Barred match in which Batista pinned JBL. The feud culminated in a
Texas Bull Rope match on the September 9 episode of
SmackDown! with Batista retaining his championship. Soon after retaining the title in a feud with
Eddie Guerrero at
No Mercy on October 9, WWE.com reported that Batista suffered a muscle tear in his back at the taping for the November 11 episode of
SmackDown! due to a double chokeslam from
Big Show and Kane. Plans had been made for Batista to defend the title in a Triple Threat match with Eddie Guerrero and Randy Orton on the November 18 episode of
SmackDown!, but the match did not take place as Guerrero unexpectedly died on November 13, the date of the taping. Batista paid homage to Guerrero during the
Raw and
SmackDown! tribute shows dedicated to Guerrero's memory. Batista led Team SmackDown! against Team Raw in an inter-brand feud before
Survivor Series on November 27. The feud saw Big Show and Kane chokeslamming Batista several more times in the weeks leading up to Survivor Series in an on-camera explanation for Batista's injury. Batista ultimately helped his team win the match at Survivor Series. After Batista saved
Rey Mysterio from Big Show and Kane on the December 2 episode of
SmackDown!, leading to a match with Mysterio teaming with Batista to face Big Show and Kane at
Armageddon on December 18. On the December 16 episode of
SmackDown!, Batista and Mysterio defeated
WWE Tag Team Champions MNM to win the titles in a match they dedicated to Eddie Guerrero, and thus Batista became a double champion. After this, the clash with Big Show and Kane at Armageddon turned into a Champions vs. Champions encounter. Batista and Mysterio lost to Big Show and Kane at Armageddon. Two weeks later on the December 30 episode of
SmackDown!, MNM defeated Batista and Mysterio after help from the returning
Mark Henry to regain the WWE Tag Team Championship. During the interference, Henry attacked Batista, and performed his ''
World's Strongest Slam. The teams met again in a steel cage match on the January 6, 2006 episode of SmackDown!
that Henry also became involved in, and Batista and Mysterio were defeated again. Batista tore his right triceps during a match with Mark Henry at a house show on January 6, forcing him to vacate the World Heavyweight Championship at the SmackDown!'' tapings on January 13, two days after surpassing Triple H's previous mark of 280 days for longest reigning champion. In his book,
Batista Unleashed, Batista said that he believed that Henry was "careless" during their match as he never gave Batista any warning that the move was coming. Batista went on to have successful surgery on his arm on January 12. Batista made an appearance at
No Way Out on February 19 and told the crowd that once his arm had healed he would return to regain the World Heavyweight Championship. At
WrestleMania 22 on April 2, he interrupted a Randy Orton interview, putting SmackDown! on notice that the World Heavyweight Championship would return to him by
WrestleMania 23. Batista made his official return during the July 7 episode of
SmackDown! immediately calling out and entering into a feud with
Mark Henry. At ''
Saturday Night's Main Event XXXIII'', Batista won a six-man tag match with teammates Rey Mysterio and
Bobby Lashley, defeating World Heavyweight Champion
King Booker,
Finlay, and Mark Henry. Henry was legitimately injured and was ruled out of the scheduled match between the two at
The Great American Bash on July 23, thus further delaying a potential feud between the two after being delayed by Batista's initial injury. At The Great American Bash, Batista lost this match via disqualification for failing to stop choking Kennedy into the turnbuckle with his boot, but continued to attack Kennedy resulting in a laceration on his forehead so severe that it exposed his cranium and required more than 20 stitches to close. Batista lost another match with Kennedy via count out in a rematch on the July 28 episode of
SmackDown! before finally defeating Kennedy by pinfall on the August 4 episode of
SmackDown!. Batista faced Big Show for the
ECW World Championship on the August 1 episode of
ECW, winning the match by disqualification but failing to win the championship as titles cannot change hands by disqualification. He then set his sights on King Booker's World Heavyweight Championship, with the two facing in a match for the title at
2006 SummerSlam on August 20. However, Batista also won this match by disqualification. During a commercial shoot for the SummerSlam pay-per-view, Booker T and Batista reportedly got into a
legitimate fistfight, with Booker T accusing Batista of considering himself superior to the rest of the roster due to his quick climb to main-event status. It was also reported that some wrestlers on the SmackDown brand agreed with Booker T. Batista continued his pursuit of the championship, failing to capture it once again in a fatal-four way at
No Mercy on October 8 also involving
Finlay and Bobby Lashley, before finally defeating King Booker to regain the World Heavyweight Championship at
Survivor Series on November 26. The following month at
Armageddon on December 17, Batista teamed with John Cena to defeat King Booker and Finlay, putting an end to the rivalry. in 2006 Going into 2007, Batista began a short feud with Mr. Kennedy over the championship. Batista retained the championship over Kennedy at the
Royal Rumble on January 28. Batista's next challenger was
The Undertaker, the winner of the Royal Rumble match. The two formed a reluctant alliance to face John Cena and
Shawn Michaels at
No Way Out on February 18, which they lost after Batista turned on The Undertaker midway through the match. At WrestleMania 23 on April 1, Batista lost the World Heavyweight Championship to The Undertaker. They continued their feud with a
Last Man Standing match at
Backlash on April 29, which ended in a draw. The two wrestled again in a
Steel Cage Match on the May 11 episode of
SmackDown!, which also ended in a draw. Following the match,
Edge took advantage and won the title from The Undertaker by cashing in his
Money in the Bank contract. Afterward, Batista challenged Edge unsuccessfully for the World Heavyweight Championship at
Judgment Day on May 20,
One Night Stand on June 3 (in a Steel Cage Match), and
Vengeance: Night of Champions on June 24 (in a
Last Chance match). The loss at Vengeance stipulated that Batista could no longer get another chance at the World Heavyweight Championship while Edge remained champion. Batista accepted an open challenge from
The Great Khali at
The Great American Bash on July 22. Edge relinquished the title due to an injury the week before The Great American Bash, and Khali became the new World Heavyweight Champion, winning a
Battle Royal and eliminating Batista. Batista and
Kane, Edge's title opponent, faced Khali at The Great American Bash in a
Triple Threat match where Khali retained the title. Batista received a disqualification victory against Khali at
SummerSlam on August 26 after Khali used a steel chair, thus Khali retained the title again. Batista finally claimed his third World Heavyweight Championship after eight consecutive attempts, by defeating Khali in a triple threat match that included Rey Mysterio at
Unforgiven on September 16. His first challenge was from The Great Khali in a
Punjabi Prison Match at
No Mercy on October 7 where Batista retained his title. He won the match by leaping from the inner bamboo structure to the outer one, shortening his escape route and beating Khali to the floor. After the return of The Undertaker at Unforgiven, the duo reignited their feud at
Cyber Sunday on October 28 where the fans chose
Stone Cold Steve Austin as the
Special Guest Referee. Batista pinned The Undertaker after two Batista Bombs. The feud continued with a Hell in a Cell match at
Survivor Series on November 18. During the match, Edge returned and interfered by giving The Undertaker a
con-chair-to. He then pulled an unconscious Batista on top of The Undertaker for the pinfall to retain the World Heavyweight Championship. At
Armageddon on December 16, Edge won a Triple Threat match, alongside The Undertaker for Batista's World Heavyweight Championship. Batista appeared in the
Royal Rumble on January 27, 2008, and made the final three before being eliminated by Triple H. At
No Way Out on February 17, he was part of the SmackDown
Elimination Chamber Match and eliminated
Big Daddy V, but was last eliminated by The Undertaker. At
WrestleMania XXIV on March 30, he defeated
Umaga in an interpromotional match. After
Shawn Michaels defeated Ric Flair in a Career Threatening match (forcing Flair to retire) later that night, Batista began a feud with Michaels, calling him selfish and egotistical. The two faced off at
Backlash on April 27 with
Chris Jericho as the special guest referee. Michaels won after faking a knee injury and performing
Sweet Chin Music. Batista then defeated Michaels at
One Night Stand on June 1 in a
stretcher match, thus ending their feud. On the June 23 episode of
Raw, Batista was drafted to the
Raw brand during the
2008 WWE Draft. After failing to win the World Heavyweight Championship from Edge at
Night of Champions on June 29, Batista attacked Edge the following night on
Raw, allowing
CM Punk to cash in his
Money in the Bank contract on Edge and win the World Heavyweight Championship. This set up a title match between Batista and Punk at
The Great American Bash on July 20 which ended in a double disqualification after Kane interfered and attacked both men. The following night on
Raw, Batista and Punk had a rematch, Batista won by disqualification after he was attacked by JBL. As John Cena came to the ring to fight JBL, he inadvertently punched Batista as JBL ducked. This started a program between Cena and Batista leading up to
SummerSlam on August 17, for which a match was made official by Raw general manager
Mike Adamle. This was the first time a match between the two would occur as they had each been on separate brands since they both debuted in 2002. On the August 4 episode of
Raw, Batista and Cena won the
World Tag Team Championship from
Cody Rhodes and
Ted DiBiase, making Batista a three-time World Tag Team Champion. The next week on
Raw, Batista and Cena lost the World Tag Team Championship back to Rhodes and DiBiase. After losing the titles, the two had to be separated by multiple officials. Batista defeated Cena at SummerSlam, legitimating injuring Cena's neck in the process. Batista then competed in the World Heavyweight Championship championship scramble match at
Unforgiven on September 7 and was eight seconds away from being a four-time world champion, but Chris Jericho snuck in and pinned Kane in the waning seconds. On October 26 at
Cyber Sunday on October 26, Batista defeated Jericho for his fourth World Heavyweight Championship in a match in which Stone Cold Steve Austin was voted in as the special guest referee. Batista's reign, however, only lasted eight days when Jericho won the title back in a Steel Cage match on the
800th episode of
Raw on November 3. Batista then entered a feud with former Evolution partner, Randy Orton; at
Survivor Series on November 23, Batista led a team of himself,
CM Punk,
Kofi Kingston,
Matt Hardy, and
R-Truth to face the team of Randy Orton,
Shelton Benjamin,
William Regal, Cody Rhodes, and Mark Henry. Orton's team won with Orton pinning Batista, winning the match for his team. His feud with Orton continued up to
Armageddon on December 14 where Batista defeated Orton. On the December 15 episode of
Raw, Batista was put into a handicap match against
The Legacy with John Cena as his partner. During the match, Orton struck Batista with a punt to the head. Batista was knocked out and put out of action indefinitely due to a
storyline head injury. WWE.com later reported that Batista elected to undergo surgery to repair a
hamstring tear. His hamstring was injured at SummerSlam, in the same match that John Cena was forced out of action with a neck injury. He was expected to be out of action for six to eight months.
WWE Champion (2009–2010) Batista returned on the April 6, 2009 episode of
Raw to save
Triple H,
Shane McMahon, and
Vince McMahon from
The Legacy (
Randy Orton,
Cody Rhodes and
Ted DiBiase). Vince McMahon then scheduled Batista to team up with WWE Champion Triple H and Shane McMahon to face The Legacy at
Backlash on April 26. During the match, Batista had brought out a chair, but Triple H tried to stop him, so they would not get disqualified (which would have cost Triple H the championship). This distraction, however, cost Triple H his championship, after he lost it to Orton. The following night on
Raw, Batista won a singles match against Big Show due to a distraction by John Cena, to become the number one contender for the WWE Championship at
Judgment Day on May 17, which he won by disqualification. Batista went on to defeat Orton in a rematch at
Extreme Rules on June 7 in a Steel Cage match to capture his first
WWE Championship. However, on the June 8 episode of
Raw, Batista was to vacate the title due to a staged brutal attack by Orton and the Legacy. It was later revealed that Batista had suffered a legitimate torn left biceps similar to what he suffered in 2006. Legacy was given on-screen credit for his injury. Batista returned on the September 14 episode of
Raw with his arm still in a vice.
Randy Orton, assuming Batista was retiring, claimed that he ended Batista's career. Batista then removed his arm vice, which turned to be fake, and attacked Orton. He then stated that he would not retire, but move to
SmackDown instead. Later that night, he defeated Orton in a no-holds barred match which was to be his last match on
Raw. Following his return to SmackDown, Batista defeated
Unified WWE Tag Team Champions Jeri-Show (Chris Jericho and Big Show) in singles competition. These two victories culminated in a tag team title match against Jeri-Show with his partner
Rey Mysterio on October 4 at
Hell in a Cell on October 4, which Jeri-Show won. At
Bragging Rights on October 25, Batista was unsuccessful in winning the World Heavyweight Championship in a
Fatal Four-Way match including CM Punk, Rey Mysterio, and champion The Undertaker. During the match, Mysterio broke up Batista's
pin on The Undertaker costing him the match and the title. After the match (which The Undertaker won), Batista and Mysterio appeared to patch things up, but Batista said he was tired of coming so close only to be stabbed in the back and told Mysterio he was going to rip his head off. Batista proceeded to brutally attack Mysterio, turning heel for the first time since 2005. Batista faced Mysterio on November 22 at
Survivor Series, where Batista won via referee stoppage after delivering three
Batista Bombs to Mysterio. Batista defeated Mysterio again in a street fight on the December 11 episode of
SmackDown. On December 13 at
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, Batista faced The Undertaker for the World Heavyweight Championship in a
Chairs match. Batista initially won the match and the title, but
SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long reversed the decision because Batista had hit The Undertaker with a low blow behind the referee's back. The match was restarted with The Undertaker winning and retaining the championship. Five days later, Batista lost to Mysterio in a number one contenders match for the World Heavyweight Championship; Mysterio's title match against The Undertaker on the December 25 episode of
SmackDown ended as a no-contest after interference from Batista. At the
Royal Rumble on January 31, 2010, Batista entered the Royal Rumble match at number 30, but failed to win as he was eliminated by John Cena. Batista then became involved in WWE Chairman
Vince McMahon and
Bret Hart's rivalry by assisting McMahon in attacking Hart; John Cena attempted to save Hart, but was assaulted by Batista. On February 21 at
Elimination Chamber, as payment for Batista attacking Hart, McMahon allowed Batista to face Cena for the WWE Championship immediately after Cena won the title in an
Elimination Chamber match. Batista won the match and thus his second WWE Championship, which resulted in Batista moving back to Raw. On March 28 at
WrestleMania XXVI, Batista lost the WWE Championship to John Cena in a rematch, ending his reign at 35 days. Batista received his rematch for the title in a
Last Man Standing match on April 25 at
Extreme Rules, but was defeated by Cena after Cena duct-taped his legs around a ring post, preventing him from standing up. Batista and Cena faced off once again for the WWE Championship on May 23 at
Over the Limit, but he failed again to regain the title from Cena in an
"I Quit" match, quitting as Cena threatened to give him the
Attitude Adjustment off the roof of a car. Cena did so anyway, throwing Batista off of the car and through the stage below. The following night on
Raw, Batista opened the show in a wheelchair and claimed that he would be pursuing legal action against Cena and WWE for his injuries (which he revealed in 2014 to be a legitimate compression fracture of his L1 spine). His promo was interrupted by new Raw General Manager Bret Hart, who ordered he face an injured Randy Orton to qualify for a shot at WWE Championship against Cena again at the new
Fatal 4-Way pay-per-view. Batista refused and quit the company after Hart named Orton winner by forfeit. His profile was subsequently moved to the alumni page on WWE's website. He later said in an interview that he left WWE because he "did not like the direction the company was going in".
Return to WWE (2014) match and would go onto main event
WrestleMania XXX. Batista made his return to WWE on the January 20, 2014, episode of
Raw. Despite returning as a face and winning the
Royal Rumble on January 26, the live crowd reacted negatively towards Batista's win, as
Daniel Bryan did not take part in the match. Despite a positive reaction initially upon his return, the fans in attendance at the Royal Rumble rejected Batista in favor of Bryan and continued to boo him after
Roman Reigns was last eliminated. After the show went off the air, Batista mocked Bryan and gestured his
middle finger at the crowd. According to Batista, he thought a return as a face was a bad idea because of the fans being so invested in Daniel Bryan's "Yes Movement" storyline. At the
Elimination Chamber event on February 23 and on the February 24 episode of
Raw, Batista was heavily booed by the fans during matches against
Alberto Del Rio, thus resulting in Batista turning
heel on the February 28 episode of
SmackDown. The main event of
WrestleMania XXX on April 6, originally Batista versus Randy Orton for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, was changed to a
triple threat match after Bryan defeated Triple H at WrestleMania to qualify for the match. At WrestleMania, Bryan forced Batista to submit to win the title. to reform
Evolution to feud with
The Shield. On the April 7 episode of
Raw, Batista and Orton teamed together to face
The Usos for the
WWE Tag Team Championship, but the match ended in a double count out. Later that night, Batista and Orton, along with
Kane, attacked Bryan before he was set to defend his title against Triple H. Before Triple H could defeat Bryan,
The Shield interrupted by spearing Triple H and taking out Batista, Orton and Kane, causing the match to end in a no-contest. On the April 14 episode of
Raw, Batista, Triple H and Randy Orton came down to the ring to attack The Shield after their 11-on-3 handicap match, using the name and the theme of
Evolution. At both
Extreme Rules on May 4 and
Payback on June 1, Evolution lost to The Shield. On the June 2 episode of
Raw, Batista quit WWE after Triple H denied him a shot at the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. Batista legitimately quit the WWE due to creative differences soon after.
Second return to WWE (2018–2019) On October 16, 2018, Batista reunited with the rest of Evolution for an appearance on
SmackDowns 1000th episode, where Batista teased a match with
Triple H, as Triple H had never beaten Batista in singles competition. The storyline between them started on February 25, 2019, when Batista viciously attacked
Ric Flair and repeatedly demanded "give me what I want" to Triple H, which became a popular phrase associated with Batista. At
WrestleMania 35, Batista and Triple H would face each other in a No Holds Barred match with Triple H's career on the line, where Batista lost after interference from Ric Flair. The next day, Batista announced his retirement from professional wrestling. On December 9, 2019, WWE officially announced that Batista would be inducted into the
WWE Hall of Fame as a part of the Class of 2020. The event was postponed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic and it was announced that the class of 2020 would be inducted alongside the class of 2021 at the 2021 event. Prior to the event, however, he was removed from the list. He
tweeted to confirm his removal, citing previous obligations as the reason why he could not attend the 2021 event. He also said that WWE honored his request to induct him at a future ceremony. ==Professional wrestling style and persona==