Report: Batista Is Talking to WWE and AEW About a Return to Wrestling
A big name from WWE’s past is back in the news with Pro Wrestling Sheet reporting that former six-time WWE World Champion and successful film actor Batista (Dave Bautista) is talking about returning to the wrestling business. According to the report, Batista is talking to WWE about having a match at WrestleMania 35 although there’s only a 50/50 chance of it happening based on how talks have gone so far. The report was also confirmed by the Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer.
The interesting thing about the story is that Pro Wrestling Sheet added that All Elite Wrestling has talked to Batista about wrestling for them and the big man hasn’t turned them away. According to a source, Batista is listening to both companies.
Batista turned 50 years old last month, so he probably realizes that the clock is ticking on how many more matches he has left. He has expressed interest in returning to WWE for many years, but the last time we saw him in a match was five years ago.
The last time Batista was on WWE TV was last October 16 when for Smackdown 1000 in his hometown of Washington, DC. There was a reunion for the Evolution stable that led to a tense moment where Batista talked about all the good times they had together while noting that Triple H has never beaten him. The line was done to tease the idea that Batista would wrestle Triple H at WrestleMania this year, but Triple H tore his pectoral muscle at Crown Jewel a few weeks later on November 2, so that meant the match may not happen now because Triple H may not be cleared to compete after the injury. Triple H revealed on a recent media conference call that he’s able to train again, but that doesn’t mean he’s able to have matches yet.
Batista has also been rumored to go in WWE’s Hall of Fame this year or in the near future, but that also happens with any major name that isn’t in WWE’s Hall of Fame yet.
Batista’s acting career is also going very well and he continues to get big movie roles including Legendary’s “Dune” film. He is most known for his movie work in the Guardian of the Galaxy films and Spectre. Whether he returns to wrestling or not, Batista will remain a busy guy.
TJR Thoughts: I would be surprised if he wrestled anywhere other than WWE, but AEW has a lot of money and they are a threat in terms of having money to acquire talent. Money talks a lot of the time, so if they can offer him a ridiculous amount of money for one match or a few matches then he is smart to listen. It sounds like a good negotiating tactic to get more money out of WWE.