Batista gaining ground on Orton
Batista gaining ground on Orton
Sunday, December 5, 2004
BY MIKE MOONEYHAM
Of The Post and Courier Staff
Randy Orton may be the heir apparent to the WWE crown, but former Evolution cohort Batista is rapidly gaining ground.
Batista, who overcame a succession of injuries early in his WWE career, has "the look" Vince McMahon likes in his top stars and has developed into a solid worker. He also has shown marked improvement on the mic and appears to be on the verge of rounding that elusive corner to superstardom.
Batista’s rise has paralleled a decline in Orton’s status as the company’s franchise player. Although relatively sound in all facets of the game, Orton’s babyface turn has not resulted in the Rock-like fanfare WWE officials had hoped for, and some critics have pointed fingers at the creative team for pulling the trigger far too soon on the Orton turn. The third-generation star, who was more effective in his role as a heel member of Evolution, has lost some of his cocky edge as a fan favorite and has not been able to shake unfair comparisons to wrestler-turned-movie star Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
Batista, whose real name is Dave Bautista, was born in Arlington, Va., and grew up in the Washington, D.C. area. Working as a bouncer at various clubs, he broke into the business after meeting Road Warrior Animal (Joe Laurinaitis) and Curt Hennig at a bodybuilding show in Minneapolis. After being overlooked in a WCW tryout, he hooked up with Ohio Valley Wrestling, where he headlined as monster heel Leviathan.
He made his official WWE debut in November 2002 as Deacon Batista, but suffered three triceps injuries in five months that kept him out of action most of his first year with the company.
Since joining the heel stable Evolution last year, the 6-4, 275-pound powerhouse has slowly but surely shown signs of becoming a breakout star. Working alongside a legend considered the greatest ever and a world champion regarded as the most politically powerful performer in the business hasn’t hurt.
If there’s a downside to the physically imposing Batista, it’s his age. Bastista, who didn’t begin wrestling until 1999 at the age of 30, is now 35, 11 years older than Orton and six months older than WWE heavyweight champion Triple H (Paul Levesque).
There’s little doubt, though, that Batista vs. Triple H for the title is a bigger money match at the present time than Triple H vs. Orton, which the company is looking at as a possible headliner for next year’s Wrestlemania.
