The Real Deal: Batista, A Man Improved
The Real Deal
Batista—A Man Improved
By WrestlingTruth.com columnist Roxanne Springer: ravenbrooks_2000@yahoo.com
One of the most popular legends of our time is the story of the underdog. We all know it well; it has been the theme of countless books, movies, and songs. It is the timeless and classic tale of the courageous and tenacious person who achieves both greatness and glory in spite of seemingly insurmountable odds. One of my favorite versions of that age old saga stars pro wrestling great Dave Batista.
When Batista first became attention worthy and even past his first title reign there were many, many negative remarks being made. Critics, columnists, and even some veteran pro wrestling reporters were encouraging WWE to fire him. “Clumsy”, “inept”, and “ungainly” were just a few of the scornful terms used to describe him and his work.
Rumors of arrogance in the locker room surfaced as well. Wrestling news sites were brimming with reports and snippets from “unnamed sources” and bitter wrestlers claiming they were being disrespected by the powerhouse that is Batista. He would often counter the stories with remarks of his own claiming he was not the monster and ego maniac he was being portrayed to be.
A fact the media and apparently many wrestling fans seemed to forget is Dave Batista started his pro wrestling career when he was thirty years old. Usually when a wrestler has reached that age his is nearing or just passing the middle of his career. Because of his age I believe people were predisposed to the idea that he when he received a push he would handle it like a seasoned veteran. If Dave did do any of the things he was accused of I truly believe it was not intentional. He was acting as many green wrestlers do when they are blessed with a colossal push and are given a title. It happened because in spite of his age that is exactly what he was.
Triple H was one of the first to see Batista’s full potential; he put Dave over on three very significant pay-per-views in a row. Dave has not wasted his time since then, he has worked tirelessly to improve himself both in the ring and on the mic. He has become the true superstar he was always meant to be.
For those who have not read his book “Batista Unleashed” I recommend it whole heartedly. Dave actually dares to name names and place blame within the very candid and revealing book. I applaud his courage and bravado to do something so audaciously brave. But then again, Dave Batista has never been one to back down or take the safe path to anywhere.
Keelan’s Call:
I’ll admit, I’ve definitely been one that has reported the negative aspects of Batista’s wrestling Career and the early arrogance he possessed, hell the cool calm and often arrogant attitude finds its way in to his character on TV. That being said the man has greatly improved in the ring and is very deserving of his spot, consistently putting on good matches (bar Wrestlemania with Umaga) and by all accounts has become more humble backstage. This is wrestling and what eventually gets leaked out can be skewed and Chinese whispered, but there’s no smoke without fire. That being said Batista is definitely “A Man Improved.” Leave your opinions for Roxanne below:
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Categories: Column: The Real Deal, Columns and Editorials
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i love batista he isbest wrestler now in this era
I think its quite clear that Batista has grown up and lost some of that backstage heat, mainly because he can pull it off in the ring now. I think the fact that he openly talks about himself in negative ways in his book at least makes him honest.
Good column Roxanne…
The book was very good and granted ive only been watching wrestling since April 2006 He osent seem arrogant just used to having people listening to him because of his size
I could see so much potential with Dave in his early days as a wrestler, but I was always concerned that like many up-n-comers in WWE that pose a threat to HHH…he would be casualy booked into oblivian.
I must say, Dave has been the recipient of some pretty good booking in terms of allowing him to flourish and remain in that main event slot that all guys want to be in.
I honestly believe that if WWE didn’t have a secondary show like SmackDown to seperate HHH and Dave, then the outcome for Dave would have been much different because there would be no way on earth that HHH would have allowed Dave’s popularity to florish and come into his own.
When HHH gets drafted back to RAW, it’s a virtual guarantee that Cena will get drafted back to Smackdown seeing that he’s the hottest commodity on the RAW brand right now and there’s no room for two people at the #1 spot…hence the move to SmackDown for John.
I’m not dilluting HHHs work at all because like him or not he’s one of the best workers in the business, but don’t you always get the feeling that he’s being shoved down our throats every week and on every PPV?
When other superstars in the company start bragging on HHH you can just sense that it is so contrived without substance.
Again…nobody can discount HHHs work in the business, but on the other hand there are lots of other guys that work just as hard.
It’s not easy having to kiss HHHs a$$, but they know that with a atroke of a pen they can be written into oblivion at Hunter’s request.