The Real Reason Batista Retired From WWE

It’s been since 2019 that Batista (Dave Bautista) has competed in a WWE ring. Shortly after competing in WrestleMania 35 in 2019, Batista went to Instagram to announce his retirement, and he mentioned what he accomplished and still has his health. 

“To all the WWE fans across the world that gave me the opportunity to suspend your disbelief, thank you,” Batista wrote.  “From the biggest part of my heart thank you for letting me entertain you. Tonight was my story book ending and I wanted to leave you with all I had to give. I’ll miss this theater of violence more than I can express in words but I am officially retiring from Sports Entertainment. I’m proud of what I’ve accomplished, I leave in great health, and without a doubt the show will go on. I had a hell of a run. Thank you for the journey.”

Batista joined WWE in 2000 but made his WWE debut in 2002. He was with the company until 2010 and began appearing in multiple movies before he returned in 2014. He would quit WWE later that year and wouldn’t return until 2018. From 2010-2018, Batista appeared in big movies such as Guardians of the Galaxy, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, Spectre, Blade Runner 2049 and Avengers: Infinity War. And after announcing his retirement, Batitsta’s movie career has gotten bigger, appearing in films like Army of the Dead, Dune, Thor: Love and Thunder, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. 

In a 2021 interview, Batista explained why he left professional wrestling. “I left a career in professional wrestling to take a chance on myself because I fell in love with acting,” he said. It took me forever to get a job.”

In another 2021 interview, Batista talked about WWE being a challenging place to work when he first joined the company.  “It was just a very toxic atmosphere,” he says. “Wrestling is very competitive. It’s very cutthroat. You’re put in a position where you have to posture up all the time, and it’s exhausting. It’s just exhausting.” In his WWE career, Batista won the WWE Championship twice, the World Heavyweight Championship four times, the Tag Team championship four times and Royal Rumble match twice.