May 26th's Raw was Dave Batista's last appearance on WWE's flagship show for the time being, according to a news update from f4wonline.com. Bear in mind that the report adds on "but you know how those things go", which alludes to the whirlwind nature anything can change in WWE at a split second. Batista's departure is necessary because he is starring in a blockbuster movie this summer and he is committed to promoting its release. 'Guardians Of The Galaxy' sees Batista in the main cast as Drax the destroyer. It's hardly ideal timing for WWE, who are still without top star Daniel Bryan. Even when the company is at full strength they're lacking star power in general. Although hated by the fans, Batista at least added main event depth, his absence will be noticed. The hope when Batista first re-joined the company in January was that he would be wrestling's top babyface star, leading to a large amount of publicity when he left to do the film promotion. That hasn't proved to be the case, Batista has been received with loathing from WWE fans, meaning that a beneficial tie-in with the film is subdued. WWE would have been far better off this summer if they could have kept hold of Batista for a full time role as the number one heel. As it stands Payback will be the big man's last appearance for the foreseeable future. In some ways WWE were lucky to get even that from him, he was originally due to take off after May's Extreme Rules because he didn't want to work against Daniel Bryan at Payback. Plans had to be changed to accommodate The Animal, who will instead team with Evolution to take on The Shield.
