10 Best World Champions Of The WWE Ruthless Aggression Era
2. Batista
As already noted, The Animal's classic programme opposite his former Evolution mentor The Game heading into WrestleMania 21 fully established Batista as a person capable of carrying the company into the future.
His crowning moment on the Grandest Stage sits as one of the most memorable visuals of the entire Ruthless Aggression era, and it just so happened to kick off one hell of a World Heavyweight Championship reign.
That initial 282-day period holding the big gold belt saw Batista fully grow into an undisputed top guy, emphatically battering The Game on two more occasions before being drafted to SmackDown. But this all-conquering and celebrated babyface run was ultimately forced to an abrupt end due to an unfortunate injury in January 2006.
Delivering on his promise to regain his belt before WrestleMania 23, though, Batista resumed his era of blue show dominance at Survivor Series before ultimately getting locked into one of the greatest feuds of the time with The Undertaker.
Their 'Mania 23, Cyber Sunday, and Survivor Series wars all simply further cemented the eventual Guardian of the Galaxy as one of the most dependable and effective World champions ever to walk alone in the time of Ruthless Aggression.