10 Greatest WWE Raw Endings Ever
2. Batista Picks His Poison (21 February 2005)
Few WWE feuds in the Ruthless Aggression Era captured the fans' collective imagination quite like the one shared by Triple H and his one-time Evolution protégé Batista in the first half of 2005.
A large part of this was to do with the suspense that was allowed to build between The Animal winning the Royal Rumble in January and choosing which champion he would face the following month.
The moment of his reveal was WWE at its very best. Both Eric Bischoff and Theodore Long, general managers of Raw and SmackDown respectively, pleaded with Big Dave to sign with their show, before The Game interrupted, reminding him that it wasn't about what was best for the brands, but what rather, what was best for Batista.
After initially tossing the Raw contract to the canvas, he appeared to be preparing to sign on the dotted line for a match with JBL at WrestleMania 21 - but then his "thumbs up" gesture slowly turned upside down. The reactions of HHH and Ric Flair were perfect, and the crowd loved every moment of it.