10 WWE Wrestlers Who Survived HORRIBLE Debuts
4. Batista
Looking at the gigantic, hulking frame of Dave Bautista in 2002, Vince McMahon decided: 'Hmm, this guy should carry a collection box!'. Thus, the short-lived (but memorable for all the wrong reasons) character of 'Deacon Batista' was born.
The future Hollywood star made his debut as the silent henchman of D-Von Dudley, who was going through his 'Reverend' phase, on SmackDown. Whilst Bubba's brother rallied against the sins of man, Batista just stood there doing nothing, and for bloody ages.
His earliest matches in WWE were tag bouts with D-Von by his side. That included an early feud with his future Evolution partner Randy Orton. Batista eventually split from the Rev in late 2002, getting drafted to Raw and taking on the persona we all know and love today.
'Menacing Church Man' is not one of the most exciting ideas in the world. Thankfully, he wasn't trapped in this cartoonish nightmare for too long and was quickly scooped up by Triple H's new group. The success of Evolution quickly washed the taste of the Deacon out of everyone's mouths, but Batista probably never went to church again!