WWE: 10 Wrestlers Who Broke Out As Major Stars At WrestleMania

3. Batista

When the Evolution faction was devised, it was done so with the intention of creating new stars that could carry WWE into the future. Triple H and Ric Flair would handpick two bright young competitors to join them so that they could mentor and mold them into the performers WWE could lean in the years to come. One of those stars, Randy Orton, was clearly the guy the company had big plans for but it was the second star, the less-celebrated Batista, would way pay dividends for Vince McMahon's wrestling empire much sooner. In 2004, Evolution turned on Orton following his World Heavyweight Championship victory over Chris Benoit at August's SummerSlam. While Batista was invested in ending the self-proclaimed Legend Killer along with Triple H and Flair, he also began showing signs that he was far smarter than most gave him credit for. He sat back and watched as The Game's ego got in the way more times than not and realized that if Triple H was willing to drop Orton as soon as he became a threat, what was stopping him from doing the same to Batista? The man nicknamed "The Animal" by Jim Ross began to display more and more independence as each week passed and by the time the Royal Rumble approached in January, he was on the receiving end of a groundswell of support from fans who appreciated the subtleties of the character and the quiet charisma he exuded. He entered the Rumble match and won it after eliminating John Cena. The victory set him up for a guaranteed title opportunity at WrestleMania. Weeks later, Batista revealed that he would challenge Triple H for the World title, much to the shock of his Evolution mentor, and drove him through a table with a powerbomb. The segment provided Batista with the spark necessary to complete his babyface turn and set up one of the most anticipated matches on the WrestleMania 21 card. Batista and Triple H would have many better matches than their WrestleMania bout but the quality of the match, which was more mediocre than bad, was of little consequence. What mattered was that Triple H took a brutal beating at the hands of his former protege and put in great effort to make Batista look like a legitimate championship-worthy competitor. To his credit, Batista more than lived up to his end of the deal, delivering a solid performance in which he never looked lost or overwhelmed by the position he was in. The win, set up by a Batista Bomb to the bloody champion, signified the passing of the torch and the creation of a brand new main event talent for World Wrestling Entertainment.