Batista On The 2005 Royal Rumble Botched Finish

[@tonywong8134]

To be honest, the botch didn't seem like a botch. The improv by the refs, Batista, and Cena was all done so well I thought it was a work.

[@jpaul3163]

Dude, I've STILL thought it was part of the planned finish! They way they both went over like they did...luckily they DID just so happen to land at the same time, but yes, the refs TOTALLY made it look like the planned finish with their improv raising Cena and Batista's hands declaring their show's participant the winner.

[@onetimebear5681]

@@jpaul3163 Refs were creative enough to see they'd just had one of the best moments in the history of the RR. They literally couldn't do it better of they tried. Just a shame McMahon's ego couldn't handle going forward with anything he couldn't take credit for... that story could've went months but VKM made them immediately restart... *WHAT A WASTE!*

[@jordannewsom3606]

​​@@onetimebear5681...It was a botch. Although they could've went the Bret/Luger Route

[@PhantomofDB]

There's no way it was a botch, I don't care what they say to keep up Kayfabe. Watch the entire rumble and listen to the commentary. The story of entire thing is about which show is more dominant and how no one seems to come out on top, even final 4 is 2vs2 from each show, then final 2 is 1v1 from each show. They both fall out at same time and the refs from each show play it perfectly. It's a storyline.

[@jpaul3163]

@@onetimebear5681 That would have been a perfect way to REALLY start a Cena/Batista rivalry. "Who really won the Rumble?" I mean, they KINDA did that in 2000 with Big Show disputing Rock won the Rumble. Didn't those two have a couple matches the following weeks that if Show Beat Rock, he'd get the WM spot? Although Mania 2000 ended up being the "McMahon Family Main Event". 🙄 I guess they couldn't really go that route since the push was for Batista to really get over by beating HHH at Mania. 🤷‍♂

[@mswallow817]

The humbleness of Cena and Batista is amazing. Batista is here saying it was his fault and Cena just a few months ago, on Logan Paul's show, said it was his fault.

[@CarbiesChronicles]

cena is a pos, he ruined careers for guys trying to make a name for themselves... f him and anyone who likes him...

[@theghostreckon316]

Well they both messed up, it would be a douchebag move to say “Oh well he messed it up big time!!!”

[@AhtoRashied]

Ok

[@spidergoblin.]

Both did the mistake and they're aware of it and admit it

[@guillaumejuillard8258]

Lmao indeed 🤣

[@Enigma-yd1xn]

Just imagine your boss is so furious with you he tears both quads 😂

[@prasithoudomvilay8454]

😂 just like shane mcmahon wm 39

[@jakep1979]

LMAO

[@dukenukeman]

Karma for giving him shit trying to spend time with his mom Screw that old fart

[@robertnapier624]

@@prasithoudomvilay8454 just need Stephanie to return and blow her quads out.

[@WailingNinja]

So imagine Kevin Nash is my boss?

[@TheRealBDouble]

His mistake turned out to be one of the best RR moments of all time

[@BlackFaithProduction]

All I know is Vince McMahon and P. Diddy are my idols and I plan to follow in their footsteps.

[@heykrazy5436]

​@@BlackFaithProduction lop

[@Lucaz99]

@@BlackFaithProductionFBI over here!!! This man right here!!!

[@ZoomNotice]

Batista still loves the wrestling questions you can tell he will always love it.

[@prasithoudomvilay8454]

Yep :) and the other interview batista and the actress was curious about batista career

[@AhtoRashied]

How?

[@extremeking425]

@@AhtoRashied ...

[@lewis9388]

I think it actually made the ending more better and memorable. I can remember watching it confused as hell but it added to the finish imo. And Vince blowing both quads, hilarious

[@TheMessage25]

Go find something better to do with your time other than to ask dumb questions ​@@AhtoRashied

[@juiceekay7428]

I really do love that Cena & Batista in 2 separate interviews, both took accountability for the botch. This is exactly why both deserve their shine in & out of the ring.

[@Vietmac1993]

Who cares if it was a botch? It made the ending so much better.

[@LeroyzkiSmithsonian]

They both have a fault in it. Cena over-rotated, while Batista completely lost balance.

[@herbythechef7624]

2 complete professionals

[@sophiasentiment]

“I think that Vince thrives on chaos” WHY IS THIS SO TRUE 😂

[@EpiCxM0n3Y]

The excitement part 😂 i definitely see Vince like that especially with what’s going on

[@jimmybuckets5863]

That might have been the closest we’ve come to seeing the “real” Vince during a live event. Not only because he tore his quads, but even him storming out pissed off didn’t make sense from a Kayfabe angle, because Mr McMahon had seen the Rumble end in controversial fashion before but would just act bewildered/surprised, and they’d figure out how to solve it later. He was just genuinely full of rage.

[@theunhingedgamer3762]

that was the real Vince honestly because he came out pissed but he went backstage and made one of his infamous last minute decisions

[@Njbear7453]

Karma got him

[@MLaak86]

Definitely - as well as how his face shifts into puzzled delight as Batista and Cena go back and forth and the crowd are EATING it up and he realises just how damn over they both are.

[@sonicthekid249]

You have no idea what the “real” Vince is or is not like all you do is read quotes and listen to people on the internet

[@keithoneil9894]

I have watched it over and over again. I still don’t understand how exactly he tore both quads.

[@IHayzer]

It was a botch but one of the best moments in wwe history from a young viewer standpoint.

[@cleon24769]

1:23 It's awesome to know that somebody as famous as Batista had imposter syndrome. Dude's so relatable.

[@leehazell7633]

Yeah man. Felt the same way.

[@casterlei3257]

yeh, feels so real

[@ashishnair12]

Usually wrestlers blame each other for botches & mistakes but both Cena & Batista blame themselves for it. Shows how incredibly secure both of them are. That's a great place to be in your life.

[@MarkelScott100]

It wss neither of their faults the buckle was loose

[@Tman2135-1]

Man, it's really humbling to see someone like Batista dealing with imposter syndrome like that. I mean, he's one of the biggest stars in wrestling history, and he's thinking "any day now I'm getting fired."

[@Alexander.73]

Its so amazing how many people have it. Had it at my old Job for three years, now i have a new one after university and think im gonna have it again

[@SkylineGTRB26]

It seems with all the stories he has a serious case of imposter syndrome early in his career, poor guy. He’s literally the best

[@MR12AMAZING]

I wouldn't call him 'one of the biggest stars in wrestling history'. He isn't in the tier of true greats like Hogan, Rock, HBK, HHH, Undertaker, Randy Savage, Stone Cold, Flair etc. He might be one of the biggest stars of the 00's but not in the complete history of wrestling.

[@Tman2135-1]

@@MR12AMAZING He's main evented Wrestlemania, which is a pretty exclusive club. Plus he's achieved a lot of mainstream recognition from his film work.

[@jakep1979]

That was also the case with Cena before his character started rapping.

[@wgsmeister]

Still insane to me that it was a botch. It was executed better than when Bret Hart & Lex Lugar did it

[@bradcarver8127]

I was just about to comment this same thing.

[@bengrenan8192]

I think it was a bit worse as both Cena's feet didn't touch the floor at the same time as Batista's, one of them landed on Batista and then he quickly moves it onto the floor.

[@standardofexcellence]

Exactly

[@DukeDarkshadow]

It's funny, but there's one little detail in particular about that botched finish that's ALWAYS stood out to me. It's not Batista and Cena going over at the same time. It's not Vince's quads. It's so miniscule I don't think anyone even notices. It's the referees. The entire 2005 Royal Rumble was booked as "Raw vs Smackdown". If anyone doesn't remember, the promotional commercials were shot as a parody of the West Side Story "Jets vs Sharks". Halfway through the Rumble, we had that brief 4-on-4 Raw vs Smackdown tussle that was interrupted by Hassan. We had Eric Bischoff and Teddy Long come out during the Rumble to support their respective brands. The final 4 were two Raw and two Smackdown performers. So what does all this have to do with the refs? Well when the ending was botched, amidst all the chaos and confusion about what to do, in just a SPLIT SECOND, the referees jumped into action to continue that Raw vs Smackdown feud because the two Raw referees tried to declare Batista as the winner while the two Smackdown referees claimed that Cena was the winner. I mean, that had to either be some incredibly quick thinking by someone back in Gorilla on the headsets or it was just quick thinking by the refs on the fly. Either way, I always thought that the refs showing their loyalty to their brand really added to the finish.

[@JacksonBivens]

Good eye, sir.

[@thecapedhoudiniofdc3934]

Good catch

[@matthewjenkins7488]

Great point.

[@poopypoox3468]

This is the one detail that always made me question if it was a true botch honestly

[@TheBrass18]

💯

[@ujjwalgupta228]

That was one of the best unscripted moments in wwe no one can even duplicate this and the funniest part is that vince got frustrated by this and karma hit him so hard that he fell down in the ring that was miracle and not nightmare

[@defiantking7777]

I’m honestly shocked they never tried replicating it and it’s super crazy that was not scripted I literally thought it was part of the storyline till a few years ago lol

[@sethh5106]

I think thats why with a day to reflect, vince loved it so much. You couldn't script it to be that perfect if you tried. And the refs coming in and immediately playing their role perfectly, raw refs lifting batista's arm, smackdown refs lifting cena's arm after the whole show was about Bischoff and Long trying to one up each other. Vince knew it was gold in the end

[@pirajacinto4]

Legit SO perfect and fitted into the Raw/Smackdown stuff too. Just perfect landing to make it happen and just so curious. And they did try to do this again on Smackdown with I think Mark Henry and Undertaker in a cage but fans were able to slowmo it and it was not in synch. So this was legit THE one that was possible, and couldn't be a more bigger deal than literal headlining of Wrestlemania.

[@acereyeschronicles]

good thing they both still hit the floor at the same time otherwise would have been harder to recover from that mistake

[@James1993..]

Fell down! he tore both his quads

[@pepito2847]

That spot and the final two being Cena and Batista literally made that Rumble Most of the match was kinda mid IMO

[@megamanxhunter]

The whole PPV wasn't that great.

[@jaime54cb3]

Yea the ppv itself was just to build up JBL and Triple H’s reign of terror title runs, and for Batista to emerge as a top star in the rumble. It was a cool interaction seeing JBL and triple h bump into each other while holding their respective belts

[@itsstillmah6192]

Nah man that match was decent especially the last minutes with the final four being 4 soon to be world champions in Edge , Rey Mysterio , Batista and Cena

[@dagreatzoink5559]

The Cena/Batista moment and the Eddie, Benoit and Holly chopping Puder was the only good moments

[@IamjustBruh]

@@dagreatzoink5559 Don’t forget Paul London backflips on elimination by Snitsky

[@bobbyfonta1]

Truthfully if no one ever had mentioned that finish was a botch I dont beileve anyone would have known

[@Aerochalklate]

frl seeing them hitting the ground at the same time you’d be like “that’s some next level choreography.” 😂 do you know when people found out it was a botched move? did people only find out in this podcast era?

[@punchsmack]

@@Aerochalklatefacts

[@theangriestpigeon4403]

Vince at the time, "This is awful, this is embarrassing!" Vince, once he got to the hospital, calmed down a little, "Actually, that was pretty damn hysterical if I don't say so myself"

[@MLaak86]

I think you see him having this "omg, the fans LOVE both of these guys, I'm gonna make soo much damn money off Mania!" when he's in the ring watching them go back and forth over who won.

[@SudoDeveloper]

A 55 year old man recalling he wanted to spend time with his mom shows how good he is.

[@Nessrox444]

I think the finish was perfect. Cena and Batista were both going over at WM and both winning the titles and defining their respective brands.

[@aakiblanjekar414]

That botch actually turned out to be one of the most iconic Royal Rumble moments of all time.

[@RyanB0415]

Honestly they couldn’t have planned it; the moment was magic and honestly the botch made the stories of Batista and Cena at that Mania establish those two as the new top guys of the company

[@eenix]

The way Ref, Cena and Batista improvised it with both raising up their hands and throwing each other off made it felt like its part of the show

[@DaDualityofMan]

Yeah I don’t get why Vince was so mad when it looked so real

[@PricefieldPunk]

Vince really is like that old man in Squid Game. He’s done everything and is trying to find that excitement in his life. Prob how he ended up in the situation he’s in now.

[@Slayer1106411]

Vince, the old man or both?

[@arnoldarnold2653]

Batista mentioning that he was in constant anxiety of getting fired in his early days is so relatable!

[@TravelJack]

That Rumble was in Fresno. I have the distinction of being in the audience, not only for this show, but also years later at WrestleMania 39 when Shane also tore his quad.

[@JL-sm6cg]

@aDryBonesProduction I've never been to Fresno (yet) but I've been to Bakersfield, and there's nothing to write home to mom about in that city.

[@DaditudeEra]

When did Bautista turn into Jeff Goldbum. I love it.

[@zlinedavid]

And I can’t unsee it now 😂😂😂

[@Squadron_Bodron]

This is antisemitic

[@Nofaltuguy1]

batista just keeps on saying that he might get fired is so alarming

[@partypoppers1988]

Dave is a genuine good dude. Always looking to work on and improve himself, I like seeing him succeed.

[@kylecraig8952]

The Rumble happened in Fresno. Wish I was old enough to go at the time since I live here

[@Dyler]

He didn't mean to, but Batista just explained why Vince seemingly went crazy in the last decade of his personal life. Vince just became addicted to chaos and it caused him to become an abusive POS.

[@ggguNeck]

Same thing happened to Mark Henry. He didn't give a damn about him until Mark gave him a reason to & tried to use the Hall of Pain as an excuse

[@cky7765]

​@libcrypt98 neither were you

[@SteRDLK]

He was an abusive POS in the 80's, and most likely before he came to prominence

[@jinfin221]

Good excuse.

[@boredgunner]

The abuse allegations go back to the 80s.

[@LuisRdzG10]

I thought that end was scripted like that, until they came out clean with this story. What a miracle indeed they both landed at the same time.

[@nevinmorton]

Batista looks like such a down to earth guy. My favorite all time growing up.

[@FresnoCA93727]

It wasn’t in Bakersfield, it was in Fresno, CA. I was there live.

[@carlosabrigo8255]

So that's why he was late

[@CarloAmboldi]

It's like he said, the fact that they landed the way they did was a miracle. They couldn't have planned it better.

[@HomTolland69]

That botch was so good I genuinely thought that whole thing was intentional

[@shinobu1886]

It was, minus Vince's quads.

[@WarhawkBeyond2040]

2:33 so true on so many levels 😂

[@CinemaMack]

I've heard about the behind the scenes for booking a Rumble. You've got 30 guys in the back, coordinating who gets eliminated when. It sounds insane.

[@joshukelly]

They played it off so amazing. I grew up thinking it was the plan, the audible the referees done was great 😮

[@FjfjfhDjhdhf-u8x]

What Pokemon is that?

[@carlintaylor3229]

He's come a very long way I'm proud he's doing his own thing in Hollywood nowadays

[@shawnmichaels568]

That was one of the funniest moments in wrestling.

[@pandoralover21]

Man won the royal rumble and thought they were going to fire him the next day

[@archwarden7004]

This guy look like superhumble. He was an insane star back in 2005, and still was nervous about being fired.

[@Quesoverga]

This dude is literally the poster child of humble calm cool collected

[@lucasterable]

It was the best ending ever to me. Perfect synchronization.

[@hamdjawaid4793]

They way wwe fans disrespected him in 2014 was so bad and that too for a guy who left a few years after

[@JadeZuberi]

The concept of Vince ripping both quads due to being that angry jumping in the ring is fucking hysterical. LMAOOOO!!!!

[@blmareterrorists]

It wasn't Bakersfield, it was Fresno

[@zoneclipper]

They lucked into a tie finish that looked 10x better than the actual planned Bret/Luger Rumble tie finish, crazy.

[@JudgeSikhs]

It was in Fresno. I was there. Man the pop was huge for Batista

[@churchjones1758]

Damn I always thought that was supposed to happen. Vince getting in the ring and falling down was funny af though. I don't know how they didn't laugh right there.

[@jakep1979]

He was still the boss, ain't nobody going to laugh for real and still keep their job afterwards 🤣🤣

[@evilTaker90V2]

The botch made the finish more perfect. To this day it's probably the most memorable ending to a Rumble match ever, Cena and Batista couldn't land more in sync and at the same time than that

[@johnnys9034]

Batista deserved a better end to his wrestling career. He was a talented performer and an all out icon, He deserved better than how he was treated in 2014

[@markula_4040]

Honestly despite the botch, it was the better finish. Cena also went on to that year's Wrestlemania and won a world title. They both were being groomed to be big stars. It's just Batista turning on Triple H was the more interesting story over JBL vs Cena so it needed to be the WM main event meaning Big Dave wins that year's Royal Rumble

[@tabulldog2743]

I watched it live, and it's definitely the best Royal Rumble moment of all time! Loved it then, loved it now. Can't believe he was scared about being fired!

[@JayBurris100]

Awesome story 2005 was awesome only exception was Eddies passing

[@seanl7856]

What a great interview

[@videogames4life475]

Vince getting injured was real. That finish to the match was a work. They are trained on how to save themselves if a rope snaps. They could have easily prevented hitting the floor. Nothing more than a work to get fans invested in the finish.

[@b_is_alive]

that botched finish was so good tho' since both of them ruled as champions after that wrestlemania. I will never forget their simultaneous reign. We had Cena vs Batista a lot, but sadly, not during it's pure height when both were champs.

[@123arskas]

That botch seemed scripted to us fans and it's a miracle how it all played out.

[@RandalReid]

Yeah I really thought it was all part of the script at that time

[@celticbat3792]

When that botch, I actually thought it was intentional. I thought Vince coming out was planned too. Definitely knew something happened to his legs, though, cuz he was sitting. But yeah... I admit, I thought most of it was planned

[@JoeChillton]

Dave and Cena should start a podcast

[@scarrylarry213]

It really is amazing that they appeared to hit the ground at the exact same time. To this day, I have no idea who actually touched the ground first.

[@princemjbp695]

Induct Batista in he HoF already. This is the moment he should get in.

[@Mittens5044]

He been busy with movies

[@robertlunderwood]

He would've already been in but C19 put an end to that.

[@RiruKrypto_]

I heard was supposed to in 2020 but then the Pandemic happened.

[@EclipseMints08]

"He's a billionaire...what he got left? Excitement!" Well, that does explain a lot of stuff that Vince is doing.

[@Dashawn2007SigmaBlood]

1:31 - It was Karma on Vince. Karma said WHO ARE YOU 🔥!? 😂😂

[@idcaboutirl]

For a a while i wondered why they didnt call it on the fly and give cena the win seeing as both guys were going over at wrestlemania and the ending became so iconic. Bigger picture batista using his royal rumble win triple h was so iconic it was the right decision to restart and stick with the plan

[@agentsmith2378]

Did amazing work in WWE

[@RobertWalsh-vp5ui]

it was by far one of the most interesting royal rumble finishes. they fell out at exactly the same time so I thought it was intentional

[@Rook818]

Batista sometimes sounds like Jeff Goldberg

[@DaDualityofMan]

And looks like Jeff Goldbum now lol

[@ag806]

Batista is a good man. Mr McMahon is hilarious, love it.

[@vader97100]

The thing was: Dave, John and the referees knocked it out of the park selling the botch tryna convince Vince who won it. It was an easy fix to just say restart with the two of them until one man goes out but they us convinced us it was scripted.

[@themaninthewoods9000]

I was 10 at the time and a huge Cena fan, but i knew even with Batista winning that Cena was gonna eventually get the WWE Championship from JBL. I mean and it set up such a great rivalry between Batista and Triple H, and allowed Batista to break away from Evolution into a main eventer. I loved the rivalry we got between him and Taker with Edge also getting involved. You never knew what was gonna happen next in that storyline.

[@anasshahid224]

Batista is a class act, willing to admit he made the botch and not John Cena, respect.

[@everythingisawesome2903]

John Cena has also said in Logan Paul's interview few months back that it was his(Cena) fault.

[@codekhalil6437]

Absolutely one of the best finishes you'll ever see. Bautista is a gem

[@scorpionkingindianvats4363]

I hope batista will play some role in future like general manager or like paul Heyman 😢in wwe

[@RobertTaramoeroa]

If you think about back at most RR, the last 2 survivors both ended up at Mania for each respective brands championship match

[@LucianDevine]

There have been so many "next big things", or big guys in WWE. So I can 100% understand why he would constantly be thinking that he'd be getting fired. I'm glad that his career was as long and successful as it was though, and that his acting career is starting to take off! I always loved his explosiveness in the ring, and the conviction with which he executed his power moves, especially his spine buster!

[@kayele]

Them landing at the same time was flat out amazing! I thought it was planned.

[@VividVisionary]

It’s amazing how many unplanned moments end up being the best part of something.

[@Geffi01]

A nightmare for you, a fantastic ending for us. I absolutely loved it and the fact it wasn't planned made it even better.

[@alexwhite3232]

One small thing: the show was in Fresno. I remember because I got to go, and it was one of the best shows I’ve ever been to. Got to sit 3rd row ringside. Went with my Dad. still have my royal rumble chairs.

[@Maestro..]

Something about the 2005 Rumble I've always wondered. *Immediately* after Cena & Batista fell, the RAW refs raise Batista's hand & the SmackDown refs raise Cena's hand. And I mean like zero hesitation, as if that was the plan all along. How did that just "organically" happen? 🤔

[@shinobu1886]

A rare person to have some critical thinking. Aside from the referee's the commentators were also fighting over the whole Smackdown vs Raw theme the whole night.

[@Railgun_Enjoyer]

It was the most excellently executed botch in Royal Rumble history.

[@akaneki7234]

When I first saw it, I thought it was worked; it just made sense that way. Batista and Cena were clearly next up at the time so to me that was the most memorable part of the rumble.

[@RileyFreemanJP]

Everyone played it off so well

[@phantomreloaded3312]

From 2005 to 2008, Batista and John Cena stood side by side and both used to be face of RAW and SmackDown respectively, during that time, I was a bigger fan of Batista than John Cena. However, after 2008, Batista's career began to decline, while John Cena's career continued to rise. I always wished that Batista could have maintained the same level of performance and longevity as Cena but unfortunately it didn't happen

[@aidanlynn]

Cast him as Hugo Strange!!!

[@gmonroy852]

I legit thought it was supposed to happen that way when I first saw it......the fact that it was a botch shows how much they did a good job in the improv

[@MT-tu8dt]

I thought that spot was real. That it was gonna be a tie. The fact they both landed on the same time, the fact it wasn’t planned, makes it better.

[@elvalvinoskyo3307]

Love Bautista awesome dude and actor

[@LODphantom]

Bautista understimates the pain meds

[@AGThatsagenius]

😂😂

[@Viper-g6g]

I never laughed so hard in my life so this live and I knew immediately what happened. 😂

[@BillSavage]

Guy tore both quads and was working the very next day

[@alesitercrimson24]

He is going to look so different on WWE TV when he gets his induction in the hall of fame

[@hogrider5059]

That was such a good match that even with that botched ending they did pretty good...

[@jjohnson218]

I thought it was part of the show. Thinking about it now I don’t think that could be done again, even on purpose.

[@siontimmy1]

That was once in lifetime opportunity to crown co Royal Rumble winners naturally (not sure if 94 was planned or accidentally as well) they could've had a big No Way Out main event out of it as well

[@arcalepeace321]

For the longest time, I thought the double eliminination was planned. But even though the botch was legit, in retrospect, it worked out so much better than the originally planned finish, because they both went on to become World Champions at Wrestlemania, and they've both had amazing careers, both in and out of the ring.

[@santonino7741]

Batista looks great❤