Add as a preferred source on Google Batista and John Cena reached the top of WWE together in 2005, but received very different opportunities outside the ring in the years that followed.
At WrestleMania 21, both men won their first world championships. Months later, Cena moved to Monday Night RAW while Batista took over Friday Night SmackDown, leaving each of them as the top star of his own brand.
In a recent interview with W.O.L.F. Gyms, Batista made clear that he never viewed Cena as a rival outside the ring. His frustration was with WWE, which put the Cenation Leader in movies, commercials and marketing campaigns while keeping The Animal focused on WWE programming.
“With all due respect to John Cena, a lot of things on the internet have portrayed us as rivals. In reality, I root for John and wish him success in movies, and seeing him succeed makes me happy. I was never against him and I never will be. But back then? He was the face of WWE, and everything went to him. I understood that. But during the periods when he was away filming movies, I was the one filling the gap. It was extremely difficult, and I felt that it wasn’t fair and that I should have had the same opportunities within the company.
Yes, John Cena was the better fit to be the face of the company, but what I couldn’t accept was not receiving the same opportunities. I was told not to leave to film movies because they needed me. I told them, ‘Fine, I’ll let my contract expire and then I’ll leave.’ They said, ‘You’re not leaving.’ And I replied, ‘Watch me.'”
The split came after the two feuded in 2010. Cena defeated Batista at WrestleMania 26, at Extreme Rules and in an “I Quit” Match at Over the Limit. The following night, The Animal announced his departure from WWE.
Batista didn’t return until 2014, after landing the role of Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy. In other words, the gamble he took against the company’s wishes paved the way for the career he had been chasing, without pinning the split on Cena.