Kev , maybe the folks at AIG should sign you on to defend them too ( lol ) .

Fine, but still no love for Batista!

I consider him one of my favourites in the WWE, but the main thing bout Batista is his injuries, which seems to overshadow his career...he's always getting hurt for long periods of time and its frustrating. What's also frustrating is the WWE doesn't seem to give him a long term run or commitment, he doesn't have one major heated opponent (HHH is closest) but lots of minor heated opponents. I think some tinkering should be done with his career to make him go over even more - some examples, make Malena his manager...(would generate heat from their past) ..have a "stable" of Giants - big wrestlers uniting - Big Show, Batistsa, Umaga, Great Khali, Kane..you've never seen a group of Giants united, I think it would be cool if they tried to take over all the titles and wreak havoc on the likes of HHH, Cena & Edge ..then eventually as in all WWE relationships betrayal..

Kev,

There's no way you're gonna get any slack on your choices... It sounds like that the only way they'll cut you some slack is if you only put wrestlers who participated in Wrestlemanias 1 through 15.

Actually thought Batista could have been a last minute WM opponent for Jericho. But as Edge once said to Batista, "better hurry and get your title match before you get hurt again."

I mean, Goldust had more interesting Wrestlemania moments. Batista was a jobber in WCW for a reason.

RESPONSE FROM KE: Batista was never in WCW.

By your own set parameters Batista deserves his place where he is. This is not a list about who the best worker is, who had the best matches, who is the most popular. It is about the best Wrestlemania stars and Batista's efforts in 2 main event matches were great. They were very good matches. Some people need to lighten up. I don't like Batista at all, but you have no reason to defend yourself here.

Kev I definately here what you are saying but #1 he is was put into these situations because of his freindship with HHH more than likely where as beniot had to earn his way and his title victory along with his other great matches like the first money in the bank which i think to me was the best match on that card. along with the great triple threat match with Angle & jericho when angle lost both his titles without being pinned. and to another point his match with umanga was not great at all and you cant say that with any beniot match or dibiase

Agreed. His ability to come through with a big performance in such pressure-packed situations deserve credit. And I also agree that his match with Undertaker stole the show at WM23.

Batista is a bum. I don't like him because he's pushed as if he's a big deal and he's not. He didn't become a main-eventer because of his superior wrestling skills.

RESPONSE FROM KE: Neither did Hulk Hogan.

I thought your rating was fine.

The Evolution/Rock and Sock match, the steel cage match against Hunter, and the Undertaker match were all fantastic.

The only poor effort was against Umaga, but you have to give a guy a break sometimes.

Did not see his match vs. HHH, but he absolutely tore down the house vs. Undertaker. I was there. People were more into that than any match of the night. Now of course, 'Taker deserves much of the credit, but Batista had an excellent match as well and that shouldn't be forgotten.

Batista and Cena are newer WWE superstars than other main eventers like HBK, Undertaker, and HHH, which is why I think they get a lot of bs from internets marks.

He deserves the ranking.

I like Batista. He takes moves very well. He has had many entertaining matches, and even if his offense remains a bit rough around the edges, his size makes it look believable. I can understand people who only like quick workers or mat technicians; whatever floats your boat. Batista is one of many wrestlers I find entertaining.

I'm not the biggest Batista fan, but I don't think anyone can really justify not putting him on this list. I can't really think of anyone who's been in a mania Title match, not to mention a main event Title match, who doesn't deserve to be on this list except for maybe Yokozuna. And all of his matches have been high-profile, not to mention he was at the height of his popularity at the time of his Title match and among the top draws in the company at the time.

Kevin I completely agree with you, I don't know what's the beef people have with the Animal, they see him and just think of him as a musclehead who can't perform well. Granted he's no shawn michaels, but he has had memorable matches, most notably with triple h and undertaker, and is definitely deserving of a spot on your list. I hope he is somehow, someway able to be part of this years wrestlemania, even if just to cut a promo announcing he's back! Thanks for the great blog by the way

You're only at #17. It seems early to be talking about "the one" that got panned. ;-)

I don't object to Batista's inclusion or placement for one simple reason: He is incredibly over. I don't like him much personally, but I can relate to the kids who do get thrilled about Batista. I went through the same thing when I was that age: He's big and he's loud and he seems tough, almost like a superhero, and all of that appeals to little kids. And since those little kids drive ticket and merchandise sales today, and will certainly be tomorrow's audience...yeah, Batista belongs on the list.

RESPONSE FROM KE: Good point. Should have said the one that got panned so far.

im not a fan of his in ring skills but he is no worse than alot of wwe guys. its his mic skills and complete lack of charisma that i have a problem with.
if vince didnt have such a big guy (fascination) i dont think he would have had the same kind of sucess.

I think that there's a few issues underlying with Batista that really sours him with many fans period:

1) His skills as a wrestler, or lack thereof;
2) David Bautista the person (who seems easy to dislike) as opposed to Batista the wrestler - its hard for some members of the wrestling community to separate the two;
3) His lack of charisma overall as evidenced by the weak promos he has cut;
4) How over he is with many fans despite a lack of the fundamentals as noted in numbers one through three (let's call this Cena Syndrome)

I think those are valid reasons to have an issue with him overall, which is why many people disagree with the placement (and really, any top list for that matter). However, there's a lot of not so skilled wrestlers who have rocked the world of wrestlemania that you could make arguments for (the first one I can think of is the Ultimate Warrior, who may be to come on the list...). Also, its clear he can tell a good story when with the right competition (although some wrestlers can make anyone look good). That being said, I agree with your placement.

I just hope that our wrestling guru and I think alike about the upper echelon of this list. Time will tell...

Hey I think if you're giving credit to Batista for the success of WM 23, then I think you're giving him way too much credit. IMO, it was actually the presence of certain "Donald Trump" that forced so many viewers to buy the PPV. Anyways that might be a hugely successful wrestlemania, but for me it was a complete crap. Wrestlemania 17 is the best ever WWE PPV.