In the sports entertainment industry, Vince McMahon has been seen as a ruthless businessman who will do everything that is “best for business.” This trait has helped him to make WWE a global brand, where fans would tune in each week to watch the emotionally gripping fictional storyline that pushes the limits of sports entertainment.
Disappointingly, in the process, he has severed the relationship with people close to him and released some of the biggest and greatest talents that have ever stepped foot in the ring. Therefore, the members of the locker room must do everything in their power to maintain Mr. McMahon’s favor; otherwise, dire repercussions will follow.
Dave Bautista is one of those unfortunate members who learned this the hard way, recalling an incident in which he was fined a large sum for compromising World Wrestling Entertainment’s PG Era.
Dave Bautista recalls his lingering bitterness towards Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon has been actively responsible for a number of things in his WWE, some for the better, some for the worse. His decision to shift from the Attitude Era to a new PG Era was the same, as he wanted entertainment wrestling to appeal to a younger audience. This means the use of obscene language, actions, or blading was banned on the show.
Thus, in 2008, John Cena became the face of the company, becoming an idol for young kids who would learn the values of “Hustle, Loyalty, and Respect.” While other stars such as Dave Bautista, Chris Jericho, Randy Orton, and many more became popular heels during that period of time.
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It was during this span that The Animal and Y2J found themselves in a feud trapped inside a Steel Cage Match for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. To make their match look more intense, he bladed himself without getting authorization from the higher ups before hand, causing a mayhem backstage. The match concluded with Jericho being crowned the new Heavyweight Champion.
The match followed serious repercussions towards Batista, which he remembered when he appeared as a guest on the Talk is Jericho via Wrestling Inc. During the podcast, he recalled how “shedding blood” was not allowed because they were PG. He did not like it, especially when there’s a “title match involved.”
Both men recalled how chaos followed their match with a “lot of yelling and screaming going on.” The 2-time WWE Champion recalled that he was ready for the consequences, but never in his wildest dreams did he think that it would be so harsh. He said,
Then he starts passing out fines. So my fine was $100,000?My heart dropped. I thought it would be like $25,000? When he said $100,000, I was just heartbroken. I literally think that he s**ked the life out of me that day. I think that’s the day that I knew things were never going to be the same.
However, his in-ring adversary and everyone involved in the match were fined only $5,000. In good faith, The Animal paid not only his fine but also for others as well. Before adding, how the Genetic Jackhammer’s actions have left him thinking poorly of him.
Batista recalls his worry about botching the 2005 Men’s Royal Rumble
In a different interview with the Insight podcast, Batista recalled the hilarious incident of how Mr. McMahon tore both of his quad muscles and found it hilarious the entire time on how his boss was sitting on the mat the entire time.
He said,
I think later on, I didn’t realize during the match, I didn’t know why he was sitting there. I had no idea what was going on, I was just worried about the match. Then they got him out of there. I think I found out later on.
The match restarted, and he eliminated Cena. However, he was scared about how he was spending his final moments as a WWE star and how, in his mind, he was seeing himself getting fired. He recalled,
I got to the building and somebody immediately said, ‘Vince wants to see you in his office.’ I was saying, ‘Ah, here it comes.’ So I went to his office, and my heart is beating, just in my head I’m packing my bags
Luckily, Vince McMahon was ecstatic about what happened in the Royal Rumble and praised how everything was so unpredictable, making the audience stand on their feet. He continued,
I was like, ‘You’re not going to fire me?’ And he goes, ‘No, I loved it. It was real. It was so great, and it was real, and nobody knew what was going happen.’ He loved it.
Fortunately, the unforeseen events that made everyone skip their heartbeat added to the PPV’s rating, which made things better for the WWE veteran.
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