Former WWE Champion and Hollywood star Dave Bautista — known to fans as Batista — has never shied away from telling it like it is. But in one of the most personal and explosive chapters of his autobiography, the six-time world champion revealed a deep-rooted grudge against fellow WWE veteran Bubba Ray Dudley, now known as Bully Ray.
Batista, who rose to fame as part of Evolution alongside Triple H, Ric Flair, and Randy Orton, recalled a tense and painful incident from 2003 that has left him bitter to this day.
🔥 A Night in Pennsylvania That Sparked a Feud
The animosity stems from a WWE house show match in Reading, Pennsylvania, where Batista and Orton faced the Dudley Boyz. According to Batista, the bout quickly spiraled out of control when Bubba Ray injured Randy Orton by landing on his foot — resulting in a broken bone.
“Randy ended up in an ambulance,” Batista wrote. “And instead of checking on him, Bubba started yelling — blaming Randy for hurting his back. It was ridiculous.”
Batista said that the situation only worsened when Bubba Ray never followed up to check on Orton during his recovery, something typically considered respectful and standard within the wrestling community.
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💬 Batista: “He Treated Us Like Garbage”
In his autobiography, Batista didn’t hold back:
“Bubba Dudley is one of those people who bullied younger talent just because he could. He treated me and Randy like garbage. I’ll never forgive him.”
The tension between the two lingered even after the match. The pair continued to cross paths in the ring throughout 2003 and 2004, during which Batista says he sustained a torn tricep following a stiff hit from Bubba in another match.
“I tagged out immediately — my arm was done,” Batista recalled in WWE’s 2020 documentary Ruthless Aggression.
Bubba Ray, however, told a different version of the event:
“He mushed me, I mushed him back, and he tore his tricep.”
🏆 Two WWE Legends, One Bitter History
Despite both being legends in their own right, the bitterness remained unresolved. Bubba Ray Dudley was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2018, while Batista — though initially scheduled for induction in 2020 — postponed his Hall of Fame moment, with many expecting it to still happen in the future.
Batista, who officially retired from wrestling after WrestleMania 35 in 2019, has since found massive success in Hollywood with blockbuster roles in Guardians of the Galaxy and Dune. Still, the grudge with Bubba Ray remains one of the few unresolved chapters from his wrestling career.
📊 Batista’s WWE Career by the Numbers (as of May 2025):
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Total Matches: 959
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Wins: 592 (61.7%)
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Losses: 336 (35%)
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Draws: 31 (3.3%)
