Batista Confirms He Was Set To Be Inducted Into The WWE Hall Of Fame Earlier This Year

Attempting to get Batista inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame has been quite the saga for both performer and company.

The Animal was originally announced as an inductee in 2020, but was never officially inducted due to WWE postponing the ceremony for a year (because of the COVID-19 pandemic).

In 2021, WWE presented a pre-recorded Hall of Fame ceremony for the 2020 & 2021 classes, which took place inside the Thunderdome. By Batista's request, he was not involved as he wanted to properly thank the fans and individual people who made his career possible in a live arena setting.

It was reported earlier this year that the 54-year-old would be inducted as a member of the 2023 class, though that ultimately ended up not happening either.

The man himself has now confirmed that he was supposed to go in this year.

Asked whether he attended WrestleMania 39 in Los Angeles in a new interview with CoolKicks, the former WWE Champion said: "No. I was in South Africa. I was supposed to go into the Hall Of Fame, but I was on this film I was committed to. I couldn't get out of it". 

Batista retired from in-ring action following his loss to Triple H at WrestleMania 35.

H/T Fightful