It looks like Dave Batista won’t be at the historic 1000th episode of SmackDown Live. “The Animal” responded to a fan’s question on Twitter over whether he would be involved with the event or not, replying, “Surprise, surprise, I wasn’t invited!”
As if to add further insult, the 1000th episode of SmackDown takes place in his hometown of Washington, DC – something Batista highlighted in his Tweet.
Surprise surprise!! I wasn’t invited! And it’s in my hometown.! ?.. guess by now I shouldn’t be shocked anymore. https://t.co/r1NwUNlRnf
— Dave Bautista (@DaveBautista) September 13, 2018
Batista has been incredibly vocal in recent weeks over his longing for the squared circle, admitting that he “thinks about it [wrestling] daily. I miss it daily. I love it, I have a passion for wrestling. I feel that at the core of me that’s just who I am. I’m a physical performer, and I miss it every day.”
SmackDown 1000
SmackDown Live 1000 takes place on October 16th from the Capital One Arena in DC. The projected card (as advertised by the area itself) for the night looks stacked so far, though WWE have not yet officially confirmed them:
- Jeff Hardy vs Randy Orton
- The Miz vs Daniel Bryan
- WWE Champion AJ Styles vs Samoa Joe
With it being a milestone episode of the show, WWE will probably attempt to bring in a lot of former superstars that became synonymous with SmackDown and it’s success, including WWE Hall Of Famer, Edge, and The Undertaker, to name just a few.
With Jericho offering Batista an “open invitation” into the Alpha Club in NJPW, and Batista’s name still a recognisable commodity within the industry, Batista probably has some very real alternative options if he ever chose to wrestle for another company. As it stands, “The Animal” appears to have unfortunately been left outside in the cold by the WWE once again.
