WWE WrestleMania 35 preview: Batista vs. Triple H, no holds barred match

Triple H puts his career on the line at WWE WrestleMania 35 as he takes on former Evolution stablemate Batista in a no holds barred match.

It’s been 14 years since Triple H and Batista battled for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 21, and while there is no gold at stake this time around, there is certainly plenty on the line this Sunday at MetLife Stadium as the former Evolution stablemates battle on the grandest stage of them all.

The history between Triple H and Batista dates all the way back to 2002 as Evolution began to form. The foursome of Triple H, Batista, Randy Orton and Ric Flair would become one of the most successful stables in WWE history, even holding all the major titles at one point. But as it usually happens, egos get in the way and breakups become the result. Orton was the first to go after winning the World Heavyweight Championship in 2004, which caused some major jealousy issues with Triple H, and it wouldn’t be long before Batista would be out as well. The difference is that he took himself out of the group in a fantastic storyline.

After helping Triple H win the big gold belt at New Year’s Revolution in January 2005, Batista, against the wishes of The Game, would enter the 2005 Royal Rumble and emerged victorious. With the win, he was able to choose the champion of his choice to face at WrestleMania 21 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and would do so in dramatic fashion on an episode of Monday Night Raw. Triple H and Flair were conspiring to get Batista to face WWE Champion JBL, even staging a fake hit-and-run with JBL’s limo. However, Batista caught on and during the contract signing, where The Animal would make his choice, he slammed Triple H through a table to set up their clash at WrestleMania 21.

Batista would go on to defeat his mentor for the World Heavyweight Championship that night in L.A., winning his first of six world titles during his time in WWE. The two would battle again at Backlash and then again in a bloody affair at Vengeance inside the confines of Hell in a Cell with Batista emerging victorious each time, making The Animal one of the only people in the industry whom Triple H has never defeated.

Batista was quick to bring up this fact when Evolution reunited for the 1000th episode of SmackDown Live last fall, giving the WWE Universe a quick tease that one more match could be possible in the future. After no sign of The Animal for months, he returned to WWE on the February 25 episode of Monday Night Raw and ruined Flair’s 70th birthday celebration, dragging the two-time WWE Hall of Famer out of his dressing room and asking Triple H, who was in the ring at the time awaiting the arrival of The Nature Boy, if he had his attention.

This led to a confrontation a couple of weeks later between the two former stablemates and Batista demanded a match at WrestleMania 35. Hunter was happy to oblige and added the no holds barred stipulation to the bout. Things took an even bigger turn when it was announced that Triple H would be putting his career on the line as well. Will this be the last time Triple H steps foot in the ring as a competitor? We’ll find out on Sunday at WrestleMania.

Does Batista end the career of Triple H at WWE WrestleMania 35? Please feel free to jump in the conversation in the comments section below.