*Remembering RAW: The Animal Rises

(photo courtesy of ortoneclipse.blogspot.ca)

Monday Night Raw has been around since 1993, so naturally it’s tough to pinpoint my favourite Raw moment. As a kid, and even now as I get older I’ve made it a habit to root for the underdogs. I began watching the WWE in a serious fashion a few weeks after WrestleMania 20. Immediately, one group stood out to me, and that group was Evolution. Led by legendary grapplers Triple H and Ric Flair, and rounded out by up-and-comers Randy Orton and Dave Batista, they were the top dogs in the business. They were the untouchables and no one could hold a candle to 'em.

(photo courtesy of wrestling-match.com)

For months Evolution lived up to their reputation, capturing title after title and taking out some of the biggest names in the WWE. At one point, each member of the super stable held a title: Orton the Intercontinental belt, Flair & Batista the Tag Team Titles and Triple H the World Heavyweight Championship. It seemed as though this domination would last forever.

(photo courtesy of dvd4arab.maktoob.com)

That would not be the case. Cracks began to show in 2004 when Orton captured the World Championship in a tough battle with the late Chris Benoit at that year’s Summerslam. On Raw the following evening he was viciously assaulted by his supposed “friends” and kicked out of the group. The line in the sand was drawn; Triple H was the leader and was not meant to be crossed. Orton and his former mentor feuded for months, but Triple H finally recaptured what was his.

(photo courtesy of royalrumbler.wordpress.com)

More success for Evolution followed, as Batista won that year’s Royal Rumble. It was safe to say he would be facing the WWE Champion John Bradshaw Layfield at Wrestlemania, and not his leader Triple H. But on Monday, February 21^st 2005, Batista shocked the world by turning on The Game. In that moment, the notion of using my inside voice didn’t exist to me, as I ran upstairs to tell my mom that The Animal had finally gone to the good side!

(photo courtesy of bleacherreport.com)

This epic moment on Monday Night Raw would spawn one of the best feuds I have ever seen as a wrestling fan. Batista would go on to face Triple H for the title on "The Grandest Stage of Them All" and capture the gold, putting a smile on the faces of all the underdogs out there watching. Batista was no longer the little guy being told what to do by Triple H. The underdog had risen, and the powerhouse he went on to be for the next 5 years was born. And it all wouldn’t have been possible if it wasn’t for that incredible moment in Raw’s illustrious history.

-Raindrops