Batista reacts after actress Maria Bakalova posts photo with him on Instagram

Former World Heavyweight Champion Batista has shared a heartfelt reaction to a recent photo of him and Maria Bakalova that she posted on Instagram. The Bulgarian actress posted a picture with The Animal on her official Instagram handle, and he reacted to the same with a "heart" emoji.

It has been over six years since Dave Bautista retired from pro wrestling following his loss to Triple H at WrestleMania 35 in 2019. He is doing incredibly well as a Hollywood star, and many believe he's the best wrestler-turned-actor of all time.

Maria Bakalova, the Bulgarian actress who also starred in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, recently shared a picture with Batista.

She wrote:

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"A good, good day ♥️."

The wrestling veteran responded to it shortly after. Check out his reaction below:

Batista comments on Bakalova's post (Screenshot via Maria's Instagram)

Batista is done with pro wrestling for good

The Animal has made it clear time and again that he will never come back for another match in the squared circle. In an appearance on Jake's Takes, he said the following about his 2019 retirement:

"To me, the honorable way to go out is to go out on your back. And, you go out and you leave somebody who's going to stay there with the company and you put them over and build them as stars. And, not like the guy [Triple H] I went out with needed to be built, he was probably the most massive star in the company. That's the honorable way to go out."

Fans are aware that Dave Bautista lost to his mentor Triple H in a No Holds Barred match at WrestleMania 35. He announced his retirement shortly after and hasn't stepped back in the ring since then. He is bound to receive a WWE Hall of Fame induction in the near future.

About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

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Edited by Abhilash Mendhe