Batista Talks Joining Evolution, Triple H Thinking He Would Get Heat For It, Almost Being Replaced

During the second edition of his interview series on Talk is Jericho, Batista and host Chris Jericho discussed how Batista was almost replaced in Evolution, a move that would have changed wrestling forever.

Jericho and Batista were speaking about how much Randy Orton had changed over the past decade, and how instrumental Evolution was to both Orton and Batista himself. Jericho also noted that Orton had tried to start fights with him three or four times.

Batista says he was warned by Triple H ahead of forming Evolution that the two inexperienced starts would get a lot of heat for riding the coattails of Helmsley and Flair. An injury almost eliminated him from the stable altogether, as Mark Jindrak was slated to replace him.

"They were considering him replacing me when I was injured. Hunter wanted it to be the four of us, he was pretty adamant. He fought for us," Batista said of nearly being replaced.

"I get injured, and Randy (Orton) was back before I was and they wanted that fourth member," Batista said

Batista and Jericho spoke about how much the business had changed since Evolution, citing a change in Vince McMahon's demeanor. Part two of Batista's interview on Talk is Jericho can be found at this link.

Corleone Character a Big Hit for Jindrak in Mexico

Marco Corleone, formerly WWE's Mark Jindrak, is one of the central characters on ``Lucha Libre USA: Masked Warriors,'' a new pro wrestling show seen 10 p.m. EST/PST Fridays on MTV2.

After being released by WWE in 2005, Jindrak contemplated a different career path. Going to Mexico changed his mind-set, and after starting as a rudo (bad guy), he became a big star as a technico (good guy).

``I started off as a rudo in Mexico,'' Corleone said, ``but because of my physical appearance [6-6, 260] and my style of wrestling, the Mexican fans fell in love with me. You have to listen to the people. If they want you to be a rudo, then you're a rudo. If they want you to be a technico, you're a technico. I'm a technico. People like me.''

``Sometimes when I go back to the United States, I almost feel like a foreigner,'' he said. ``I'm here in Mexico, and I enjoy it. In all shapes and sizes and forms, I'm an ally of Mexico. I love the Mexican culture...More?

source: miamiherald.com

Interview with Mark Jindrak