I don't really feel that Batista's initial return was all that much to write home about. When he first came out, the pop was there and it was substantial, but it wasn't anything like you'd expect from a multiple-time world champion returning from a long absence. The real pop he got was later in the night when he came out and dealt with Alberto Del Rio.
As to Bryan's role in all this, I have to agree that it wasn't that Batista won so much as it was that Batista won and Bryan wasn't even included in the Rumble. Then look at his reaction to being booed by the Rumble crowd. If he had played it off like Cena does or even ignored it and pretended it was cheers, nobody would have had anything to say. Instead, he mocks the "Yes!" chants and yells at the audience and it makes headlines. Bryan was a cog in the machine, but Batista's inability to handle the crowd's reaction was a much bigger one.
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