Dave "Batista" Bautista is heading to the WWE Hall of Fame, as the wrestler-turned-actor is among the first inductees announced for the Hall of Fame Class of 2020. Alongside Bautista, the New World Order wrestling faction from the '90s will also be inducted, with "Hollywood" Hulk Hogan, Kevin Nash, Scott Hall, and Sean "Syxx" Waltman representing the group. More inductees will be announced in the coming weeks.

Bautista's induction into the WWE Hall of Fame is certainly well-deserved. Competing full-time in the famous wrestling organization from 2002 to 2010, Bautista - as "Batista" - gained worldwide fame as he became one of the most popular wrestling superstars in the industry. During that time, he managed to win six world championships, holding the record for the longest reign as World Heavyweight Champion by holding the title for 282 days. Bautista is also a four-time Tag Team Champion and the winner of both the 2005 and 2014 Royal Rumble matches. He was also ranked No. 1 for Pro Wrestling Illustrated's top 500 singles wrestlers in 2005.

For the past several years, Dave Bautista had continued to make sporadic WWE appearances, though he officially retired after losing to Triple H at last year's WrestleMania. This wasn't surprising, as Bautista has gotten to be a pretty big star in Hollywood since pursuing a movie career. He is perhaps best known for playing Drax the Destroyer in the Guardians of the Galaxy and Avengers movies, a role which he will reprise in James Gunn's upcoming Guardians sequel. He has also appeared in movies like Blade Runner 2049, Escape Plan 2: Hades, and Stuber, and will soon be seen in the upcoming movies My Spy, Dune, and Zack Snyder's Netflix zombie movie Army of the Dead.

The New World Order was formed by rival wrestling organization World Championship Wrestling in 1996. Following their sudden exits from WWE, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash appeared on an episode of WCW Monday Night Nitro to declare "war" against the company. Soon after, perennial good guy Hulk Hogan turned his back on the fans by joining the villainous group, adopting the "Hollywood" moniker and trading in the yellow trunks for black and white tights. Among many other members to join the group was Sean "Syxx" Waltman, who had previously competed in WWE as the 1-2-3 Kid. At the time, the group was the hottest thing in wrestling, playing a vital role in WCW defeating WWE in the ratings for 83 consecutive weeks.

Congratulations to both Bautista and the founding members of the nWo on their upcoming inductions into the WWE Hall of Fame Class of 2020. Tickets for the Induction Ceremony will be available on Friday, Dec. 13, at 12 p.m. ET via Ticketmaster or at ReliaQuest Ticket Office at Amelie Arena. The event will take place on the evening of Thursday, April 2, 2020. The inductees will also appear on WWE WrestleMania 36 on Sunday, April 5, with the annual event streaming on WWE Network. This news comes to us from WWE.