The WWE superstar -- turned movie star -- announced his retirement from "Sports Entertainment" just hours after losing an insane match to Triple H at Wrestlemania 35.
First off, the match was crazy ... the 50-year-old -- who was a 6-TIME champ in the WWE -- battled his face off with Triple H ... who used pliers to rip out Batista's nose ring during the match.
Then, after being hit with everything from a steel chair to steel steps ... Triple H hit Batista with a DDT to end the match -- and Batista's career.