Triple H had been away from WWE events for a week after testing positive for COVID-19 but was said to be doing well. The good news is that The Game is back in the saddle.
Triple H was backstage at this week’s WWE Monday Night Raw from the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, NC, according to Sean Ross Sapp via Fightful Select. He was there to run things and appeared to be feeling okay.
Triple H is Back
(BT Sport)
The report adds:
“We’re told he was feeling okay and just frustrated he had to miss the event. Road Dogg filled in during his absence, and most of the show was written by the day before, as was SmackDown.”
Triple H’s return comes at a good time as it will give the crew a morale boost ahead of the building to its next premium live event.
WWE will have a double SmackDown taping this Friday before having a live Monday Night Raw next week ahead of them flying over to Saudi Arabia for the November 5th Crown Jewel event, which will be headlined by Roman Reigns defending the Undisputed WWE Universal Title against Logan Paul.
Former WWE writer Brian Gewirtz has offered some insight into an on-screen segment that saw The Rock impersonate then WWF Champion Triple H.
In mid- February of 2000, Triple H and D-Generation X targeted the likes of Kane and Mick Foley, forcibly shoving them into their DX-Express travel bus on an episode of RAW. Later in the evening, the New Age Outlaws defended their WWF World Tag Team Championships against The Rock and The Big Show. However, The Rock ended up challenging for the titles alone.
Before the bout could conclude, The Big Show appeared to confront The Rock before the two traded punches. Billy Gunn and Road Dogg (The New Age Outlaws) would then join the Big Show in fending off The Rock. Soon after, “The World’s Largest Athlete” took hold of Rock, dragging and throwing him into the baggage compartment of the DX-Express. The Rock would eventually escape, surprising The Big Show with a slate of wood to the back of his head.
The following week, DX, along with Stephanie McMahon, gathered in the ring to brag about leaving Foley and Kane stranded. The Rock, however, was unamused with their celebration. In cutting off Triple H, “The People’s Champ” emerged to cut a promo, mocking the way “The Game” spoke.
Pitching The Idea
In speaking on NotSam Wrestling, former WWE head-writer Brian Gewirtz recently opened up about the meeting for the idea, which saw him in the same room with Triple H during the pitch.
“I think that was in 2000, and the stage being set for that with us coming up with the idea for the promo, me pitching to him doing the Triple H voice and then pitching it to Vince, which normally would be easy. But when we went into Vince’s office, which at the time this is pretty incredible to consider, the writing team was so small that the writers shared an office with Vince. The writers didn’t get their own little office until 2002.”
“We would share our office with Vince, so we would go in and at that time Triple H and all of DX and Stephanie [McMahon] were all there, and Rock was setting up the promo and he’s like, ‘Oh, you’re going to love it, Hunter.’ I go in and [Rock says], ‘You know, Triple H, every time you open your mouth, you sound exactly like this.’ Then he stops and goes, ‘Brian, go ahead, do the voice.’”
As he was put on the spot with eight people, including the match producers, in the room, Gewirtz tried to avoid mimicking Triple H. “‘Well, you have to do it in TV. We should hear how you do it,'” he told The Rock. “He’s like, ‘But I’m learning from you when you do it.’”
WWE Chairmen Vince McMahon then proceeded to interject, saying ‘Damn it, Bryan, do the damn voice.'”
News broke earlier this week that WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque had tested positive for COVID-19. As a result, he missed Monday Night Raw and NXT the following night.
WWE will present a live episode of SmackDown tonight, and fans have been wondering whether “The Game” will be back in time to run tonight’s show. PWinsider.com reports that Triple H “remains in WWE’s COVID-19 protocol” and will therefore be unable to be present at the show.
Health Update
(BT Sport)
Just like at Raw, Triple H continues to be in close contact with those helping creative in his absence.
Triple H is said to be feeling fine and is simply doing what’s required before he can return in person. The hope is that he will be able to come back to television next week, but that will depend on the test results. This would also mean that he will miss Saturday’s NXT Halloween Havoc special on Peacock.
This week’s SmackDown from Toledo, Ohio, will feature an appearance by Logan Paul as WWE continues to build to his Undisputed Universal Championship matchup with Roman Reigns at Crown Jewel in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, next month.
CM Punk defeated Jon Moxley to win the AEW World Championship in the main event of AEW All Out on September 5th.
He suffered a torn tricep during the match and is out of action while he recovers from surgery. Following the PPV, All Elite Wrestling held a media scrum and led off with the newly crowned AEW World Champion.
CM Punk went on a rant for the ages while AEW President Tony Khan was seated right next to him. Punk claimed that the company’s EVPs weren’t capable of running a Target, let alone a wrestling company.
After his rant, Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks confronted CM Punk backstage and a brawl broke out. Ace Steel has been released from the company, CM Punk and The Elite were stripped of their titles and have not appeared on TV since All Out.
Will CM Punk Return to WWE?
(AEW)
It was reported earlier today by the Wrestling Observer that CM Punk is not likely to return to AEW and the company is working on a buyout for the former champion A non-compete clause appears to be the hold-up at the moment.
According to a new report from Fightful Select, sources within WWE believe that CM Punk would not have been brought back to the company with Vince McMahon at the helm, but that may not be the case with Triple H. A source told Fightful that Triple H wants to create compelling TV “more than anything” but can’t see WWE bringing CM Punk back on a full-time deal like he had in All Elite Wrestling.
However, if the money, creative and situation is right, Triple H’s regime can leave the door open for anything. It was also noted that Punk may not need to wrestle again if his contract gets bought out.
The report echoed previous sentiments that many within All Elite Wrestling do not want CM Punk back unless he makes serious amends for how he made the company look following All Out.
Contracting Covid also means that Triple H will miss tonight’s episode of WWE NXT, which will go head-to-head with a special Tuesday edition of AEW Dynamite.
Raw Without the Game
Even without Triple H around, Raw went on ahead, with ‘Road Dogg’ Jesse James running the show backstage.
PW Insider reports that James oversaw production, and made the majority of the big calls for the show.
At last Friday night’s WWE SmackDown TV tapings, Road Dogg was working alongside his D-Generation X stablemate.
Road Dogg
While best known for his work in DX and the New Age Outlaws, ‘Road Dogg’ Jesse James has held various roles behind the scenes in WWE.
In 2011, James returned to the promotion as a producer, and in 2016 became a writer for SmackDown, where he would also produce matches.
After WrestleMania 35 in April 2019, it was reported that James had resigned as head writer of SmackDown, but would remain with WWE as a “utility” player.
From 2019 to 2022, James worked with Triple H in NXT, teaching classes on in-ring development and promo skills before his release in January.
The WWE Hall of Famer was appointed the Senior Vice President of Live Events in August this year, replacing Jeff Jarrett.
Dynamite has been moved from its traditional Wednesday timeslot due to the MLB’s American League Championship.
Triple H’s status for this Friday’s SmackDown on FOX is unknown at this time.
WWE and Covid
Like all businesses, WWE had to face the Covid-19 pandemic when cases began to surge in the United States in early 2020.
While WWE was allowed to continue operating, shows went ahead without fans for the first time in the promotion’s history.
In August 2020, WWE introduced their ‘Thunderdome’ a virtual fan environment which allowed virtual audiences.
Unlike AEW, WWE did not want talent to announce positive Covid tests, though many tests would be made public.
Triple H joins Drew McIntyre, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins, who have all tested positive for Covid-19 in the past.
Triple H’s Rise to the Throne
While considered for a long-time the heir to WWE, Triple H’s rise through the company’s hierarchy took a detour last year.
In September 2021, the Game lost control over NXT to his father-in-law, who rebranded the show as WWE NXT 2.0.
Following McMahon’s retirement in July, Triple H would be appointed Head of Creative, replacing McMahon as well as Head of Talent, replacing John Laurinaitis.
Triple H has made several changes since then, including bringing back released talent, which has gone down well with fans.
Former WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon and former Talent Relations head John Laurinaitis passed on renewing Saraya’s contract when it expired.
Fightful Select has a new report regarding the WWE departure of Saraya, formerly known as Paige. When she was informed of the news that WWE wasn’t going to re-sign her, she went public with her statement. Saraya’s WWE contract was surprisingly low, and many of her outside projects were restricted to some degree.
It was said that while Saraya was on the shelf for the majority of the last five years, there were “some confusing messages sent regarding about her physical status, ability to wrestle, and the way that things went down.”
WWE’s Offer
(AEW)
The new WWE regime did offer her the role of General Manager a month after her deal was not renewed. When the regime made that offer, she was told that if she ever wanted to return to in-ring action, the company would help make that happen. There had been rumors of WWE getting Saraya multiple doctors to get her medically cleared, but this report dismissed it and said WWE didn’t go to the extent of getting her checked out for an in-ring return.
Instead, Saraya went through three extensive health checks herself to gain clearance. WWE reportedly was not interested in bringing Saraya back before the new regime. Also, that regime wouldn’t sign off on X-rays to have her examined. The case of her wrestling again was said to be closed as far as the old regime was concerned.
When Triple H took over, his regime did make efforts to get Saraya back into the mix, as there is a positive relationship between the two sides. Triple H was reportedly said to be shocked when the old regime did not renew Saraya’s deal.
Ultimately the freedom to do outside projects without giving up a cut in pay, and other contract terms, led to Saraya going with AEW instead of returning to WWE.
Solo Sikoa of The Bloodline disclosed that the first time he met Triple H was before his debut at Clash at the Castle on the latest episode of the Cheap Heat podcast.
Sikoa admitted that he had no idea that he was being called up the main roster the first time he spoke with WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H.
You know, going to Cardiff, that was my first time meeting him (Triple H). At the time, he was not in NXT. When he signs people at NXT, he takes a picture with them. I think like a week before we were getting ready to take the picture with him, he had some differences and something had happened.
But that was my first time meeting him man. He brought me to the office and goes ‘hey man, welcome to Cardiff. You know this is your call-up right?’ I was like ‘no, I didn’t.’ He goes ‘yeah this is your call-up man for SmackDown, so welcome’.
Solo added that Triple H had to explain to him what he was doing at the Premium Live Event. The 29-year-old stated that The Game will talk to him after every match and give him advice.
He’ll talk to me every time after the match to give me some advice, which I’m really happy I got the chance to meet him.
Rosenberg asked Sikoa towards the end of the interview what it was like being in the ring with Drew McIntyre. Sikoa cost Drew his shot at the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at Clash at the Castle. They battled on an episode of SmackDown in a match that ended in a DQ following interference from Karrion Kross.
He’s a pro. He’s been in the game for over twenty years I think. Me being in there with a guy like him man, I was happy to be in there because I learned so much. You know with guys like that have been around the game and I’m just coming up from NXT.
It is a whole different pace. It is a whole different ballgame from NXT to the main roster. If you can catch on and switch how you was in NXT to the main roster, I think you will fit in just fine.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Cheap Heat and give a H/T to SEScoops for the transcription.
Dakota Kai returned to WWE at SummerSlam alongside Bayley and IYO SKY. The group became known as Damage CTRL and has already become a key part of the RAW roster.
Kai was released in April but made her return after WWE had undergone massive changes at the top of the company. Vince McMahon resigned in late July and his daughter, Stephanie McMahon, and Nick Khan took over as the new co-CEOs.
Triple H replaced John Laurinaitis as the EVP of Talent Relations and was recently given the title of Chief Content Officer. Since gaining power in the company, The Game has brought back several released talents and Dakota Kai was one of them.
Dakota Kai On Triple H Reaching Out To HerFor WWE Return
Dakota Kai joined Ryan Satin on the latest edition of the Out of Character podcast. During the interview, Kai revealed that Bayley pitched the idea to Triple H for Damage CTRL and The Game was in favor of it.
It was very strange because obviously, I wasn’t taking bookings, I was just chilling and doing my streaming thing. Bayley texted me on Thursday just out of the blue, we talk a lot but this question was out of the blue.
She was like ‘hey out of curiosity, are you like talking to anyone right now in terms of companies?’. I said ‘well, kind of, why do you ask?’.
She said that she in a last-ditch attempt for this idea that she had of a group, she said she texted Hunter and kind of gave it like one last push.
I guess I didn’t know if that would be a thing that he would look to contact me about. But sure enough, she texted him about the idea we had. We had filmed a bunch of videos and took some photos, and she sent him the idea.
His first thought response after that was ‘what is Dakota doing?’.
Dakota added that she was dumbfounded that Triple H wanted her to return as she had never viewed herself as a top star in the company.
I was dumbfounded because I never look at myself as like ‘the guy’. I’ve always been, my role within the company has always been to help elevate, you know, or as someone to just tell a story. I’ve never considered myself a top guy.
So the fact that I was on his mind in terms of that idea and the fact that I was like the first he called back after he had gotten control of the company. I was shocked.
UFC megastar Nate Diaz recently posted a photo with WWE’s Triple H and Stephanie McMahon.
Diaz took to his Instagram and shared a photo of himself, “The Game,” and Stephanie McMahon, captioning the photo with “We’ll see what’s bout to happen next.” Check it out below:
Diaz is certainly free to pursue a career in WWE should he decide to do so. He recently wrapped up his UFC contract in September when he picked up a submission victory over Tony Ferguson at UFC 279.
The longtime UFC veteran then declared his intentions to forgo re-signing with the mixed martial arts (MMA) promotional juggernaut, instead opting to go out and “take over” another sport.
While he did not specify as to what sport he was referring to, most believe he’s hinting at a move to boxing – something Nate Diaz has been suggesting as a dream of his for the past several years.
Diaz could potentially be in line to face YouTube star Jake Paul next after his upcoming fight with Anderson Silva later this month. However, perhaps the sport Diaz was hinting at “taking over” next is actually WWE.
WWE and the UFC have been intertwined with one another for some time now. Diaz would be following in the footsteps of the likes of Ronda Rousey, Brock Lesnar, and Shayna Baszler – all former UFC stars who have gone on to have great runs in WWE after their MMA careers.
Gunther will defend the Intercontinental Championship tonight against Sheamus in a rematch from their epic encounter at WWE Clash at the Castle.
The Celtic Warrior came up short in the match at the Premium Live Event earlier this month, but the crowd in Audience still gave him a standing ovation. It was a match that received rave reviews from fans and critics, and the rematch is going down tonight on the season premier of WWE SmackDown.
Former Intercontinental Champions and WWE legends have taken to Twitter to hype tonight’s match. The legendary Bret Hart recently posed that he was in the crowd for their bout at Clash at the Castle and is excited to see the rematch tonight.
Had the pleasure of watching @WWESheamus and@Gunther_AUT’s Intercontinental Championship match from ringside in Cardiff. Can’t wait for the rematch tonight on #SmackDown.
Had the pleasure of watching @WWESheamus and @Gunther_AUT’s Intercontinental Championship match from ringside in Cardiff. Can’t wait for the rematch tonight on #SmackDown.
Shawn Michaels promoted the match tonight as well. He noted that the title meant so much to him during his career and is pumped to see Sheamus & Gunther lay it all on the line tonight.
The Intercontinental Championship has meant so much to me professionally and personally. I couldn't be more excited to see @WWESheamus and @Gunther_AUT lay it all on the line tonight at #SmackDown!!!
WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H took to Twitter to hype up tonight’s massive title match.
Two of the hardest hitters in this business battling for one of WWE’s most storied championships. I know@Gunther_AUT and @WWESheamus are ready to tear the house down tonight on #SmackDown. #ICTitle
WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle also posted on Twitter that the IC Title really helped jumpstart his career. Angel announced that he will be tuning into the title match tonight.
The title that really jumpstarted my WWE career, and so many others. Your Olympic Hero will be tuning in for @WWESheamus vs. @Gunther_AUT tonight #itstrue#ictitle
Sheamus has won a world championship four times, the United States and tag titles three times, the Money in the Bank, the Royal Rumble, and the King of the Ring. The Celtic Warrior has never captured the Intercontinental Championship in his incredible career and time will tell if that changes tonight.
NBA star Dwight Howard may have a future inside the squared circle. The 8-time All Star and 2020 NBA Champion attended WWE’s latest round of open tryouts, which took place this summer in Nashville during SummerSlam weekend.
Howard’s work at the tryouts garnered both him and WWE some great attention, as the promos Howard cut circulated online and had fanbases in wrestling and basketball talking about his potential as a WWE superstar.
Paul “Triple H” Levesque raved about Howard’s performance in Nashville. As the head of WWE’s talent relations division, Triple H said Howard could follow in the footsteps of Logan Paul and Bad Bunny if he’s really serious about making the jump into the world of pro wrestling.
Howard Thinks He’d Excel In WWE
Howard recently appeared on the “All The Smoke” program to discuss his work at the WWE tryouts, where he tells the show hosts that he’s always had an affinity for professional wrestling.
“My whole life growing up as a kid, me and my brother wrestled,” he said. “I played around acting like I was the Hulk, you know what I’m saying? And then, my nickname is Randy Savage so that’ll tell right there how much I love wrestling. Randy Savage, that was my sh*t so, why not? I really enjoy the crowd, I enjoy entertaining people, I enjoy the fans and stuff like that and the atmosphere is crazy.”
“I would definitely enjoy being a real wrestler like that.”
– Dwight Howard
He later reveals that Triple H and his wife, co-CEO Stephanie McMahon, were very complimentary of the promos he was cutting in Nashville.
“I went to SummerSlam this summer and I got a chance to do some promos for wrestling and Triple H and Stephanie McMahon was there. She had just became the new CEO of WWE and I did my promo and they was like, ‘Man, that was the best promo of the whole tryout and do you really wanna wrestle?’
Jimmy Smith will no longer be calling the action on Monday Night Raw, something that the former commentator learned by complete accident.
Yesterday, WWE changed the commentary teams across Raw, SmackDown, and NXT, as part of the season premieres for each show.
Not long after news broke, Smith confirmed that he has left WWE.
Triple H’s Accident
Fans were surprised to see the changes be announced, first by Variety and later confirmed by WWE, but Smith wasn’t taken aback.
Speaking on Unlocking the Cage, Smith said how a comment by Triple H earlier this week was all it took to learn of his fate (via ComicBook.)
“Triple H accidentally told me before the show Monday. He screwed up and told me [about the commentary changes]. He didn’t mean to.”
After speaking with Riddle and coming up with a good line for the Fight Pit at this weekend’s Extreme Rules event, Smith wanted to get it checked by Triple H.
“I go to Triple H. Triple H standing there, I go, ‘Hey, I just talked to Riddle and he gave me this line about how he out-wrestled Jon Jones twice’ and Triple H goes, ‘Okay, cool. Give that note to Cole.’
“Triple H accidentally told me before the show Monday. He screwed up and told me.”
Jimmy Smith
“I went, why would I have to give that note to Cole if I’m calling the match on Saturday? Oh. I’m not calling the match on Saturday. Oh, I’m probably fired. In about two seconds, my brain went, that’s so – okay… and I was like, all right. So I knew basically the whole show on Monday night that I wasn’t coming back.”
Changes
With Smith gone, the new commentary team on Raw will see Corey Graves team with Kevin Patrick.
On SmackDown, Michael Cole will call the action with Wade Barrett, who is joining from NXT.
WWE NXT will be called by Vic Joseph and Booker T, who has done commentary for SmackDown and Raw in the past.
WWE has filled a new position with an interesting name.
Fightful Select reported today that WWE has hired horror writer Rob Fee, starting full-time work in October and officially signing this week for the spot of Director of Longtime creative.
Prior to joining the company, he once pitched a Fiend-related movie that resonated well with WWE higher-ups and had the possibility of getting produced, but that all changed when WWE released Bray Wyatt in 2021.
Fee’s experience includes working as a horror writer for Marvel in the past, and he has been well regarded for his work. He has written comics for Spider-Man, Daredevil, and Avengers and was head writer on several Disney shows.
He’s Behind The QR Codes
One of Fee’s early projects with WWE has been directing and producing the QR code-related cryptic messages that fans have seen on television in recent weeks. These vignettes have been getting a lot of buzz among fans on social media with the speculation that WWE is doing this for the return of Bray Wyatt.
Fee is said to be a longtime follower of wrestling, and those within the company said he was very familiar with the product.
Posted October 4th, 2022 in WWE. Tagged: Triple H.
Andrade El Idolo isn’t afraid to make his feelings clear about All Elite Wrestling amid reports of an exit.
In recent weeks, Andrade has teased departing the promotion, including using the #FreeElIdolo hashtag on social media.
Andrade has also liked and retweeted comments saying he has underutilized in Tony Khan’s first promotion.
El Idolo will face Preston ’10’ Vance in a career vs. mask match on this Friday’s AEW Rampage.
Stuck
Speaking to Más Lucha, El Idolo addressed his current situation with All Elite Wrestling.
El Idolo, who’s yet to hold gold in AEW, confirmed that he is still with the company, but laughed when he asked how he feels about AEW.
Andrade believed he would grow in AEW, but currently feels stuck in the company.
He did comment that he is signed to a great contract and schedule.
A WWE Return?
With the AEW star teasing an exit, many believe that he is hoping to return to WWE.
A former NXT Champion and United States Champion, Andrade is a name WWE would likely try and sign, given that Triple H is now head of Talent Relations.
Speaking about the Game, Andrade said that Triple H was a big supporter of his during his time in WWE, and is thankful for all the help he received from the WWE Hall of Famer.
Andrade added that while he cannot speak with Triple H or WWE directly, he can indirectly communicate through his wife and current WWE Superstar Charlotte Flair.
Triple H has gained a lot of power within WWE as of late and has responded to a request from a wrestling fan.
He replaced John Laurinaitis as EVP of Talent Relations and recently took over creative responsibility for the promotion as the Chief Content Officer. His wife, Stephanie McMahon, and Nick Khan replaced Vince McMahon as co-CEOs after he resigned from the company on July 22nd.
A wrestling fan in India started the hashtag #SearchForMerch and Triple H has responded. Rohit Pant of Wrestle Chatter asked Triple H and Stephanie McMahon on social media for the company to provide authentic merchandise to India. The YouTuber noted that Triple H has said during interviews in the past that the company wants to expand in India, yet the fans there are not able to purchase official merchandise from the company.
Dear @TripleH, You’ve said this in many interviews that you want to expand in India. And here we truly passionate fans don’t even get the official merch. We want to feel it, We want authentic merchandise. Do something.@WWE@WWEIndia@WWEShop@StephMcMahon#SearchForMerch#IWF
Triple H has since responded to the request and indicated that WWE is listening. The Game used the viral hashtag in his response as well.
Triple H has his sights set on expanding the product and outlined his vision for NXT moving forward. The 53-year-old suggested an “almost World Cup scenario” for WWE’s developmental show, starting with NXT Europe in 2023.
Triple H has a vision of WWE in markets around the world competing on a world cup level. That also feeds into Raw, Smackdown and Wrestlemania #WWECastlepic.twitter.com/q58wyGOwU0
Triple H has feuded with a lot of top names in wrestling, but the Game regrets never having a prolonged feud with Rey Mysterio.
When Mysterio joined WWE in 2002, he was put on SmackDown, while Triple H was the top star on Raw.
While Triple H would eventually be drafted to SmackDown in 2008, Rey would be drafted to Raw that same year.
The following year, Triple H was drafted back to Raw and Mysterio was moved back to SmackDown.
The Missed Feud
Speaking to LadBible, the Game spoke about the possibility of working with Mysterio and how the opportunity never arose.
“I always wanted to work with Rey Mysterio. I think I’ve been in the ring with him twice [in] my entire career. There’s certain guys like that… We just never ended up in the same place in the same storylines.
“I always wanted to work with Rey Mysterio.”
Triple H.
“I’ve thrown it out there a lot over the years of like, ‘Hey, what if Rey and I did something,’ But he was always on SmackDown [while] I was on Raw or vice versa. It just never panned out but he’s always a guy that I always thought ‘Man, I would have loved to have gone and done something big with him.'”
Rey Mysterio Vs. Triple H
While Rey and Triple H never feuded, the two did share the ring on occasion
Triple H and Mysterio were the #1 and #2 entrants in the 2006 Royal Rumble, which was later won by Rey.
Rey and Triple H would be on the same team as part of Survivor Series 2007, aligning with Jeff Hardy and Kane.
Boxing star Tyson Fury defeated Braun Strowman by count-out at WWE Crown Jewel 2019 to make his pro-wrestling debut. He hasn’t wrestled since, but Triple H has shared some insight into Fury’s future.
When Theory attempted to cash in his Money in the Bank contract during the main event of the Clash at the Castle event in the UK, he was punched by Fury and Following Drew McIntyre’s loss to Roman Reigns, Fury also spoke with Reigns and sang with McIntyre in the ring.
Triple H is Waiting on Tyson Fury’s Decision
(via WWE)
In an interview with The Sporting News, Triple H spoke about the possibility of celebrities like Fury and Dwight Howard wrestling for the WWE.
“I think Tyson Fury is chomping at the bit to get in the ring. The question is, which ring will he get into? Is it going to be the boxing ring? Is it going to be the WWE ring? We were just together in Cardiff. We had a long talk about it. He’s as enamored as ever in wanting to do this with us. I think he knows he’s got a few big fights left in him in the boxing world. I think he’s going to capitalize on those fights as you are hearing. You know, talks about [Oleksandr] Usyk, talks about Anthony Joshua. Selfishly I want him to come work with us, also, selfishly, I want to see those fights. So I hope he knocks those out and I hope he stays interested because I do think with the dedication and the drive that he had to do what we do I think he could do something special with us as well.”
WWE held a press conference for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship match between Roman Reigns and Logan Paul at Crown Jewel.
After the conference, Triple H was interviewed by Sporting News about several topics. The Game revealed that he has discussed signing Tyson Fury but the world-class boxer knows he has a few big fights left in the boxing ring.
Triple H stated that he hopes Tyson is still interested in joining the WWE after he’s finished boxing. Tyson knocked out Austin Theory when he tried to cash in his Money in the Bank contract at Clash at the Castle.
WWE’s Chief Content Officer spoke about NBA star Dwight Howard showing up at a recent tryout and claimed that he is open to signing the 2020 NBA champion.
“I think the ball is in his court. It’s a funny thing, Dwight in the conversations we had was like ‘you know I really want to do this, I’m serious, I really want to do this.’ But we hear that a lot and there’s a difference between saying I want to do this and putting in the grind and doing the work to get there.
He came by our tryouts in Nashville. He was incredibly entertaining, jumping in promos by himself and then with others, incredibly entertaining. Really driven to want to do this, it is just a matter of him, he’s got a lot of things going on right?
So when he says ‘hey I want to give this a shot’ he’s got my phone number and all he’s got to do is call me and we will see what can happen. If he’s willing to put in the grind and the drive that guys like Logan Paul, Bad Bunny, and Tyson Fury are willing to put in then let’s go.”
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Sporting News & give a H/T to SEScoops for the transcription.
Triple H joined LADbible TV today for an interview and discussed several topics, including what his role is in WWE. There has been a seismic shift at the top of the company and it has resulted in more power than ever afforded to The Game.
He was recently given the title of “Chief Brand Officer” and explained what that entailed during the interview. The 53-year-old stated that he oversees everything when it comes to the promotion’s creative, as well as run talent development and the recruitment process.
“I do a little bit of everything for WWE. If you want the exact title, I’m the Chief Content Officer for WWE. I oversee everything that has to do with creative of everything we do from top to bottom.
Run our talent, run our talent development, our recruiting process, sort of the life cycle of the talent from the moment we identify them in college, or wherever they’re going to start from. All the way through to the end of their careers.”
The Game was asked where WWE goes to try and find talent. He brought up Gable Steveson as an example of collegiate athletics being difficult to recruit from and described WWE’s strategy for finding new talent.
“They changed the rules for what’s called NIL (name, image, likeness) that college athletes can use their name, image, and likeness to create a business for themselves. So they can be paid for those things, they can do endorsements, all these other things.
It opened up a world for us. We don’t see it as paying somebody a small amount of money to say ‘hey I watched WWE and isn’t that great’.
For us, it’s a recruiting tool. For us, it’s long-term recruiting. We look at college athletes in almost any sport and we try to work with them on what WWE is, what we are as an entertainment property, but what we are also behind the scenes.
Some of those we will offer deals to under the NIL program. We’ll pay them a sum of money, they will be WWE athletes. We help them build their brand, we help them with media training, with life skills, anything that WWE does that they can have access to.
“They can come to our performance center, they can do all those things. Meanwhile, they’re out there for us sort of talking about WWE to every sporting event they go to.
Athletes around the country they’re talking about WWE and for most of them when they graduate college, WWE is the opportunity they are looking at to become a WWE Superstar.
For ones that don’t, that promotion the entire time is phenomenal for us.”
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Posted September 22nd, 2022 in WWE. Tagged: Triple H.
WWE Chief Content Officer Triple H was interviewed recently by LADBible TV and spoke about his plans for the future of NXT.
Triple H has gained a significant amount of power in WWE recently since Vince McMahon resigned from the company. He replaced John Laurinaitis as EVP of Talent Relations and has also taken over creative responsibility for the promotion. The 53-year-old has brought back several released talents and is seemingly about to bring NXT back to its Black & Gold days.
During the interview, The Game discussed his vision for NXT Europe moving forward and suggested that it would be “almost a World Cup scenario”. He stated that “the World Cup finals” for NXT could happen in any city in the world and that you’ve got to think big.
The King of Kings compared NXT to college football and noted that they are trying to build a fanbase for the talent before sending them to the main roster to become WWE Superstars.
“The intent will be to take NXT Europe and bring that around the world. So NXT Europe, NXT Australia, NXT South Africa, South America, and Mexico. All those things and eventually build it into a global system that will lead to almost a World Cup scenario.
The World Cup finals for NXT will one year be in London, the next year maybe Mexico City, you’ve got to think big. And all the while, really what you are doing is you are building a fanbase for college football, while you are building stars for the major leagues.”
What do you think of Triple H’s vision for the future of NXT and NXT Europe? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit LADBible and give a H/T to SEScoops if you use quotes from this article.
Triple H should be keeping his eye on Nick Aldis, according to WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Page.
In July, the former WWE World Champion was appointed WWE’s Head of Talent Relations replacing John Laurinaitis.
Since his appointment, The Game has brought back several released Superstars, including Karrion Kross, Dexter Lumis, Hit Row, Johnny Gargano and others.
On the Radar
WWE is bringing back several names from their past, with Bray Wyatt also rumored to return, but Nick Aldis has never worked for the promotion before.
That should change according to DDP, who during the latest Snake Pit podcast, praised the former two-time NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion (via eWrestlingNews.)
“He’s got the friggin’ look, he’s got the work, he’s got the promo. I mean, all this time, he is a hidden, he is a hidden diamond. He isn’t a diamond in the rough, he’s a diamond. Like, he’s ready to go.”
When asked if WWE is aware of Aldis and are considering bringing him in, Page remained coy.
“I would think [so]. And if not right now, at some point later. He [Triple H] has got enough to do right now.”
Diamnd Dallas Page on whether Nick Aldis is on Triple H’s radar.
Nick Aldis
Beginning his wrestling career in 2003, Aldis rose to prominence in TNA/Impact Wrestling, working under the name Magnus.
A former TNA World Heavyweight Champion, Aldis remained with the company 2015, and had a brief return in 2017.
That same year Aldis joined the National Wrestling Alliance, where he is a two-time World Champion.
With Triple H now at the helm of WWE creative, many are wondering if intentional bleeding will be brought back to WWE.
With “The Game” now calling the shots, some predict WWE could begin reverting back to an old-school way of doing things, including intentionally having talents bleed during matches. However, Triple H has been quick to shoot those rumors down.
Speaking in a recent interview with The Ringer, Triple H noted that, given the current world we live in, especially with the recent COVID-19 pandemic, WWE has evolved from blading, and it would be irresponsible to revert back.
“The world has changed. The world has evolved. I don’t think it’s necessary. If we have talent that gets [cut open], usually you’ll see them roll out and they’ll get looked at to make sure that there’s nothing dangerous.
“I’m just of the opinion right now, given the state of the world and the pandemic, and at the end of the day, what we do is dangerous enough without intentionally making it more dangerous.
“Yes, we did [feature bleeding] for a long period of time, but we’ve changed that practice. And it’s irresponsible to go back.”
For the past several weeks, Triple H has been at the helm of WWE creative since the sudden retirement of Vince McMahon.
Many agree that, since the change in regime, the on-screen product from WWE has been much better.
Given the regime change is still very much in its infancy, it will be interesting to see how much perspective changes in the coming months.
A couple months ago the pro-wrestling world was shocked to learn that Vince McMahon had decided to retire as the chairman of WWE, a move that many never thought would happen as McMahon’s impact on the industry had been felt dating back four decades.
In his place his son-in-law, WWE legend and former 14-time world champion Triple H had taken over as head of the creative division. The Game had shown his skill for booking in NXT over the years, with the “developmental” brand and their bi-monthly Takeover events being considered the most “can’t miss” shows under the WWE banner.
Since taking over Triple H has brought back a number of previously released talents, including Braun Strowan, IYO Sky, Dakota Kai, Karrion Kross, Scarlett, Hit Row, Johnny Gargano, and Dexter Lumis. There have also been reports that he is in talks with Bray Wyatt, but the Eater of Worlds has yet to make his WWE return.
A new report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter has revealed that Triple H is actually planning more surprises for WWE, ones that are apparently not being talked about in the wrestling community. It was noted that this was regarding more talents coming in, but that doesn’t mean it couldn’t also be surprises business-wise.
One surprise that shocked fans this week was seeing NXT 2.0 tease a return to their old Black and Gold persona. 2.0 had become a much more colorful show since the brand got a remake last year. Stay tuned.
Roman Reigns retained the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship over Drew McIntyre in the main event of the WWE Clash at the Castle event, the first major PPV event in the UK since 1992, earlier this month.
Fans have widely praised the show for the in-ring product and fan reactions from those in attendance. It was also a big success for the company, something that Triple H touted in a new post on Twitter.
Triple H wrote, “#WWECastle was a massive success for @WWE across all lines of business and the #WWEUniverse in the UK… the next question is where should we go next?!”
Clash at the Castle Success
Viewership: #1 international Premium live event in WWE history
Social: #WWECastle trends #1 on Twitter
Crowd: Largest European gate ever
Fan reaction: Highest-rated international prelims live event in WWE history
Press conference: Highest concurrent views on YouTube of any non-pre-show
Merchandise: Best-selling non-WrestleMania event
Per Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the pay-per-view buyrate estimate is around 8,000. It should be noted the majority of viewership comes from the WWE Network internationally and Peacock in the United States.
According to WrestleTix, the event drew 62,215 fans, while the company announced an inflated number of 62,296.
