Randy Orton went over on Triple H in a grudge match that dates back over a decade.

This contest was hyped as one of the top matches that took place at Friday’s (June 7, 2019) WWE Super Showdown pay-per-view event in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium on the WWE Network.

Heading into this match, WWE hyped it by stating that “The two Superstars have a storied past – from their time as allies in Evolution and during Orton’s association with The Authority to epic matchups as adversaries. Now, the latest chapter in their ongoing destructive conflict promises to be their greatest clash yet.”

Over the years, the two have had many battles inside of the squared circle. Most notably, they headlined WrestleMania 25 at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas in 2009 for the WWE Championship.

This comes after Triple H beat Batista in a No Holds Barred Match at WrestleMania 35 in April. At this same show, Orton lost to AJ Styles in a singles match.

What are your thoughts on Randy Orton beating Triple H? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.

This past Saturday, Adam Cole defeated Johnny Gargano in the main event of TakeOver XXV. This victory would see Cole become crowned the new NXT Champion.

Post-TakeOver, Triple H took part in a Facebook Live discussion with Cathy Kelly to discuss the event itself, the bout between Cole and Gargano, and what Cole’s victory means for NXT.

“I think the crowd said it best when they were chanting, ‘fight forever.’ This is one of those things you could see them do this over and over and over again and never get bored with it, never feel like you’ve seen it,” Triple H said.

“They just [have] amazing chemistry. […] Then again, who does Gargano have bad chemistry with? In some ways, you can call him Johnny TakeOver. Almost every time you can make the argument that he’s match of the night. Amazing performance. He walks out of here without a championship, […] but I don’t necessarily think that he lost, I don’t think that he lost any respect from anybody. I think he earned even more tonight.”

“He Is One Of The Hardest Workers Here”

Turning the conversation to the new champion, Triple H said “It was an awesome moment, I’m happy for him. You can say what you want about Adam Cole, he is one of the hardest workers here, much like Gargano, much like so many people here, he puts his heart and soul into everything about this. I’m happy for him.”

Triple H then addressed Gargano’s status after the matchup, revealing that he was seen “hobbling” out of the arena before teasing a potential rubber match between the two NXT Superstars.

“[…] if my math is correct now they’re 2-2 in falls. We’ll see where this goes now. I saw Johnny hobbling out of here. I’m hoping he’s alright. But we will see where this goes, but for now there’s a new champ in town, and his name is Adam Cole.”

TakeOver

NXT isn’t slowing down, and WWE is making efforts to push NXT UK in a similar way.

The company recently announced their NXT UK TakeOver event, which will take place on August 31st from Cardiff, Wales. This date happens to coincide with NJPW’s Royal Quest event in London, as well as All Elite Wrestling’s show, All Out.

Following NXT TakeOver XXV this past Saturday, WWE’s Executive Vice President of Talent, Live Events, and Creative, Triple H, took part in a media call. During this call, HHH provided a new update on former NXT Champion, Tommaso Ciampa.

He revealed that Ciampa is ahead of schedule post-neck surgery, and has been cleared for “non-contact” activity. Despite this good news, however, HHH clarified that Ciampa is still far from 100 per cent, and still has a way to go before the WWE Universe can see him return to in-ring action.

“Cleared for non-contact means you can’t do anything in this business,” Triple H explained. “[…] He’s ahead of schedule and doing extremely well. Ahead of schedule on all of it and moving along. But with the type of injury he had and the type of surgery he had, especially in this from a physicality standpoint, you’re not doing anything until you’re 100 per cent. It’s not like you can go in there and lightly take suplexes. You have to be 100 per cent. So, he’s still got a ways to go, but he’s way ahead of the curve and the schedule.”

Triple H added that “He’ll be back soon, and I’m sure when he does, he’ll be ready to claim his spot.”

Tommaso Ciampa suffered a severe neck injury back in February before undergoing surgery back in March. This injury, unfortunately, would see him have to relinquish the NXT championship, which he had lovingly nicknamed “Goldie.”

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

The NXT UK brand’s second Takeover event will occur on the same day as AEW’s All Out PPV. NJPW’s Royal Quest in London is also set for the same day as All Out and NXT UK Takeover Cardiff.

Triple H addressed the date of the NXT UK Takeover event in his post-event press conference after Takeover XXV last night. According to Triple H, the date for the Cardiff show was booked months ago.

“I will just say this to everybody in here, contrary to, I’m sure, the buzz, the date of August 31st is a date we have had for a long time,” Triple H said. “That building has been booked with us in Cardiff long before WrestleMania, I think.”

“We just hadn’t announced because it wasn’t the right time,” he continued. “You don’t want to announce something for a brand six months out.”

NXT UK Takeover vs AEW All Out – August 31st

Triple H then noted the date has nothing to do with any other event scheduled for that date. He also noted that the UK Takeover event will air in prime time in the UK and in the afternoon in the United States.

“It has nothing to do with anybody else and to be honest, we will take place live in primetime in the U.K. and be on in the afternoon here in the U.S. So it is what it is.”

NJPW Royal Quest – August 31st

NXT Takeover UK from Cardiff also occurs on the same day as NJPW’s Royal Quest from London. The show will take place from the Copper Box Arena.

WWE held the quarterly NXT media call on Thursday to promote this weekend’s NXT Takeover XXV event. While fielding calls from the wrestling media, Triple H touched upon the topic of All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and the brewing rivalry between the two companies.

WWE struck the first blow in this cold war at the 2019 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony. During the induction of DX, Triple H ribbed DX member (and AEW employee) Billy Gunn by calling AEW a “pissant” company that Vince McMahon could purchase and shut down if he wanted to. Cody Rhodes fired back at Triple H during Episode 14 of AEW’s The Road To Double or Nothing YouTube series. Cody referenced Triple H as a “pissant bodybuilder” that can’t keep up with today’s top stars.

This past week, we had Cody smashing a throne with a sledge hammer at Double or Nothing and Sami Zayn name dropping AEW on Monday’s Raw.

When asked about the back and forth digs between WWE and AEW, Triple H said he referenced AEW at the Hall of Fame because an AEW employee standing right next to him was “the elephant in the room” that night. It was nothing more than that and his remarks were unscripted.

Regarding AEW taking shots at WWE, Triple H said, “For me, I don’t really even think about it to be honest.” He is laser focused on Saturday’s NXT Takeover show. Instead of focusing on other companies’ creative, he wants to make NXT the best it can be.

Cody Rhodes posted an inspirational message on Wednesday, encouraging his followers, “Don’t back down. Do the work.” As much as AEW says they are not positioning themselves as competition to WWE, Cody is clearly ‘leaning in’ to his warm message to Triple H from Saturday night.

WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin took to social media this weekend to share video footage to coincide with a cool story he recently told on his Steve Austin Show podcast about Triple H saving him from a fan attack during a non-televised WWE live event several years ago.

“Triple H [is] a stand-up cat,” said Austin when beginning to tell the story behind the video. “He picked that dude up, slammed him and started punching his lights out. And he’s yelling to the security guard, ‘Get your ass in here!’ And the security guard didn’t know whether to sh*t or wind his watch. He was confused, you know? It happened so fast.”

From there, “The Texas Rattlesnake” went on to explain why he couldn’t join in on the beat down of the fan while everything was happening in the ring. He also spoke about a brief meeting he had with the fan backstage after the match.

“I couldn’t do anything, I couldn’t help beat the guy up, I’m the babyface,” said Austin. “But Triple H was watching my back, and he beat the snot out of that guy.”

Austin continued, “I went backstage and I had a couple of words with the guy. I didn’t take a cheap shot at him or nothing like that, but I had a little ‘Come-to-Jesus-meeting’ with him and let him know how I felt. But I always gave Triple H credit for doing that.”

Check out the video that goes with this story below courtesy of “Stone Cold” Steve Austin’s official Twitter page (@SteveAustinBSR).

A story about how it was and is..RT @90sWWE: That time @TripleH saved @steveaustinBSR from a fan attack… https://t.co/nI2qeaShtd

— Steve Austin (@steveaustinBSR) May 18, 2019

Triple H is reported to not be happy with how things are going on WWE’s main roster at the moment. According to a report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Triple H has not said anything in front of others in WWE but those close to the situation note he is frustrated with how things have been going.

“Paul Levesque, while never saying anything publicly, those close to the situation say he’s very frustrated with how things are going on the main roster,” wrote Dave Meltzer.

The report would continue to say that the issue isn’t with Vince not being open to suggestions but rather the opposite being the case.

“We’re told that there has been too much input from too many people on the team who haven’t figured out that when you change something in a story, it has a ripple effect on every aspect of the story.”

Triple H is believed to pick his spots with Vince in private rather than in front of others.

• Triple H Says There Will Be “Reimagined Version Of SmackDown” On FOX

Writers and Triple H Frustrated With Vince?

The report comes amidst other rumors that writers on the team are frustrated in WWE. Wade Keller’s Pro Post-Wrestling podcast recently featured someone reporting to be close with several WWE writers. He had the following to say regarding the situation:

“The most frustrated person in the back every single night is Triple H. He’ll always take, especially the NXT guys, under his wing. It looks like he’s consoling them. It looks so much like he was the most frustrated person in the building every single night.”

During the Hall Of Fame event that took place over WrestleMania weekend, Triple H would make several jokes at the expense of Degeneration-X stablemate, Billy Gunn, and his new company, All Elite Wrestling (AEW). The two were inducted into the HOF as a part of DX, alongside Shawn Michaels, X-Pac, Road Dogg, and Chyna.

Triple H would tease Gunn, thanking him for being “all in” in an obvious reference to AEW’s event of the same name. He went on to joke that “Vince will buy that pissant company just to fire you again.”

Speaking with 411 Wrestling Interviews Podcast, Billy Gunn discussed Triple H’s comments about his new employer AEW.

“I thought it was done very tastefully, so it was some good, funny stuff that was — yeah, you were right. It’s typical DX stuff. You shoot at something and then you try to knock it down. So yeah, it was good.”

He was asked if any of the AEW jabs were planned backstage prior to their speech. Gunn denied this, claiming that, although they had an initial plan, that quickly went out the window. Their entire HOF speech would then unfold live without any preparation.

“We had some stuff we were gonna go to…we had a couple of calls before the Hall of Fame just to kinda figure stuff out. But none of it came true. Because it doesn’t work like that for us. It never has worked like that for us. We’ve always just been, ‘Hey. You point us in the direction, we’re gonna go there. We have no idea what we’re gonna do,’” he said.

“So when you start planning stuff out, it takes away from what we are. Because I feel like that’s what a lot of things are doing right now, you’re planning a bunch of stuff out, so when something organic happens, you don’t react to it, because it’s not in the script. And we’ve never ever been ones to go by the script.”

Despite his appearance for WWE, Billy Gunn is currently signed to AEW where he is working as a producer for the company.

Thanks to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.

On Monday night, the WWE will begin the annual superstar shakeup following WrestleMania with performers making the move from Raw to Smackdown Live and vice versa.

This year’s Superstar Shakeup also comes with a little extra scrutiny because this will be the last major move for performers ahead of the upcoming shift as Smackdown Live goes from USA Network to FOX later this year.

Now the new Smackdown Live won’t debut on FOX until October but there are already huge plans in motion for the launch including a new weekly ‘magazine’ style show that will feature interviews, behind the scenes footage and coverage of WWE similar to other major sports that broadcast on FOX.

While Monday Night Raw has remained the featured show for the WWE over the years, the $2 billion deal to bring Smackdown Live to FOX will almost certainly change the way the Superstar Shakeup will work this year.

FOX is a bigger platform than USA Network because it’s network television versus cable so no matter what else happens with this Superstar Shakeup, that has to be noted before the first ‘trades’ are announced on RAW on Monday night.

Triple H (Paul Levesque) previously addressed the move for Smackdown Live to FOX and the shift in how that show will be handled going forward.

“There are contractual obligations to provide that level of exposure for us and all that other programming, but [FOX] have already gone above and beyond that and that’s part of the partnership,” he told the Sports Business Journal just after WrestleMania 35.

“Fundamentally as a company, we constantly reimagine ourselves so we are deep in the process now of, when we get to October on Fox, what is the reimagined version of SmackDown going to be?”

Because FOX will be available to more viewers along with the initiative to help launch WWE programming on the network in October, that would seem to indicate that the Superstar Shakeup will bring more of the biggest stars to the blue brand.

One name in particular that would seem obvious for the move would be former Raw women’s champion Ronda Rousey, who was a staple on FOX programming when she was the women’s bantamweight champion in the UFC.

FOX executives know the kind of ratings that Rousey can bring in and even if she’s only a part time employee going forward, there’s little doubt that she would get a lot of attention performing on network television. Obviously there are still a ton of rumors swirling about Rousey’s future with WWE after her most recent match at WrestleMania, but if she’s coming back, it would seem like a safe bet that FOX would like to see her on Smackdown Live.

It’s also possible a couple of other top stars such as Roman Reigns or even Brock Lesnar (assuming he’s returning to WWE) end up on Smackdown Live.

The key for the move to FOX is getting people to tune in week to week but also providing the kind of star power that will get more casual viewers to make Smackdown Live must see TV right at the launch.

While Smackdown Live has produced numerous compelling storylines over the past few years including the rise of Becky Lynch’s stardom as well as the recent promotion behind Kofi Kingston, the blue brand has never completely escaped being the ‘B’ show behind the ‘A’ brand’ at Raw.

That could all change with the upcoming shift for Smackdown Live to FOX because that network didn’t shell out a lot of money to land WWE programming only to get table scraps when it comes to the superstars performing on the show.

It’s also worth mentioning that while FOX will definitely get a lot of attention with this Superstar Shakeup, WWE can’t forget about their longtime television partners at USA Network either, who are still footing a hefty bill to keep Monday Night Raw.

While every year provides a few interesting storylines, the 2019 Superstar Shakeup might be one of the biggest to keep an eye on with the massive shift about to happen to WWE television programming later this year.

Former WWE World Heavyweight Champion Batista opened up on his decision to have Triple H be his opponent in his final match after having a long and successful pro wrestling career.

He joined Lilian Garcia’s podcast where he talked about the call to face Triple H in a No Holds Barred Match at WrestleMania 35 in East Rutherford, NJ at MetLife Stadium.

Batista brought up how he felt that his career got started when he worked with Triple H and that he made him a star. Batista recalled Triple H putting a lot of stock and investment in him to the point that he himself on the line physically for him.

Batista knew that for his last WWE run and his last wrestling match, he wanted it to be with someone he was familiar with and had a backstory with. He also wanted to give back to the company, and he thought Triple H was the perfect person for that.

“Not only did he put me over three times clean in the ring to make me a star, but also took the time to have me ride with him and have me pick his brain. He just groomed me to be a star in that company, so I wanted to finish out my career for him by just saying thank you to go out laying on my back for the guy.”

Batista stated that he believes a star should go out on your back. “I wanted my last match to be with him on my back because that is literally the only way that I can thank him.”

H/T to Wrestling Inc for the transcription

Triple H gave some insight into what the new television deal with FOX will mean for SmackDown Live moving forward and the changes that WWE plans to make to the blue branded show.

“The Game” and Stephanie McMahon did an interview with the Sports Business Journal about the business side of WWE. During the interview, they were asked about the TV deal where they both gave some interesting comments.

“There’s definitely going to be differences. We haven’t made any announcements formally, but we are so excited to be partnering with FOX and to be on USA.” McMahon continued by bringing up being sandwiched between the NFL with football on Thursday nights while SmackDown on Friday then college football on Saturday and Sunday is NFL.

Triple H chimed in by stating that there are contractual requirements to provide that level of exposure for WWE and that FOX has already gone above and beyond that.

“As this goes forward, that will just rise that type of activity across the board. Fundamentally, as a company, we constantly reimagine ourselves. So, we’re deep in the process now of [figuring out] what the reimagined version of SmackDown will be.”

SmackDown will be officially moving over to FOX on Friday, October 4th, 2019.

WrestleMania is often used as a creative reset by WWE. It allows the promotion a perfect opportunity to end feuds or begin new rivalries on the “Grandest Stage Of Them All.”

In an interview with Sports Business Journal, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon were asked about WWE’s scripting process. They were also asked about how far out they plan their storylines.

Stephanie explained that “We [WWE] try to have a basic plan a year out, but inevitably things happen and storylines change. Another beautiful thing about WWE is because we are live 52 weeks a year, we have no offseason, we have no reruns, and we essentially have a live focus group every single night at these Live Events telling us what’s working, what’s not working, and what they don’t care about so we can shift our plans as needed.”

Triple H would add to her comment. He stated that, although they may have plans in place, injuries can force them to change or pivot at a moment’s notice.

“You’re dealing with athletes, and you’re dealing with injuries, and the ability to shift and pivot on a moment’s notice to where you want to go,” he said. “The beautiful thing for us—I was told this early in my career—beauty comes out of chaos. Sometimes when you get into a situation where the worst possible thing can happen leading into a big event, somebody gets injured [for example], it leads you to come up with something even better.”

Of course, injuries aren’t the only thing that could see a storyline plan change.

Vince McMahon is well-known for changing his mind as stories progress—often making decisions on the day of an event. This was recently evidenced by Charlotte Flair’s SmackDown Women’s championship victory over Asuka a few weeks ago.

Triple H was victorious at WrestleMania 35 as he got his revenge on Batista. “The Game” beat “The Beast” in a No Holds Barred Match at this event on Sunday night. Ric Flair helped HHH win the match by handing him a sledgehammer.

For months, there was rumors about Batista taking on Triple H at WrestleMania 35 and it turned out to be true. Evolution, which is a group that consists of Triple H, Batista, Randy Orton, and Flair, reunited on WWE SmackDown 1000 back in October.

This marked the latest appearance by the former WWE Champion on WWE television. Batista would later praise Orton and Flair but stated that when it comes to Triple H, he might run the business and has done it all but has never beaten him. Batista and Triple H had a stare down then hugged to close the segment.

This led to a lot of speculation that this segment was done in order to set up a match between the two future WWE Hall of Famers at Mania. Fast forward to the February 25th episode of RAW where the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion made his return to viciously attack WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair just as he was getting ready to head to the ring for his 70th birthday celebration.

This is where Flair was about to walk out to the ring for his celebration but we see Batista dragging a cameraman to the locker room of Flair and he pulled out the pro wrestling legendary who had been attacked. He asked Triple H if he got his attention and then left.

• WWE WrestleMania 35 Results & Live Coverage

What are your thoughts on this match? Was this the right call by WWE officials? Sound off in the comment section.

Triple H has addressed the possibility of WWE airing NXT, which is considered their third brand/developmental system, on a bigger platform than just their streaming service, WWE Network.

Once WWE made their deal to air SmackDown Live on FOX come October, there has been a lot of speculation that NXT could move to FS1 at some point in the future.

Triple H has already confirmed that WWE would air a studio show to FOX Sports 1 when the blue brand comes to the network later this year. “The Game” made the announcement on Friday morning.

Triple H took part in a media conference call after Friday’s NXT TakeOver: New York event in Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center on the WWE Network where he spoke about a wide range of topics.

During the call, he was asked about the possibility of NXT and FS1. This led to him hinting at there being some interest in the move.

“The opportunities are there for a lot of things. I know there’s a lot of interest in NXT as a brand. Both (NXT and NXT UK). There’s a lot of interest in it but it’s a very valuable commodity to the (WWE) Network as well. It’s the number one and number two most watched thing on the Network by far. Outside of pay-per-views,” said Triple H.

“Is (going to FOX/FS1) an opportunity? Absolutely. You see that with today when I was on FS1 and we announced the (studio show). It’ll be a recap show where they analyze different shows: Raw, SmackDown, and NXT. They’ll discuss all those shows. A cross between UFC Tonight and Talking Dead. They really want NXT to be a big piece of that, which shows you the interest level.”

H/T to Fightful for the transcription

Triple H is scheduled to take on his old Evolution stablemate, Batista, this Sunday at WrestleMania 35. The two will face off in a No Holds Barred match with Triple H’s career on the line.

Turns out that Triple H’s initial WrestleMania plans were drastically different only a few months ago.

In an interview with ESPN, Triple H recalled not only being told he would be inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame, but that Vince McMahon would “need” him to wrestle on April 7th. “The Game” had originally believed he was going to have “an easy year this year.”

“I Need You To be In WrestleMania This Year”

“I went from a month ago thinking, ‘Oh, this is great — I’m going to have an easy year this year, I just go watch the Hall of Fame and then I get to work behind the scenes at [Wrestle]Manias,” he said. “It will be easy. Then, Vince tells me I’m in the Hall of Fame … and then next thing [I know], I’m working at WrestleMania. So I got busy quick.”

He shared that he was approached by Vince McMahon in February about actually wrestling on the event, despite not being confident for an in-ring return post-injury. Triple H suffered a torn pectoral muscle during October’s WWE Crown Jewel event.

“So I didn’t feel that way — Vince came to me and told me, ‘I need you to be in WrestleMania this year,'” Levesque said, recalling a conversation from February. “And I was like, ‘Really? Because I haven’t been cleared to train yet even — I don’t know that I’m going to make that.’ Batista and I had this conversation a while ago about trying to do this … then I had to call him and go, ‘Dude, I tore my pec and I don’t know what’s going to happen. I’ll see.’ To this day, I’m still … I’m going to get in the ring next Sunday, and you and I will both find out at the same time whether my pec will hold on.”

“At This Point In My Career, It’s all Gravy”

Although he was eventually cleared to return to the ring, he still has some lingering concerns:

“[…] until you get in there, lifting dumbbells and getting hit by Batista are two totally different things. So I’ll see how it goes, but I feel good and I’m excited to get in there. And at this point in my career, I don’t ever want to make it sound like it’s not as big as it is, but at this point in my career, it’s all gravy.”

Triple H’s appearance at this year’s WrestleMania marks his 23rd WrestleMania appearance. This puts him second only to The Undertaker, who holds the record at 26.

Triple H recently did an interview with CBS Sports State of Combat where he talked about D-Generation X (Shawn Michaels, himself, Chyna, X-Pac, Road Dogg, and Billy Gunn) being inducted into this year’s Hall of Fame class.

For Triple H, he made it known in this interview that he ’s thrilled for her as the human being that he knew and for her family about her being inducted into the honorable class. In his mind, there is probably not a woman who has ever made as big of an impact as she did because she was someone who transcended the business on her own.

“I’m sure she will be in the Hall of Fame sometime on her own. I think it’s fitting she is in there with DX in the beginning because it’s how she started, and I think it’s what it should be.”

This year’s ceremony will take place on April 6, 2019, from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, which is the same weekend as WrestleMania 35.

Triple H was then asked about the other stars going in with this class. He brought up how he’s thrilled that it’s the year that she’s being honored despite having the opportunity to do so in the past.

“Partly because finally, the time has passed where everything can just happen, and it can be right for her where the moment of putting her in the Hall of Fame for this manner is about her accomplishments and not about anything else. That was always my bigger point of this. You can’t do it when [the negative] becomes the conversation. The conversation needs to be about her accomplishments and what she did here.”

With the next special under the WWE NXT banner quickly approaching, many fans are excited for the show as it’s a stacked lineup.

Part of this is due to the vision that Triple H has for the product that he is giving to the fans who watch these shows. Since the introduction of them several years ago, the bar gets higher with each event and NXT TakeOver: New York will be just the same especially since it’s being held during WrestleMania weekend.

“The Game” recently spoke with ESPN where he noted that he thinks Johnny Gargano vs. Adam Cole for the vacant WWE NXT Title in 2 of 3 Falls Match will steal the show and be a contest that will be hard to follow.

“I expect it to be hard to follow for the weekend. I don’t mean that as a knock on anybody, it’s just the level of talent there and the emotional storytelling component. It’s probably two of the guys, if you said to me, ‘Name two of the most consistent performers at all levels on any on the rosters that, no matter what, they’re going to knock it out of the park,’ it would be tough for me to come up with bigger names than Gargano and Adam Cole.”

Triple H added that it’s going to be epic and he’s thrilled for both stars as well as proud because this  is the first of many moments like that for them across WrestleMania weekends.

WWE Superstar Dave Batista and Triple H are set to face each other at WrestleMania 35 in a No Holds Barred Match after the two had a face-to-face confrontation on Raw.

Now, WWE has announced that the Animal will be returning to the last Raw before WrestleMania, and he has a message for Triple H.

On the October 16, 2018 episode of SmackDown, which was the 1000th episode special, Batista reunited with former Evolution stablemates Triple H and Ric Flair. Batista showed hostility towards Triple H and teased a match claiming that The Cerebral Assassin has never beaten him in a singles match.

Rumors and speculation about the match became reality on the February 25, 2019 episode of Raw when Ric Flair’s 70th Birthday Celebration hosted by Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, was set to take place. Flair did not make it to the ring and it was because Batista attacked him backstage, to seek Triple H’s attention.

On the March 11 episode of Raw, the two came together in the ring and Batista
Batista challenged Triple H for a match at WrestleMania. Batista said that he wanted his final match to be on his own terms, and Triple H accepted and made it a No Holds Barred match. Batista stated that the reason behind his hatred was because Triple H had only used him and underestimated him, before their time in Evolution.

On this week’s Raw, Batista demanded Triple H to put his career on the line against him, or the match would be off. Triple H agreed to the stipulation and must retire as a wrestler if he loses.

WrestleMania 35 is set to take place on April 7, 2019 at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

If there is one topic we can imagine Triple H must love to talk about, then its NXT, a show he has nourished from a development territory limited to a university campus to a global touring brand.

During a recent media conference call, the WWE COO again talked about the Black and Yellow brand and provided some interesting stats on the show and the recent events related to it.

H first discussed the former NXT Champion Tomasso Ciampa’s unfortunate injury and revealed that they were aware of his condition prior to his main roster debut.

They wanted Ciampa to get some main roster experience before surgery, but the situation with him went from something manageable to a risk they couldn’t take.

Another interesting thing he revealed was that Vince McMahon has the final say on all NXT callups. He decides which stars to bring up to the main roster and contarary to the popular belief you can’t say “you can’t have him” to the boss.

Some other notes from the conference call include:

• “There is much more to come.” said Triple H when asked about Lars Sullivan
• Aleister Black and Ricochet will be assigned to a brand the night after WrestleMania
• After SmackDown’s move to Fox, the WrestleMania weekend TakeOver is likely to be moved back to Saturday Night
• He is interested in the idea of bringing in more managers to NXT

Apart from this, the Game also revealed that as a touring brand NXT has proven to be profitable. While Triple H didn’t go into detail, this is still a great news for the fans of the brand as it will make his case of possibly moving main roster stars to NXT stronger.

A new stipulation has been added to the Batista vs. Triple H contest at WrestleMania 35. Triple H announced on Monday’s episode of RAW that he’ll put his career on the line in the No Holds Barred match against “The Animal.”

In the segment, it was revealed that Batista is refusing to wrestle at WrestleMania unless Triple H puts his career on the line, which saw “The Game” accept the extra stipulation and promised to win.

WWE presents the WrestleMania 35 pay-per-view event on Sunday, April 7, 2019 in East Rutherford, NJ at MetLife Stadium that will air on the WWE Network. Here is the updated card:

Updated WWE WrestleMania 35 Card

WWE RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair – Triple Threat Match

WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins

Batista vs. Triple H – No Holds Barred Match with Triple H’s career on the line

Kurt Angle vs. Baron Corbin – Angle’s Farewell Match

Randy Orton vs. AJ Styles

Shane McMahon vs. The Miz

Roman Reigns vs. Drew McIntyre

WWE United States Champion Samoa Joe vs. Rey Mysterio

WWE Intercontinental Champion Bobby Lashley vs. Finn Balor

WWE Cruiserweight Champion Buddy Murphy vs. Tony Nese

6th Annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal: Braun Strowman, SNL’s Michael Che and Colin Jost

SmackDown Live Featured On FOX Ad

FOX recently released a new video on their YouTube channel previewing their future as a network. During the ad, SmackDown Live was featured. WWE and FOX agreed to a five-year broadcast deal worth $1 billion. It will kick into effect on October 4th, 2019.

The network reportedly has high hopes for the blue brand, which will include a few changes as well. Check out the new FOX ad here:

WWE Donates $1 Million To Children’s Hospital

Earlier today WWE Chief Branding Officer Stephanie McMahon and Executive Vice President Triple H took place in a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the UPMC Children’s Hospital.

The ceremony was to celebrate a $1 million donation from WWE to help open up the MIBG Therapy Suite. It will be the only one of its kind in western Pennsylvania. The new suite is designed to provide care for patients without needing the patient to leave the room, even if the situation is critical.

Stephanie McMahon commented that, after meeting Connor “The Crusher” Michalek, she and her husband knew they had to do something to help the fight against children’s cancer:

“This all started when we met Connor Michalek. After Connor lost his fight, Paul and I knew we had to do something and it started right here at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.”

Batista vs Triple H is one of the hotter angles heading into WrestleMania. On this week’s X-Pac 12360, Sean “X-Pac” Waltman makes the case why neither Triple H nor Batista is likely to end up playing the villain in their feud.

Batista vs. Triple H: Who Is The Heel?

After laying out Ric Flair at his television birthday party, it would seem that the WWE creative team’s idea is for Batista to play the bad guy.

Not so fast, says Waltman.

“People who want to cheer Batista, there’s no reason why they can’t,” says Waltman.

“We’re not pigeonholing him in a way where if he’s not cheered, there’s a problem.”

Waltman recalls that Batista’s last run with the company saw him brought in as a babyface, right in the middle of Daniel Bryan’s ascent.

While fans were clamoring for Bryan to be positioned as the top good guy, they were instead treated to a Batista Royal Rumble win.

Ultimately, there was a change of direction, and Batista ended up playing the bad guy.

“Remember what happened last time?” Waltman asks. “And that’s not his f—ing fault. And I felt really bad for Dave.”

Reality-Based Batista vs. Triple H Feud

This go-around, Waltman says that by playing off some tension between the two that are based in reality, WWE will end up with a more realistic feud, not one where there needs to be a traditional good and bad guy.

“This is really smart,” Waltman says. “And if you don’t try to tell people who to cheer for, it will usually work out okay.”

“Triple H is a human being. That’s his character,” says Waltman. “The feud is a personal beef. There’s no total good guy, total bad guy.”

“Imagine that. It’s kind of like in real life… It’s always shades of gray in relationships.”

Regardless of the storytelling device being used, X-Pac says that he thinks WWE hit a home run, and he looks forward to Batista vs. Triple H.

“It’s a very nice way of doing it,” says Waltman. “It’s a really smart way of using Dave [Batista].”

Check out this week’s X-Pac 12360 below.

This transcript has been edited for clarity. When referencing this transcript, please credit SEScoops.com. 

Do you agree? Does there need to be a traditional babyface/heel dynamic in Batista vs. Triple H?

A new match has been announced for the upcoming WWE WrestleMania 35. Batista has been given what he wanted which was a match against Triple H at this show.

WWE shot an angle that had them do a face-to-face confrontation where Batista demanded the match. This led to Triple H saying that he’ll fight him at the show but it had to be in a No Holds Barred Match.

What does @DaveBautista want?? He wants @TripleH at #WrestleMania! And he's GOT IT! #Raw pic.twitter.com/w8tl2EcxXC

— WWE (@WWE) March 12, 2019

Give @DaveBautista what he wants, @TripleH… or else. #RAW pic.twitter.com/SRHOzcpAM6

— WWE (@WWE) March 12, 2019

It might be good to hear this theme again, but @DaveBautista does NOT walk alone tonight. #RAW pic.twitter.com/T3LgFSnZYk

— WWE (@WWE) March 12, 2019

"I'll walk up that ramp, I'll tear my way through the Guardians of the Independent Scene… and I'll beat your a** on that stage!" – @TripleH

? ? #RAW @DaveBautista pic.twitter.com/vAr19efYAP

— WWE Universe (@WWEUniverse) March 12, 2019

Batista viciously attacked WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair just as he was getting ready to head to the ring for his 70th birthday celebration in late February that kicked off the feud.

WWE presents the WrestleMania 35 pay-per-view event on Sunday, April 7, 2019 in East Rutherford, NJ at MetLife Stadium that will air on the WWE Network. WWE will be announcing more matches for this show in the coming weeks. Here is the updated card:

Updated WWE WrestleMania 35 Card

• WWE Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Seth Rollins
• WWE RAW Women’s Champion Ronda Rousey vs. Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair – Triple Threat Match
• Batista vs. Triple H – No Holds Barred Match
• WWE Cruiserweight Champion Buddy Murphy vs. TBA

What are your thoughts on this match being added to the card? Sound off in the comment section.

Forbes has published its annual Billionaires list. WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon ranked 691 on the list with an estimated personal wealth of $3.2 billion. His net worth nearly doubled over the past year and increased by $1.5 billion.

A new Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing sent out to WWE stockholders on Tuesday has new details regarding the compensation of the company’s top executives.

According to the filing, Vince McMahon took in over $5.6 million for his salary in 2018. This was up from approximately $3 million the previous year. The increases primarily came from over $1.5 million in stock awards and a significant increase in his non-equity incentive plan compensation.

Triple H (Paul Levesque), WWE’s Executive Vice President, Talent, Live Events & Creative, made over $5 million last year. $3 million of that was categorized as “other compensation” consisting “principally of performance fees and royalties paid to Mr. Levesque as one of the Company’s top talent.”

WWE’s top paid executives for 2018 were George Barrios (Co-President, Principal Financial Officer) and Michelle Wilson (Co-President). They each netted around $9.1 million, largely in part due to $7 million in stock awards. Executive Producer Kevin Dunn made $5.9 last year, with $4.1 million coming from stock awards.

As of this writing, WWE stock is valued at 82.60 per share, giving the company a market cap of $6.45 billion.

You can view a PDF of the SEC filing here.

Today marks Ric Flair’s 70th birthday. Tonight’s WWE Raw from Atlanta, GA will feature a special birthday celebration for the one and only Nature Boy. Flair’s family and friends held a surprise birthday party for him on Friday evening. Many famous pro athletes and wrestling personalities were in attendance, including Ricky Steamboat, Evander Holyfield, Charles Barkley, Shane McMahon, AJ Styles, Booker T, Triple H and Chris Jericho.

All Elite Wrestling star Chris Jericho knows how to get people buzzing and posted a photo of himself with WWE executive Triple H from the party. He included the hashtag #internetblowsup with the photo.

On the latest episode of his Heated Conversations podcast, Booker T spoke about Jericho and Triple H meeting at Flair’s surprise party. Despite Chris Jericho now working for WWE’s direct competitor, Booker said there was no heat or animosity between them.

“Chris Jericho was at the party, Triple H at the party, and we’re all sitting there talking together and there ain’t no heat, or animosity, or anything like that,” Booker said.

“I really think it’s enough room to go around. And that’s what Chris was talking about as far as what he’s bringing to the table as well from a backstage perspective, and really try to push this thing to a dimension where we have not seen in the wrestling business perhaps ever. And that right there, when you do it that way, you never know how big it’s gonna get.”

Booker T also spoke about All Elite Wrestling, saying it’s great for fans and wrestlers to have an alternative. He emphasized AEW is an alternative to WWE, not competition.

“To be able to have an alternative is great. To be able to have so many new, young talent be seen and be able to make their legacy – put it down as far as they want to leave it. That’s really what it’s all about. I don’t think it’s about competing.”

You can listen to the full podcast below:

(H/T to WrestlingINC for the transcribed quotes)