Former WWE Superstar and member of The Kliq, Sean “X-Pac” Waltman, recently appeared as a guest on WrestleTalk TV. In the latest clip released from the interview, which is featured above, Waltman talks about The Kliq’s initial impression of Triple H when he first came to WWE. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.
According to Waltman, The Kliq knew Triple H was destined for greatness. He offered the following comments regarding HHH’s early days in WWE.
“Obviously we didn’t predict exactly what would (happen), but immediately it was like, ‘let’s gobble him up.’ He was riding with Killer Kowalski every night, who was his teacher. He was trying to be cool to Walter (Kowalski). We were like, ‘you gotta drop Walter, you’re coming with us.’ We needed a designated driver anyway.”
While the group might have enjoyed the fact that he could be a designated driver, Waltman admitted that they saw a number of positive qualities in Triple H straight out of the gate.
“Level-headed, focused. His determination, drive. His learning curve, his aptitude. When he first got there, he was still the student, but the way he soaked up all the knowledge and got better, it was really light years ahead of how most people do it.”
– The November 24th “Off The Rope” ESPN segment featuring WWE World Heavyweight Champion Sheamus drew 99,000 viewers. By comparison, WWE Divas Champion Charlotte’s ESPN appearance the previous week drew 78,000 viewers.
– The following are some recent WWE attendance figures:
* November 11th in Rome drew 8,890 fans
* November 12th in Bologna, Italy drew 7,096 fans
* November 28th in Kansas City, MO dew 9,000 fans
* November 29th in Huntington, WV drew 3,200 fans
* November 30th in Pittsburgh for RAW drew 8,500 fans
– Triple H and Stephanie McMahon tweeted the following video clips of their latest late-night workout at the gym.
As of a week or two ago, there had been no real internal talk within WWE about booking Sting vs. The Undertaker at WrestleMania 32 in Texas next year. In fact, there hasn’t been any real talk of Sting appearing on the show at all, even though that doesn’t necessarily mean he won’t end up appearing at the show.
As far as The Undertaker is concerned, it appears that WWE is going forward with the plans for an Undertaker vs. John Cena match at WrestleMania 32. The idea of Undertaker vs. Cena came up a few months ago and was seriously discussed in August, and then again in October.
As far as rumors of Seth Rollins vs. Triple H taking place at the big event, it’s said that a match between those two has never actually been considered for WrestleMania, although it’s possible that a HHH vs. Rollins match eventually happens when Rollins returns at some point down the line.
Currently, there is no word yet as to who Triple H will be facing at WrestleMania 32 now that it appears that The Rock will not be able to wrestle on the show as WWE had originally hoped.
The Madison Square Garden “curtain call” incident happened at a WWE (then WWF) live event on May 19, 1996 when Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Scott Hall and Kevin Nash all broke character in the middle of the ring and hugged. Jim Cornette says if he was in charge of the company, Triple H would have been fired that same day.
The subject of the Kliq’s kayfabe-breaking incident at MSG recently came up on Cornette’s Corny’s Drive-Thru podcast on MLW Radio, and Cornette says he would have handled the incident a bit differently than Vince McMahon did.
With Kevin Nash and Scott Hall leaving the company for WCW immediately after the incident, he would have had to deal with Triple H and Shawn Michaels. Cornette says he would have dealt with the lowest wrestler on the card first. Back in May ’96, this was current WWE executive and now Vince McMahon’s son-in-law Triple H.
“Yeah, I would have fired [Triple H], because he was a(n) … underneath mid card guy at best, that wasn’t necessarily really getting over at that f*****g point like gangbusters,” said Cornette. “And why the f**k that he would think that he had the status in the community just because he hung around with these guys and rode in a car with them and liked him being around because that way they could preserve their pecking order … There’s a hundred – a thousand other wrestlers who would love to be in Madison Square Garden tonight. And you think that you’re a special motherf****er after being here only a year or 18 months that you can go out … and expose the business?”
In regards to Shawn Michaels, Cornette said he would have booked him to lose his championship and put over other wrestlers, before eventually getting rid of him. Here’s what he had to say about the Heartbreak Kid:
“I would have said, ‘Okay, his two f**king friends are gone to WCW and they’re going to have some influence because they’ve got these big money contracts.’ They’re going to be pitching him so they can all be together. My champion. His loyalty is going to be suspect because he’s never proven to be loyal anyway. So while I’ve got him under contract right now, I need to figure out who is going to carry the belt in his place, I need to systematically get that guy over and get him ready to take it off [Michaels] and then I need to start beating the f**k out of this guy to get some other people over on his way out and then get rid of that f**king mental case, too, and then I’ll have much more peace and quiet in my f*****g locker room.”
On Monday’s post-Survivor Series edition of WWE RAW in Nashville, Tennessee, the main event for the WWE TLC pay-per-view in December was officially announced.
During the opening segment, Roman Reigns confronted Sheamus and said he wanted his rematch at RAW. Triple H would deny him that opportunity, instead watching on as Rusev attacked Reigns from behind and Sheamus hit him with another Brogue Kick to add insult to injury for the second night in a row.
After Reigns was attacked, Triple H told him that he would get his WWE World Heavyweight Championship rematch against Sheamus in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match at the WWE TLC pay-per-view.
WWE TLC is scheduled to air live on Sunday, December 13, 2015 from the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts.
– Triple H took to Twitter to announce the official attendance count for Sunday’s night WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view. “In the face of uncertainty, 14,481 strong (and LOUD) showed up to #SurvivorSeries,” wrote HHH. The “uncertainty” he mentioned was the rumored ISIS threat on the Philips Arena in Atlanta, GA. This was the twenty-ninth annual Survivor Series event.
In the face of uncertainty, 14,481 strong (and LOUD) showed up to #SurvivorSeries..that's what makes the @WWE Universe the absolute best.
Roman Reigns won the WWE World Heavyweight Title Tournament at the WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view in Atlanta, Georgia on Sunday night to become the new WWE World Heavyweight Champion for the first time in his career, however he would not leave Philips Arena with the gold.
Reigns defeated Alberto Del Rio in the semi-finals to advance to the finals later in the evening, where he would have to beat his “brother” and former fellow Shield member Dean Ambrose. Ambrose defeated WWE Intercontinental Champion Kevin Owens to earn his spot in the tournament finals.
In the WWE Survivor Series main event, Reigns defeated Ambrose via pinfall after blasting him with a spear. Reigns had a lengthy celebration in the ring, complete with tons of confetti falling from the ceiling as he gets emotional holding the title when out of nowhere, Triple H’s music hit.
“The Game” made his way to the ring. He raised Reigns’ hand and tries to shake his hand, but Reigns refused. He ended up spearing Triple H, however as soon as he turned around, Sheamus blasted him with a Brogue Kick and cashed in his Money In The Bank briefcase. He immediately covered Reigns but Reigns’ somehow still had enough in him to kick out before three.
Reigns ended up getting back to his feet, but after missing a Superman punch, Sheamus caught Reigns with another Brogue Kick and immediately covered him again. This time Sheamus got the three count. Sheamus and Triple H celebrated as Reigns stayed laid out in the ring as WWE Survivor Series 2015 went off the air.
For detailed WWE Survivor Series 2015 PPV results, click here.
As noted, Triple H was a guest on Z107’s Greg and the Morning Buzz radio show and spoke about feeling blessed to be in the position he is in and Vince McMahon’s thoughts on NXT. Below are some of the highlights from the interview.
On never dreaming he’d be in the position in WWE that he’s in now and feeling blessed:
“You hate to use the word ‘blessed’ or anything like that because it’s just so overused and all that. But you hear so many people say it all the time. You hear it in sports and ‘I’m so blessed to do this’ and I guess the guy you just beat wasn’t quite as blessed. But it’s just used and it’s a cliche, right?”
On Vince McMahon’s feelings about the NXT brand:
“Look, at the end of the day, [NXT]’s his company, right? I mean, I’ll see people say, ‘oh, NXT is the second biggest promotion.’ Well, no, it’s part of the biggest promotion in the world. We’ve just kind of created our own thing in our own niche. And to be able to take it from what it was, a developmental thing and trying to get people to that next level, which is still the goal, right? It’s still the goal. To take it to where we have is huge. We’re just giving [the audience] an opportunity to have another brand and another thing to watch and enjoy. And if you’re a fan of what we do, then that’s awesome. And, look, it’s designed to fill that niche. That’s exactly what it’s designed to do.”
Less than 24 hours before Survivor Series 2015, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent, Live Events, and Creative Paul “Triple H” Levesque tweeted the following update to the rumors about the pay-per-view in Atlanta being a target for an ISIS terrorist attack:
Federal, state and local law enforcement authorities have confirmed there is no specific or credible information involving a threat against tomorrow’s WWE Survivor Series at Philips Arena. However, WWE and Philips Arena have coordinated with the appropriate agencies and law enforcement, and significantly increased security measures to ensure the safety of all those in attendance, which is our highest priority. Doors will open at 6 p.m. to help fans avoid any delays in entering the arena due to the additional precautionary security procedures put in place. Fans are encouraged to take public transportation (MARTA) to the event and are advised that bags will not be permitted in the arena.
While not explicitly stated, it sounds like the security measures will slow down cars getting into the parking lot since they’re recommending fans take public transportation.
WWE Executive Vice President Triple H tweeted the following about the news that terrorist organization ISIS could be plotting an attack at Sunday night’s Survivor Series pay-per-view from Atlanta, Georgia:
.@WWE Survivor Series is currently scheduled as planned while we investigate reports with authorities.
“Hacktivist” group Anonymous issued a warning over the weekend that ISIS is planning several coordinated terror attacks on Sunday, with Atlanta’s Philips Arena listed as one of the potential targets. Both WWE and the FBI have issued statements, essentially stating that there are no specific/credible threats that they are aware of, but they are taking the situation seriously.
– As reported earlier this week, WWE signed CMLL star La Sombra. As is the case with most high-profile NXT acquisitions, Triple H took to social media to post a photo of the two together and welcome him to the company. HHH posted the following on Twitter:
Some are just born with the business in their blood…it is my pleasure to welcome Manuel Oropeza to @WWENXT.https://t.co/iPbJQh0eXB
WWE’s Executive Vice President Triple H called into the WHEB Morning Buzz radio show (Portmouth, New Hampshire) this week to promote their “Lending A Helping Can” charity auction. When asked if WWE would ever welcome Hulk Hogan back into the fold, Triple H told host Greg Kretschmar:
“For me I hope so.
It’s about reinvigorating his brand and him as a human being and the confidence within the world as to who he is. But the one thing about people in general, when somebody is on top they love to see him fall and when they fall they love to see him make that comeback. They’re great stories and I think that’s where people are.
Do I think he can be forgiven and make amends with the world and move forward? Yeah absolutely. But at the same point in time for us in that time frame you’re putting up a message to the world of how you’ll tolerate things and how you’ll react to things. And we did what we needed to do and he’ll do what he needs to do to get himself back.
And its not, to me, at the end of the day for him, how he’s perceived by the world, him as a human being, I’m sure is a lot more important to him than anything else. And re-establishing who he is as a human being I’m sure is of utmost important to him and I’m sure he’s gonna do it and when he does we’ll go from there.”
For more information on how you can donate to the Lend a Helping Can campaign, visit WHEB.com.
– WWE posted the above preview for the new two-part edition of “Legends With JBL,” which as part of the special Undertaker Week on the WWE Network, features “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Triple H and Shawn Michaels talking about “The Dead Man’s” legendary career. Both parts are available on the WWE Network now.
– WrestlingDVDNetwork.com is reporting that WWE’s new “Owen Hart: Hart Of Gold” DVD and Blu-ray set will feature new and archived interview footage from Vince McMahon, Tyson Kidd, Natalya, Jim Neidhart, Davey Boy Smith, Triple H, Mick Foley, Edge, Scott Hall, Chris Jericho, Lex Luger and referee Mike Chioda. WWE also shot new interviews with Owen Hart’s family members, including Bret Hart, Keith, Ross, Bruce, Alison, Diana, Ellie and Georgia. The set will not, however, feature any content from Hart’s immediate family, such as his widow Martha or his children, Oje and Athena, as Martha is not supporting the project.
– WWE Hall Of Famer Jim Ross’ weekly “Ross Report” podcast returns on Tuesday night at 9 p.m. EST. / 6 p.m. PST. at PodcastOne.com. JR will be joined this week by two wrestling legends, as Jim Cornette and Terry “Magnum T.A.” Allen are both scheduled for the show. The official description for the episode reads as follows:
“Join JR as he welcomes TWO guests in rapid fire conversation….the incomparable Jim Cornette talks with JR about a variety of topics and the Mid Atlantic Memories film and pulls no punches on any topic. Also joining JR will be Terry Allen better known as Magnum TA who chats about a myriad of topics concerning today’s product. So one one podcast you get Jim Cornette, Magnum TA along with JR with entertaining and informative talk.”
Triple H announced earlier today that NXT will be holding a special TV taping in Orlando, FL on Friday, January 22nd during Royal Rumble weekend.
Instead of holding the taping from Full Sail University, NXT will be invade the CFE Arena on the campus of the University of Central Florida. The venue has a capacity of approximately 10,000 for MMA events.
A ticket pre-sale will be taking place this Friday, November 20th at 10AM (EST).
On 1/22 @WWENXT is coming to CFE Arena/UCF Campus for the biggest Orlando taping ever. Pre-sale tickets on sale 11/20 at 10am ET. #GetReady
– Featured above is the latest edition of WWE’s “This Week In WWE History” YouTube show. This week, hosts Corey Graves and Kyle Edwards look back at the episode of WWE SmackDown in 1999 where Arnold Schwarzenegger and Triple H had their big altercation.
– At the WWE live event in Brighton, England on Wednesday, Hulk Hogan fans were reportedly handing out flyers outside of the arena for Hogan’s upcoming one-man show in Sheffield, England on November 14th.
– For the first time since his podcast debuted back in May, WWE Hall Of Famer Ric Flair has no guest on his latest show. Instead, the show is called “Ask Naitch!,” and like it suggests, the show features Flair answering questions submitted from fans. You can download Ric Flair’s latest “Woooo! Nation” podcast at Play.it.
As seen on this week’s NXT on the WWE Network, The Mechanics (Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder) defeated The Vaudevillains (Simon Gotch and Aiden English) to become the new NXT Tag-Team Champions.
Dawson and Wilder were congratulated on social media by Triple H, as well as their good friend, WWE Hall Of Famer Adam “Edge” Copeland. Below you can see their comments, as well as what appears to be a challenge to the main roster from Dawson. Additionally, you can check out a video of The Mechanics’ backstage interview after winning the titles below.
WWE officials have continued to have discussions regarding their working relationship with WWN Live, the parent-company of EVOLVE, however things are said to be moving slow and no one appears to be rushing anything.
If Triple H and others have their way, NXT will become a full-blown touring brand by the end of 2017, which means a lot of expanding and growth planned for NXT next year. There is reportedly talk of WWN helping to fill some of the void that is created when NXT does go on the road full-time. The idea is that NXT talents who aren’t perceived to be ready for touring can take bookings with WWN in Florida while WWE helps with some of the costs.
WWN is rumored to become somewhat of a WWE territory based out of Florida, with WWE sending them their least experienced developmental talents to improve so that they are ready for NXT tours across the globe. As noted, right now things are still in the very early stages.
With WrestleMania 32 less than 5 months away, let’s take a look at where the card stands in light of a bunch of recent developments.
Originally, the top few matches were slated to be:
Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker
The Rock vs. Triple H
John Cena vs. Roman Reigns
The Rock will not be competing at WrestleMania due to his movie schedule and more specifically, movie studios having major concerns about whether they’d be able to get insurance for The Rock if he was to get back in the ring. Then things were looking like this:
Seth Rollins vs. Triple H
Brock Lesnar vs. The Undertaker
John Cena vs. Roman Reigns
At some point the decision was made to jump right into Lesnar vs. Undertaker at Hell in a Cell, apparently with the assumption that Vince McMahon had decided on alternate opponents for both men. Of course, Seth Rollins’ ACL/MCL surgery will keep him out of action well past WrestleMania, so he’s out of the mix now as well.
As of this week, these are the top two matches currently planned for WrestleMania 32 (via the Wrestling Observer Newsletter):
– In an update from yesterday’s WWE SmackDown television taping in Manchester, England, it appears that The Undertaker and King Barrett segment in the middle of the show was actually a dark segment for the live crowd. As noted, the segment began with Barrett talking about the Wayne Rooney incident from RAW and ended with The Undertaker coming out and hitting him with a Tombstone piledriver.
– As noted, Triple H and Corey Graves recently appeared as Christopher Nowinski’s Concussion Legacy Foundation’s 8th annual Impact Awards in Boston, Mass. and presented the foundation with a check. That check was for $1.5 million. You can check out photos from the event at WWE.com.
– WWE and James Storm are still hyping the former TNA stars’ NXT debut and teasing his eventual return. Storm and the official NXT account tweeted the following this week:
– There are rumors going around claiming that WWE is planning on announcing one or two NXT talent cuts in the near future. While we can confirm the talk, there hasn’t been any word yet regarding which talents may be on the chopping block. The cuts are expected to be announced in the next month or two.
– As noted, WWE will be running a special “Undertaker Week” on the WWE Network starting next Monday. As part of the special theme, a new episode of “Legends with JBL” will premiere. The show will feature “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Triple H and Shawn Michaels talking about “The Dead Man.”
– Triple H posted the following photo of himself with U.K. soccer stars Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs and Darren Fletcher at backstage at Monday’s RAW in Manchester, England.
– As noted, Triple H and Corey Graves apparently filmed with Lemmy of the band Motorhead on Tuesday. It looks like the band may be playing at NXT Takeover: London on December 16th. Triple H posted the following teaser today:
– Adam Rose posted the following on Twitter regarding the passing of his sister. Rose is in South Africa for the first time in five years for her funeral.
WWE invited a young fan named Sadie and her family backstage at Monday’s WWE RAW in Dallas, Texas.
Sadie was diagnosed with Pre-B Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia earlier this year and her journey has been documented on Facebook. You can check that out at Facebook.com.
Sadie was shown on-camera on Monday’s RAW when Nikki Bella hugged her at ringside.
Below are photos of Sadie and her family backstage at last night’s show with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon.
– It was announced on Monday’s WWE Hell In A Cell “go-home” edition of RAW that on this week’s SmackDown, both Dolph Ziggler and Summer Rae will be the special guests on a new Miz TV segment. Make sure to stop by here at SEScoops.com on Tuesday evening for the best live WWE SmackDown spoiler play-by-play on the web.
– With over 84,000 votes already, The Undertaker is leading a new WWE poll which asks fans to vote on which Superstar “rules Hell In A Cell.” The options for the poll include The Undertaker, Kane, Shawn Michaels, Batista, Randy Orton, and Triple H. Taker currently leads with 69 percent of the votes while the next closest is far behind with Triple H holding a mere 11 percent.
– Before tonight’s WWE RAW in Dallas, Texas, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and Cowboys CBO Charlotte Jones Anderson were able to meet Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, and Vince McMahon. Below is a photo of the gang backstage at the show.