3 AEW stars Triple H buried and 1 he put over in WWE
Triple H currently runs the creative in WWE. Since The Game took over as the company's head of creative last summer, the overall product has improved tremendously, with the promotion producing some of their best storylines in years, from The Bloodline to Cody Rhodes' comeback.
But long before Papa H was considered a success behind the scenes, he had a Hall of Fame-worthy career in his own right as a 14-time World Champion. Having been part of WWE since 1995, the Cerebral Assasin has wrestled literally everybody who's anybody in the business, including several AEW stars who used to ply their trade in WWE.
But which wrestlers did the King of Kings defeat, and which one did he put over? Read our list below to find out.
#3. Triple H beat Sting at WrestleMania 31
Wrestling Memories
Honestly, I know a lot of people hate the outcome of the Sting/Triple H match, I thought this moment was hugely amazing.
I genuinely never thought we'd see Sting at Wrestlemania. https://t.co/NIDmNXU5Jf
One of the biggest dream matches in WrestleMania history was the battle between Triple H and WCW legend Sting at WrestleMania 31. WWE produced a nostalgia-heavy match as both D-Generation X and the nWo got involved at ringside.
Despite being Sting's first WWE match, the company decided to give Triple H the victory. Many wrestlers and fans alike felt that The Icon should have gone over instead. The former WCW Champion would only make one more in-ring appearance in the Stamford-based promotion against Seth Rollins before leaving the company a few years later.
Hunter would address the backlash behind the match a few years later in a WWE Untold documentary and reiterated why the decision for Sting to lose was made:
"You know there are people who’ll say, 'Well… I should’ve put him [Sting] over to give him the moment and that’s arguably -- to say that you should’ve... The Rock situation made that impossible, which didn’t happen, but that’s the truth of it. Are there things that could’ve been done differently? I don’t know that it took away from anything," he said.
Sting was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2016 before going on an extended hiatus from the business. He would make an unexpected debut in AEW in 2020 and has been a regular presence on Dynamite as a mentor to Darby Allin.
#2. Triple H defeated Dean Ambrose at WWE Roadblock 2016
On this day in 2016 was Roadblock, where Triple H defended his WWE Championship against Dean Ambrose in one of the most underrated #WWE matches in recent memory.
What are some of the other wrestling matches that you think don't get shown enough love? https://t.co/Spl8ThCwOL
Current AEW star Jon Moxley has crossed paths multiple times with Triple H in WWE during battles between The Shield and Evolution. In 2016, the former Dean Ambrose even made it to the final two of that year's Royal Rumble with the King of Kings.
Unfortunately, HHH would eliminate Mox to become the WWE Champion. About a month later, the promotion would book a world title match between Hunter and Ambrose, but the Lunatic Fringe just came up short. It was a shame as the former Shield member had quite the momentum behind him, with many fans pushing Dean to walk into WrestleMania as champion.
Despite their on-screen rivalry, Mox has praised The Game for his work behind the scenes and how he differs from Vince McMahon. In an interview with Wade Keller, here's what Mox said about Hunter:
"I mean, who else is there? He’s [Triple H] clearly been preparing for this. When Vince isn’t there, he’s the guy you defer to. He’s got good ideas. His ideas are his ideas. But he’s a lot more cerebral. He’s not a super open collaborative. He thinks about stuff a lot," he said.
Moxley continued:
"I just think it’s a much better option. Between the two of them. I think he would be more open to giving people more freedom, but he’s smart and he sees things his way. So, if he sees you doing something and he envisions a better way, and a lot of times you’re like, 'Oh, that’s even cooler.'"
While Moxley never won a one-on-one match with Triple H, he would eventually win the world title later on in the year and had a fairly successful run in WWE. He would, of course, join AEW in 2019 and become one of their biggest stars.
#1. Triple H buried CM Punk at Night of Champions 2011
On this day in 2011; Triple H defeated CM Punk at Night of Champions.
This was the worst thing they could have done and did it anyway. https://t.co/YZVALvkU8u
Triple H and CM Punk's issues with one another have been well documented. The Straight Edge Superstar clarified that he disliked his booking at Night of Champions 2011, where he lost to Hunter.
Punk was coming off the momentum from his legendary pipebomb promo, and many fans felt that the Chicago star pivoting to a rivalry with HHH was a wasted opportunity. The fact that he would lose that match was a head-scratching decision, to say the least. This caused the Straight Edge Superstar to have significant reservations about working with The Game again.
The Second City Saint would suffer a concussion during the Royal Rumble match on January 26, 2014. He allegedly confronted both HHH and Vince McMahon backstage at RAW the night after before dramatically walking out on the company:
"And I turned to Hunter [Triple H] and I said, 'All due respect, I do not need to wrestle you, you need to wrestle me. I do not want to wrestle you. I seriously resent you for not putting me over three years ago when you should have. That would have been best for business but you had to f***ing come in and squash it,'" Punk said. [H/T Cageside Seats for the transcription]
When CM Punk made an unexpected appearance backstage on RAW a few weeks back, it was reported that he had a quick exchange with Triple H, who had no idea he would be coming at all. It's good to see that both parties can stay on amicable terms despite the issues they had in the past.
#1. Triple put over Bryan Danielson at WrestleMania 30
What are some of the greatest openers in WrestleMania history?
I'll start - Daniel Bryan V Triple H (Wm 30) https://t.co/G0zWot4INt
However, there was one current AEW star that Triple H put over cleanly in a high-profile match. The star in question is Bryan Danielson. The two stars had one of the best WrestleMania opening matches of all time in New Orleans in 2014.
Bryan walked into that year's 'Mania with a ton of momentum, thanks to the Yes! Movement, and many fans wanted to see him defeat The Game and move on to the world title match later on in the night.
Luckily, Hunter obliged and put over Bryan. Later that night, Daniel beat Batista and Randy Orton to capture the WWE World Heavyweight Championship. He would hold the WWE Championship one more time before leaving the company in 2021. Danielson has since joined AEW in 2021 and is now part of the Blackpool Combat Club.