2 WWE Superstars Triple H wanted to work with and 3 he didn't
A 14-time WWE World Champion, Triple H has cemented his status as one of the most successful in-ring competitors of the last 25 years.
“The King of Kings” has faced almost every top name in WWE during that time, from legends such as The Rock and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin to present-day Superstars including Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins.
Given the amount of time that Triple H has spent in the sports entertainment industry, it is only natural that he has not enjoyed working alongside every Superstar he has been in the ring with.
With that in mind, let’s take a look at two Superstars who the NXT founder wanted to work with, as well as three he did not want to work with.
#5 Triple H didn’t want to work with Scott Steiner
Scott Steiner rejoined WWE in October 2002 and quickly became involved in a World Heavyweight Championship storyline with Triple H on RAW.
The two-time WWE Tag Team Champion had not competed in many matches in 2002, prompting concerns that it could take him a while to build up his conditioning to have one-on-one matches.
Triple H was scheduled to face Steiner in their first singles match at a WWE live event in Honolulu, Hawaii in January 2003. However, partly due to Steiner’s lack of in-ring conditioning, WWE’s higher-ups changed the match to a tag team encounter between Triple H & Batista and Steiner & Rob Van Dam.
Speaking on his Something to Wrestle With podcast (02:03:30 mark of the video above), WWE director Bruce Prichard revealed that Triple H was among the people who felt that Steiner was not ready to face him in a singles match.
“Triple H is saying it, the agents are saying it, and you can just watch the matches. He’s running out of gas a lot faster, and he’s a step off.”
Steiner defeated Triple H via disqualification at the 2003 Royal Rumble in a match that is widely considered to be one of the most disappointing in the event’s history. One month later, “The Game” won a rematch at No Way Out, bringing an end to the forgettable rivalry.
Prichard said neither Superstar wanted to work with each other and they were glad when the two-month storyline ended.
“I think both were relieved that it came to an end. There wasn’t chemistry there, there just wasn’t any chemistry there. Hunter was glad to be done with it. I think that he thought he could’ve gotten a lot more out of it, and he was disappointed, and I think Scott just felt that he couldn’t work with Triple H, and it was oil and water.”
Prichard added that he cannot remember WWE's plans at the time, but he suspects that Vince McMahon scrapped an idea to have another Triple H vs. Steiner match at WrestleMania 19, which explains why the Triple H vs. Booker T match had such a short build.