Details on Triple H stepping in to resolve WWE icon's legitimate issue with Vince McMahon
Vince Russo believes Triple H was instrumental in helping Shawn Michaels overcome his problem with Vince McMahon in WWE in 1998.
Russo worked as a WWE writer when Steve Austin defeated Michaels to win the WWE Championship for the first time at WrestleMania 14. Before the match, The Heartbreak Kid stopped talking to McMahon because he allegedly had issues with the way he had lost his main-event spot.
Speaking on the Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling podcast, Russo recalled how people thought Michaels would sabotage his match to get back at McMahon. He also revealed that Triple H played a key role in keeping his friend calm before the show:
“Hunter [Triple H] knew Shawn was about to freaking snap, so Hunter went out of his way to make sure, ‘Okay, everybody settle. This is what we’re doing.’ Making sure everybody was happy. If Hunter went the other way and stirred the s***, forget about it. But Hunter was really, ‘Okay, let’s do this,’ and he really took charge of the situation," Russo recalled. [15:46-16:20]
Following the WrestleMania 14 match, Michaels took a four-year break from in-ring competition before returning against Triple H at SummerSlam 2002. He went on to wrestle full-time until 2010.
Why Shawn Michaels did not sabotage the WWE WrestleMania 14 main event
Our favourite match from Wrestlemania 14 is Shawn Michaels vs Steve Austin for the WWF Championship #WWE http://t.co/hb5feOKmnu
The Undertaker has confirmed in interviews that he was prepared to beat up Shawn Michaels if he ruined Steve Austin’s title victory in any way.
With Triple H by Michaels’ side, Vince Russo never realistically thought the disgruntled superstar would go into business for himself at WrestleMania 14:
“I knew Shawn was gonna do business because he was always all about business, and no matter how p****d off he was at Vince, he wasn’t taking that out on Austin," Russo continued. "The issue wasn’t with Austin. So as one of the boys and respect for each other, Shawn was going to do business. We all knew that, but it was really just the headache in getting there.” [16:27-16:55]
Michaels has been close friends with Triple H for more than two decades. In 2019, their legendary D-Generation X faction was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
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