Triple H

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Paul Michael Levesque (born July 27, 1969 in Nashua, New Hampshire) is an American professional wrestler, best known as Hunter Hearst Helmsley or Triple H. He is a 5-time WWE Champion and a 5-time World Heavyweight Champion.

Career

Triple H was taught to wrestle by legendary wrestling heel Killer Kowalski. In 1994 he joined World Championship Wrestling (WCW), wrestling there as a heel under the names Terra Ryzing and Jean-Paul Levesque. He left in 1995 for WCW's rival organization, the WWF (now the WWE). The WWF packaged him as heel Hunter Hearst Helmsley, a spoiled rich kid from Greenwich, Connecticut whose name invoked both the family of publisher William Randolph Hearst and "The Queen of Mean," Leona Helmsley. Along with fellow Clique member Shawn Michaels and Chyna, he formed D-Generation X (DX) in 1997. Around the same time, he shortened his alias to Triple H (a reference to the character's initials, HHH). This was the beginning of The Game's rise to become one of the most successful professional wrestlers ever.

Road to Heavyweight Gold

Triple H led the "DX Army" throughout 1998; this was the first time he had performed as a face in the WWE and he quickly became one of its most popular wrestlers. It was during this time that Triple H began feuding with The Rock who at the time was a heel. This rivalry eventually spilled onto the Intercontinental Championship, at the time both superstars were at the "top of the ladder" in the mid-card division. When The Rock won the WWE Championship in late 1998, the rivalry between the two continued but became more of a gang war as DX fought Mr. McMahon's Corporation stable, of which Rock was the crown jewel.

As 1999 began, Triple H began to re-evaluate his position in the WWE. He longed for a shot at the WWF World Heavyweight Championship, however due to his inferior popularity compared to Stone Cold Steve Austin he knew that the fans would never want to see him take on another fan favorite. At WrestleMania XV Triple H wrestled as a face for the last time in several months when he beat Kane with the aid of Chyna. Later on he betrayed his long-time friend and fellow DX member X-Pac by helping then-heel Shane McMahon retain the European Championship, thus turning heel. This decision earned him the hatred of the fans, and helped push Triple H further in the direction of the WWE Championship. Triple H joined the Corporation, however this placed him in the same boat as The Rock, a long-time Corporate member. Unable to get along, The Rock took Triple H's place as a face and quickly became one of the hottest superstars in WWE history.

Meanwhile Triple H worked hard to get closer to the WWE Championship. Along with turning heel, Triple H got rid of his old "DX" look and took on the look he has to this day. Triple H was changing his image and his personality as he fought to get a World title shot. During mid-1999, Triple H was "groomed" for the World title. Eventually, with the death of the "Corporate Ministry" (the group which was created out of a merger of the Corporation and the Undertaker's Ministry), Triple H found himself closer to the WWE Championship. Eventually after numerous failed attempts he finally got what he and many others thought would finally see him at the top of the WWE ladder. At SummerSlam 1999 Triple H, along with Mankind would challenge then-WWE Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin. In a memorable match which featured Governor Jesse "The Body" Ventura as the special guest referee, Triple H lost out to Mankind who became World Champion for the third time.

The following night on WWE Raw, Triple H threatened to break Jim Ross's arm if Mankind refused to give him a title shot that night. Mankind gave Triple H a shot, and that night Triple H won his first WWE Championship. After winning the title Triple H then "interviewed" Jim Ross to see "What Ross thought of him." JR's reply was that he thought Triple H was a, "No good, drunken S.O.B." Triple H replied by beating JR to the ground. From then onwards, Triple H would feud with the biggest WWE superstars to date. The Rock, Mick Foley, Steve Austin, Vince McMahon, The Undertaker, Kurt Angle and many, many more. He would earn the hatred of fans around the world due to his dirty, under-handed tactics, and scheming nature such as forcing Mick Foley out of the WWE.

Current

During Triple H's WWE career, he has held a number of titles, including the WWE Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, the European Championship, and (with partner Stone Cold Steve Austin) the WWF Tag Team Championship. He is only the second of five wrestlers to have held all four of those titles, the first being Shawn Michaels. This is sometimes referred to as being a Grand Slam Champion. He also won the 1997 King of the Ring tournament and the 2002 Royal Rumble match.

The most difficult moment of Triple H's career occurred during a match on a live broadcast of Monday Night RAW on May 21, 2001 when he suffered a legitimate and career-threatening injury. A misstep caused him to suffer a tear in his left quadricep muscle. Despite his inability to place any weight on his leg, Triple H was able to complete the match, something that his fans and fellow wrestlers saw as an admirable display of dedication to the business. He even allowed one of his opponents in the match, Chris Jericho, to place him in his standard finishing maneuver, the "Walls of Jericho", a move that places considerable stress on the quadriceps. The tear required an operation, which was performed by famed orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, in Birmingham. The rigorous rehabilitation process kept him out of action until January 7, 2002, over seven months. He came back to SmackDown! and turned face again by turning on Kurt Angle. He was exclusive to Smackdown! throughout this time period due to the RAW and Smackdown! brand separation, but was later drafted to RAW. On July 22, 2002 Triple H turned heel for the third time by turning on his long time friend then babyface, Shawn Michaels by pedigreeing him in the middle of the ring during a DX reunion setup. He also smashed Michaels's face through a car window. These events led to the beginning of a heated rivalry between the former partners.

Then prior to September 2, 2002, WWE recognized only one World Champion, and that champion represented both RAW and SmackDown! Just after that year's SummerSlam, however, champion Brock Lesnar inked a (storyline) deal to become exclusive to SmackDown!, leaving RAW without a champion. RAW General Manager Eric Bischoff then declared that since Lesnar had left for SmackDown!, that RAW needed its own champion. So with that, he opened a briefcase, pulled out the old WCW Championship, and gave it to Triple H, naming him the first World Heavyweight Champion. Since that time, Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit, Randy Orton, Goldberg, and Batista have all held the championship (often won from Triple H). With the exception of Benoit and Batista, all have lost it relatively quickly (also often to Triple H).

File:EvolutionsEntranceTripleHRicFlairBatista.jpg

Evolution. Members (left to right) Batista, Triple H and Ric Flair.

In January 2003, Triple H formed Evolution with Ric Flair, Randy Orton, and Batista. Its purpose was to include the greatest of the past (Flair), present (HHH), and future (Orton and Batista) of wrestling, and to support Triple H as the World Heavyweight Champion, with other members interfering in matches on his behalf. However, the group no longer officially exists. Orton was kicked out of the group after winning the World Heavyweight Championship from Chris Benoit at SummerSlam 2004 (which Triple H won back only a month later). Batista won the 2005 Royal Rumble, then turned on Triple H and the next month after learning of Triple H's attempts to trick him into jumping to SmackDown! to face WWE champion John Bradshaw Layfield and No. 1 Contender John Cena in a Triple Threat match at WrestleMania instead of Triple H. With only Flair and Triple H remaining, Evolution is essentially (but not officially) dissolved.

In late 2004, Triple H released a book entitled Making the Game: Triple H's Approach to a Better Body. Mostly devoted to bodybuilding advice, the book also includes some autobiographical information, memoirs, and opinions.

Triple H lost his fifth World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 21, in which he was defeated by Batista. In a subsequent broadcast, Triple H suffered a stinger (minor but painful nerve damage to the head and neck) after a botched legdrop from Rosey. This injury would not cause him to lose any ring time and he would still be able to compete at Backlash in his scheduled rematch against Batista.

At Backlash, Triple H and Batista squared off once again in a match that saw Batista get the win. The following night on RAW, Triple H was entered into a tournament to decide the new number one contender for the World title, only to be eliminated by Chris Benoit, who received a bit of help from Batista. The next week, Triple H announced that he was leaving RAW for a while because he knew Batista could not survive as champion without him. On the May 23 edition of RAW, Triple H returned after Batista's victory over the 'Gold Rush' Tournament winner, Edge. Following a low blow from Ric Flair, Triple H attacked Batista with his sledgehammer. He then challenged the bloody Batista to a Hell in a Cell match for the World Heavyweight Championship to which he agreed, to be held at Vengeance. He lost to Batista in the Hell in a Cell match following a spinebuster onto the steel steps and a devestating Batista Bomb.

Triple H is currently on hiatus from wrestling as he begins an orientation at WWE Headquarters in Stanford designed to broaden his understanding of the corporate side of WWE.

Triple H was featured in an episode of MTV's Punk'd on Sunday, August 14th, 2005.

Personal life

Paul's family are Canadian French Americans and he is related to René Lévesque.

Prior to his relationship with Stephanie McMahon, Levesque had previously been in a relationship with Chyna that mirrored their in-ring partnership. Following his first WWF championship run, Triple H was put into a program with Stephanie McMahon that culminated in Triple H 'marrying' McMahon. During the program, in which Triple H and spoiled-brat Stephanie were the most over heels in the WWF, Levesque and McMahon became personally involved in real life. On October 25, 2003, long after the couple had divorced in the storylines, the couple married for real.

Now Stephanie McMahon's husband, many speculate that once father-in-law Vince McMahon retires, Levesque and Stephanie will assume creative control of World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. Stephanie McMahon is currently in charge of writing the SmackDown! program, while Triple H is often consulted by the McMahons about storylines.

Controversy

Triple H is one of the most controversial figures in the history of the business. Many pundits have criticized him for using backstage politics to hog screen time, retain titles, elevate his friends, and generally hold down talented workers who might otherwise deserve to share the limelight with him. The Clique, including good real-life friends Shawn Michaels, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, Sean Waltman, and Triple H, was notorious for this in the late 1990s, and Triple H's influence continued after the departures of Michaels, Hall, and Nash from the WWF.

This view has only increased since he became the real-life son-in-law of WWE promoter Vince McMahon, which at one time was merely part of his gimmick. Recently, former D-Generation X member Billy Gunn has given an interview, now part of the popular "shoot" RF Video series, in which he claims having personally witnessed much of this controversial behavior.

At the same time, his career is filled with performances against a wide variety of opponents. All else aside, he consistently draws one of the biggest crowd reactions (whether cheers or boos) in any arena he performs in, a mark of high success in the pro wrestling world.

Film

Levesque played a role in the movie Blade: Trinity, as a vampire enforcer named Jarko Grimwood. Some speculate that Triple H will be the next performer to jump ship to Hollywood in the footsteps of The Rock. Triple H has disputed this in interviews, however, saying that he will always be a professional wrestler first, and (if offered more acting roles) actor second. This is a thoughtful response considering his high-profile personal and professional role in WWE. He is scheduled to star in the WWE-produced movie entitled Jornada del Muerte.

Rumor has it that he is being considered as a replacement for Arnold Schwarzenegger in a possible revival of the Conan the Barbarian movie franchise.

In Wrestling

File:TripleHpedigree.jpg

Triple H performing The Pedigree on Edge.

Quotes

"I am that damn good!"
"I am...The Game!"
"You will never be the man"
"Game... Over."

Nicknames

Trips (vocal abbreviation of "Triple" in "Triple H")
Hunter (from "Hunter Hearst Hemsley"; still used)
The Game
The Cerebral Assassin

Finishing and signature moves

The Pedigree (double underhook facebuster)
Indian deathlock
Spinebuster
Jumping high knee
Running neckbreaker
Facebreaker knee smash (back body drop counter)
Signature illegal weapon: Sledgehammer

Previous Managers/valets

Trivia

When Triple H uses a sledgehammer as a weapon, it is in fact a real sledgehammer, and not a prop as is widely believed. Triple H covers the head of the sledgehammer with his hand just before it strikes his opponent. On one occasion when Triple H did use a fake sledgehammer he accidentally injured his opponent, The Undertaker.
While wrestling as "Terra Rysing" in World Championship Wrestling, Levesque was given only five minutes to create his new character, that of "the French guy" (WCW officials thought his surname sounded French). Levesque created the character of "Jean Paul Levesque", and was asked to speak "with a French accent" as he could not speak French).
Levesque has appeared on MADtv and Punk'd.
He is a longtime Motörhead fan.
Levesque faced Mick Foley in his two "retirement matches" in 2000 at No Way Out 2000 and WrestleMania XVI. He claims that his bloody street fight with Foley at the 2000 Royal Rumble "made Triple H the superstar that he is today".
Triple H jobbed to the Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania XII.

Championships and accomplishments

Levesque is described as either a ten-time or eleven-time world champion. He held the WWE Undisputed Championship when it had been consolidated by Chris Jericho but was still represented by two belts. After the two belts had been merged, he won it four more times, and had five reigns as WWF/WWE Champion. Strictly in terms of titles, the total is ten; his World Championship belts, counting both of the two for his first Undisputed Championship, total eleven.

WWE Championship Reigns
Won from: Mankind	First	Lost to: Vince McMahon
Won from: VACANT	Second	Lost to: Big Show
Won from: Big Show	Third	Lost to: The Rock
Won from: The Rock	Fourth	Lost to: The Rock
Won from: Chris Jericho	Fifth. Won with World Title, this became Undisputed title	Lost to: Hulk Hogan

World Heavyweight Championship Reigns

Won from:
Chris Jericho

Won with WWE title, these titles were then joined together to become the WWE Undisputed Title

Lost to:
Hulk Hogan

Won from:
awarded by RAW GM Eric Bischoff

First

Lost to:
Shawn Michaels

Won from:
Shawn Michaels

Second

Lost to:
Bill Goldberg

Won from:
Bill Goldberg

Third

Lost to:
Chris Benoit

Won from:
Randy Orton

Fourth

Lost to:
vacant*

* Championship was made vacant after a controversial match on the November 29, 2004 edition of RAW.

Won from:
vacant

Fifth

Lost to:
Batista

WWE Intercontinental Championship Reigns
Won from: Marc Mero	First	Lost to: The Rock
Won from: The Rock	Second	Lost to: Title vacated due to injury
Won from: Chris Jericho	Third	Lost to: Jeff Hardy
Won from: Jeff Hardy	Fourth	Lost to: Kane
Won from: Kane	Fifth.	Lost to: Belt was abandoned when it was merged with the World Heavyweight Championship on October 20th 2002.

Other accomplishments

1997 King of the Ring winner
2002 Royal Rumble winner
Former World Tag Team Champion with Stone Cold Steve Austin
Former WWE European Champion
Second Grand Slam Champion in WWE history
Former IWF Heavyweight Champion
Former IWF Tag Team Champion with Perry Saturn
Pro Wrestling Illustrated (PWI) ranked him # 139 of the 500 best singles wrestlers during the "PWI Years" in 2003.

He also won several PWI Awards. He won Most Hated Wrestler in 2003 and 2004. He was involved in the Match of the Year in 2004 (vs. Chris Benoit and Shawn Michaels) and the Feud of the Year in 2000 (vs. Kurt Angle) and in 2004 (vs. Chris Benoit).