Triple H and The Rock had a rivalry for the ages, but The Game has revealed that he still has one regret from their time working together.
The Rock and Triple H met in the ring for the first time on the night ‘Rocky Maivia’ made his main roster debut at Survivor Series in 1996. However, the pair’s rivalry began in earnest in early 1997 when they began feuding over the Intercontinental Championship.
As both men climbed up the card, they clash as members of D-X and The Nation of Domination as well as singles stars. By early 2000 with Stone Cold Steve Austin out injured and Mick Foley heading to retirement (at least briefly) the two stars found themselves at the top of the card going to war over the World Championship.
This led to memorable matches at Backlash, Judgement Day and SummerSlam with Kurt Angle. However, the one match that alluded the pair was a singles match at WrestleMania. With the rivalry at it’s peak, WrestleMania 2000 featured a Fatal-Four-Way Elimination Match between Rock, Triple H, Mick Foley and The Big Show, with a “McMahon in every corner.”
Speaking during an appearance on the Impaulsive Podcast with Logan Paul, the new Head of WWE Creative explained that the lack of a singles WrestleMania match was his one regret from their rivalry. Interestingly, original plans for WrestleMania 2000 would have seen the match take place.
“My only regret of the whole thing with Rock is in 2000 we were poised to have a match at WrestleMania one-on-one, and I think that would have been an epic thing for both of us in that moment. The timing of ‘Taker’s return, and Austin’s return, and Austin wasn’t quite ready yet, so they pushed the WrestleMania match.
The year we did this Fatal-Four-Way with Foley, who I had just retired. Coming back a month later with his hair all cut off because he thought he was off forever and going to be a normal guy, here is back, and Big Show.
A couple of months later we would have the one-on-one Iron Man Match that we wanted to have at WrestleMania. Unfortunately for me, I just feel that’s the one thing, we got to this unbelievable, heated long-term rivalry and then never got to pay it off on the biggest platform possible.
I think Rock feels that way too.”
Ahead of WrestleMania 38 Triple H was forced to call time on his in-ring career after a “serious cardiac event” in September 2021. Following the retirement of Vince McMahon he has since been made Head of Creative and Head of Talent Relations.
Meanwhile, The Rock remains open to the possibility of one more match with speculation linking him to a potential showdown with Roman Reigns at WrestleMania 39.
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