Interview with Triple H: The Cost of Being the Boss

As Triple H trades in his sledgehammer and trunks for the boardroom and a bespoke suit, the future of the WWE Universe rests on his very broad shoulders. In this exclusive interview, WWE Magazine delves into the mind of the man known as The Cerebral Assassin as he educates us on the shift in WWE's power structure, backstage politics with the Superstars, the return of The Attitude Era, his dream RAW main event match, and why he and CM Punk are more alike than you think.

Tell us about your first day in the offices of Titan Towers. What was it like being in a corporate setting and sitting behind a desk for the first time?

I spent the first 40 years of my life trying to avoid a desk job. It's obviously a big transition, especially in an industry - and I don't want to say for right or wrong - where most conflicts are settled in the ring. It's also an industry where people's MO is to get under your skin and force themselves into situations that eventually have to be solved in the ring. It's very difficult to take a step back from that.

What's the first new lesson you've learned on the job?

That people in suits are far more conniving than people in trunks.

Most members of the WWE Universe know you as the anti-authority figure who created DX. But now you're wearing a suit and playing the role of "The Man". What would a younger Triple H think of the position that you're in now?

It's easy to be anti-authority when you don't have the responsibility of being the authority. There's a lot to be said for when it's your responsibility and you have to make the right decisions for everybody involved. Then's it a completely different set of problems. Quite frankly, being in the ring is much easier, it's much less mentally taxing, much less stressful. It's very simple. You just get in the ring and you go do your job. When you're in the ring, you just have to worry about you and what your goal is. When you're in charge of everything else, there are so many facets. You're worrying about everybody else, and when you change one thing, it has a domino effect upon everything else. In this new position, everybody is coming at me from a different angle and everybody has a different agenda.



What are the differences between managing the locker room as a veteran and now as the boss in the boardroom?

When you're just somebody who has years of experience and just giving advice, people tend to listen. When you're the boss telling them that advice, people tend to take it as an order, and tend to be rebellious or defiant. Naturally, nobody likes being told what to do. You can approach it the exact same way, but it's going to be taken differently, so you use tact. That's the biggest difference, even though you don't change where you're coming from-it's all about perception.

Whose opinion do you value most when you're not sure about a decision? Where do you go to seek counsel?

I still get a lot of opinions from Vince. He's one. I get the opinion of my wife because she knows a lot. Some might think that's the wrong thing to do, but the opinions of a bunch of people who have no knowledge of what they're talking about means nothing to me. Then there are veterans like Pat Patterson, and guys who are in the locker room like Arn Anderson. At the end of the day, they're my decisions, and I like to get feedback and ideas from everybody, but there are always consequences. You just try to make a common-sense choice.

Do you ever allow yourself to just step back from it all and become a fan - or is that impossible as this point because WWE is part of your life 24/7?

I try to step back and be a fan every day. Vince taught me - and I know he's right about this - if you try to step back and just be a fan, then you can never go wrong. You can't always do that because you're so close to it, but the more you can do it, the more successful you can be. When you start to do things because it's, "What you want to see", or "What you would like to happen," or "What you think should happen," then you're headed down the wrong path. If you start to think that a fan would like this or a fan would like to see that, then you're moving in the right direction.

Looking around the locker room, what's your dream Monday night main event for RAW a year from now?

My dream RAW main event is one that would do gangbuster business. It's one that - whether you're a hardcore or casual fan - everybody has heard about. Who's that with, I'm not sure, because that ebbs and flows. I hope it's two guys I've never seen before, or two guys who I've only seen in developmental. As much as everybody'll say, "I miss The Attitude Era," I don't. I can't wait for the next era. The Attitude Era was phenomenal. When I started in the business, before Austin or DX, business was not great. We used to think, "Is it ever going to be like what it was in the '80s?" Then, all of a sudden, it was way bigger than that, I don't want The Attitude Era. The want bigger than The Attitude Era. I don't want to create the next Stone Cold Steve Austin, I want to create the guy about whom people would say, "Yeah, Stone Cold was pretty good, but this guy is it." I want the guy who makes The Rock forgettable. It's our job to find that guy and create that guy. Can we get there? I sure hope so.

Now that you're viewing things from the top, what are you most excited about right now in the WWE Universe?

The winds of change. I'm a big fan of what CM Punk has done, even though a lot of it has been at odds with me. Some of the best stuff that's ever been done in this business has been done in opposition to the leadership because it makes for interesting television. I like the fact that CM Punk pushes the envelope, and that he goes out there on a limb, but as long as his ass can cash those checks that his mouth is writing, then that works.

We asked CM Punk in last month's issue how he would change WWE. What's on your agenda in terms of change?

What I would like to go back to is what the majority of people want. That's when I disagree with a guy like CM Punk. Punk to me, is part of the problem. He wants what he wants and what he, and only he sees. The only people he listens to are those who agree with his opinions. That's the beauty of the internet - it doesn't have to be true, it only has to be printed. You can tell me all day long you want me to put a guy on TV. But if I put him on TV and nobody cares, then why should I put him on TV? Punk doesn't like the look of the WWE Championship. To be quite honest with you, I don't either. I'm not saying this is the case or isn't the case, but what if I say, "I don't like that belt and Punk doesn't like that belt, but 90 percent of the WWE Universe loves it." Should we change it because CM Punk doesn't like it? Or if I don't like it? I'm a big believer in the majority and putting a finger on the pulse.

So what do you think it is that the people must want to see in 2011?

People don't pay to see just wrestlers. They pay to see stars, larger-than-life athletes, and heroes and villains. They pay to see stuff they can't see in their own backyard. CM Punk misses the point about Kevin Nash - and I'm not saying this to side with my friend - but Punk does look like the short-order cook from the Waffle House. I like Waffle House, too, but I'm not sure I want to watch the cook. You can be the greatest at what you do. There have been a lot of phenomenal wrestlers, Ricky Steamboat was one of the greatest ever. But if Ricky wasn't in a match with Ric Flair, tell me what else he headlined? And this isn't a knock on Steamboat - he's phenomenal, Punk's mentality is, "Do what I like." He likes legitimate, technically gifted, skilled wrestlers. The fact is I do, too. I agree with what he's saying. Is John Cena the best technical wrestler? Absolutely not. Neither was Hogan, neither was Austin, neither was Mick Foley, neither was the Rock - neither was I! Make me a list of technical wrestlers who were huge stars, and I'll make you a list of terrible wrestlers who were huge stars. I guarantee my list is a mile longer than yours. But who am I to say for the 90 percent of the WWE Universe, who don't give a crap about that and like John Cena, that they're wrong and they should change, and they should be force-fed something they dont want? When I grew up, I hated Hulk Hogan. I thought he was terrible. I didn't like to watch him I was like Punk in a way. I liked the Steamboats and Flairs and the guys that could go. Would I be right in saying that Hogan was the wrong guy to go with, and they should have changed direction and gone with Steamboat because he was the better wrestler? Ludicrous. That's the problem. That's where Punk is misguided. I'm a big believer that the Internet is the bane of our business. Any talent can go on there and find someone telling people that they're the greatest in the world, and yet they can't get the crowd to make a peep when they're in the ring.

When all is said and gone, what would you prefer to be known for in this business - your record-setting in-ring feats or your behind-the-scenes corporate decisions?

It's hard to say, because I don't know what the future holds. Vince McMahon has built this company from dust to what it is today. I don't want to keep it what it is today. I don't want to hold on to what he's created or stay static with where we're at. I hope people will remember fondly, what I did in the ring and, hopefully, I can surpass that in my new position. If I have a legacy in this business, I hope that it's to continue turning this global juggernaut - as Vince likes to call it - into something that nobody could believe it could be. Look at what Marvel Comics has become. Hell, even look at Apple. Twenty years ago, that computer company was dying, but this past week, they traded places with Exxon/Mobile as the No. 1 company in the world. I've had a great career. I'm proud of everything that I've done in the ring, and I busted my ass to achieve all that. But at the end of the day, as successful as I was between the ropes, I hope that I'm a thousand times more successful outside of the ring.

source: wwe magazine