Triple H's pop when he made his long-awaited return to the WWF in January 2002 must have been music to his and Vince McMahon's ears. The company had hyped the return for weeks via those inspirational, Beautiful Day vignettes. When Triple H finally stepped through the curtain, the MSG crowd went completely mental. The Game was always going to find his way back in main events following his almighty return but the ferocity with which Vince pushed his future son-in-law was truly staggering. HHH easily disposed of Undisputed Champion Chris Jericho at WrestleMania, continued working main events, had a classic with his buddy Shawn Michaels and then awarded himself the World Heavyweight Championship when Lesnar became exclusive to Smackdown. Whilst Triple H, who was carrying about thirty extra pounds of solid muscle, was not exactly tearing it up in the ring on a regular basis, what bothered fans the most were the awarding of the belt and the interminable twenty minute promos as well as the perceived burying of other talent, such as Rob Van Dam and Booker T. Triple H was everywhere, which is exactly where Vince McMahon wanted him. Raw was definitely Vince's primary focus at this point. As the future husband of his beloved daughter, Triple H was always going to get preferential treatment, even if it was to the detriment of the product and the fans' enjoyment of the show.
