10 Wrestlers Who Changed The Business Forever

4. Triple H

Cody Dynamite
WWE

Triple H played the game better than anybody.

After a lengthy and divisive - but ultimately seminal - WWE career, Triple H transitioned into an executive role with the same expert timing and politicking that informed his main event run. He in part instigated the Montreal Screwjob, adjudging the landscape to come with a brutal, prodigious eye, and he knew exactly when to prise developmental from the grasp of John Laurinaitis. He said himself, ahead of WrestleMania XXVII, that "nobody in the back" but him was worthy of challenging the Undertaker's Streak. This blanket burial of 'Big Johnny's' entire management career brought his failure into focus.

His vision for NXT was so popular that it turned him from Internet boogeyman to the very saviour of professional wrestling. After some early, sub-main roster misfires, Trips endeared himself by positioning himself as Vince McMahon's antithesis. He recruited notable figures from the Independent scene and pushed them as the faces of WWE's idealised future: Neville, Sami Zayn and Finn Bálor's runs as NXT Champion fashioned the brand as the intersection between critical acclaim and big-time extravaganza. The stars you always wanted to see in WWE weren't merely in WWE; they were starring in it.

Triple H, musclebound office favourite, tore up the very same blueprint from which he prospered.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!