Triple H, the head of WWE creative, is trying to book the product as if he’s a fan.
After Vince McMahon retired on July 25, “The Game” was named as the head of WWE creative, and he has already implemented a number of changes, such as putting for focus on the mid-card titles and giving Riddle his first name back.
In an interview with Ariel Helwani of BT Sport, Triple H was asked about some of these changes and whether he’s been making a conscious effort to correct things that might have been upsetting some fans. He responded by noting that any adjustments he’s making come from the aim to do what works for him.
“I don’t look at anything and go like, ‘Well, I need to fix that,'” Triple H said. “To me, it’s just what works for me. And that’s really where it’s at. So I look at things a certain way, like to me, if I want to have the Intercontinental title mean something, then I need to make it mean something. And I am a big advocate of the past. I think sometimes when you live in the past, you don’t see it the way other people do that were outside looking in on the past. So when I look at some of that past stuff, I see it differently than anybody would then then maybe Vince would or the people that were there.
“I saw performers of that generation differently than Pat saw them. Because, you know, I would see somebody and go like ‘Oh, my God, he was amazing.’ Pat would be saying ‘He’s an idiot,’ you know, right? Because he knew that he knew the ins and the outs, he knew the day to day he knew what they were like to deal with and to work with. We talked about the chocolate and vanilla, if you’re making the ice cream, I don’t know, I’m just making ice cream I like and hopefully, everybody else likes that, too.”
He continued by describing how he has attempted to put himself in the fans’ shoes in his approach to his new role. He made it clear that Vince McMahon taught him to book the product like a fan, and that’s what he’s doing.
“I approach this, and Vince is the one that taught it to me, put yourself in the seats,” Triple H said. “You put yourself in the seat, you’re just a fan. Just book it like a fan, you’ll never go wrong. That’s what I’m doing. So it’s not a matter of, I need to change that, I need to fix this, this is wrong, I don’t like that, you know, this was done wrong.
“It’s not that. I just, in the moments as I’m going through this now, I think to myself, what seems right, like you mentioned the Matt Riddle thing, like, to me, it’s just, we’re going into this moment in time where this is super real, and they’re going to go and hit each other in this super real manner in these promos and get into it in a different way than we’ve traditionally done. He’s got a first name, feels like we should give him that first name. We’re going to go hyper real, you know, we should go hyper real on it, to bring the reality into it more.”
Triple H then focused on the notion that being a WWE Superstar is “more meaningful” than being a wrestler, something that McMahon was known for saying. He agreed and explained that many people can be a professional wrestler, but being a WWE Superstar is “a different level.”
“But yet still, I 100% agree that being a WWE superstar is more meaningful than being a pro wrestler,” Triple H said. “And that will rub a lot of people wrong, but, anybody can be a pro wrestler. There’s a guy in front of five people someplace right now, he’s pro wrestler. It’s like saying ‘I’m a cage fighter.’ I’ve been to a million gyms or through my career, and when MMA got big, every place we would go to, you know, you’d be working out and some guy would come up to you with a shaved head and tattoos, mostly tribal, and would, you know, talking to you, and you go ‘What do you do?’ ‘I’m a cage fighter.’ Okay. You know, the truth is, are you in the UFC? Right?
“That’s sort of the standard bearer, and I’m sure others get that. It’s not a knock, it’s just a different level. Anybody can play football, who plays in the NFL? It’s a different level. Anybody can wrestle, who makes it as a WWE superstar? It’s a different level.”
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