In May 2001, Triple H suffered one of the most devastating injuries that a professional athlete could experience: a complete tear of his left quadriceps muscle. The damage occurred half through a World Tag Team Championship match, with The Game continuing the match despite excruciating pain. After an over 8-month hiatus to have surgery and rehab, Triple H would return to WWE inside The World’s Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden.
The King of King’s triumphant return to MSG has etched its place in history as one of the greatest returns in professional wrestling history, as the WWE Universe welcomed Triple H back like a conquering hero. The moment has been referenced, reflected, and spoken about in countless mediums, with AEW’s MJF even referencing it in his return to All Elite Wrestling this past May.
This past Friday’s edition of WWE SmackDown saw Triple H return to Madison Square Garden again, this time in a much different capacity, as the company’s Chief Content Officer. Despite the turn taking place over 20 years ago, the moment’s significance still sticks with The Game, as he spoke about in a recent post on X.
In the short clip, WWE’s CCO recalled his grueling road to recovery, his anxiety about the fans’ reaction to him, and some wise words he received from WWE Hall of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin.
“I remember being two segments out, from me coming out, and [Steve] Austin came up to me…’I know what this is like. You’re thinking no one is going to give a sh*t right?’ and I said ‘that has crossed my mind’ and he said ‘yeah man, I went through the same thing. You know, when I broke my neck…what if your music hits and it’s crickets’. He talked to me about it.”
“Stone Cold” Steve Austin suffered a significant injury during SummerSlam 1997 when Austin took on Owen Hart for the Intercontinental Championship when a miscalculated piledriver caused Austin to become temporarily paralyzed. Austin would be plagued with neck issues for the entirety of his full-time WWE run, eventually leading him to retire at 38 years old from in-ring competition.
Triple H would later describe how it felt to hear the crowd’s reaction when his music hit. Stating how that moment was “10x more than anything I could have ever dreamed of. If all of it had been for that one moment, it would have been worth it.”
WWE SmackDoxwn (6/28) Saw The Bloodline Kick Out Paul Heyman
In a shocking turn of events, The Bloodline’s Acknowledgment ceremony turned into a vicious beatdown, as Solo Sikoa ordered the rest of the group to attack The Wise Man Paul Heyman. The New York native found himself being smashed through an announce table as the show closed out.
Heyman refused to acknowledge Solo Sikoa as the true Tribal Chief, sparking a brutal assault on The Godfather of Extreme. Later, Paul Heyman was taken out of MSG in an ambulance, leaving the WWE Universe wondering what comes next for the self-proclaimed tribal chief and the rest of The Bloodline.