Why Triple H Betrayed Seth Rollins In WWE, Explained
Seth Rollins is one of the top stars in wrestling today. He’s that rare star whom hardcore fans identify as one of the best in the world at his craft who has also enjoyed a steady push from WWE, including world title victories and other accolades. His career on screen has been largely intertwined with Triple H, from them being positioned as rivals, to close allies, to enemies once again after The Game betrayed him, for a heated storyline that culminated in a featured match at WrestleMania 33. From a distance of over six years, it’s interesting look back now on how they had their storyline falling out and what it meant for Rollins as a character.
The Storyline Alliance Between Triple H And Seth Rollins
Seth Rollins was one third of the iconic Shield faction that thrived as a unit of up and comers. The apex of their original run saw the trio defeat a reunited Evolution group of established main eventers, Randy Orton, Batista, and their leader Triple H. One night after sweeping an Extreme Rules elimination match, The Shield fell apart when Rollins turned on his comrades on WWE Raw. In doing so, Rollins became the new focal point of The Game’s Authority faction.
Related: 10 Things Fans Should Know About WWE's The AuthorityThe kayfabe alliance between Triple H and Rollins was layered. On one hand, Triple H effectively won the war against The Shield by prying them apart and took control of the young Architect by taking him under his wing. For Rollins, siding with The Authority meant having both the heel authority figures of the day and a faction of villains behind him, which paid dividends in a run as Mr. Money in the Bank, a WWE Championship win at WrestleMania, and a half-year run as world champion.
Why Triple H Turned On Seth Rollins
Seth Rollins missed the first half of 2016 due to injury. He looked to pick up where he left off as a heel, winning the WWE Championship back (if only for seconds before Dean Ambrose cashed in Money in the Bank on him), and then competing for the Universal Championship.
Rollins failed to become the inaugural Universal Champion when he fell to Finn Balor at SummerSlam 2014. Balor was injured during the match, though, and immediately had to forfeit the title, leaving the door open for Rollins to still snag it. Rollins had that opportunity in a Fatal Fourway match on Raw, only for Triple H himself to intercede. The Game helped Rollins dispatch of Roman Reigns, but then turned on his protégé, nailing him with a Pedigree, and all but handing the match and the title to Kevin Owens.
Triple H never explicitly explained his storyline motivations, though based on what had happened up to that moment and bits and pieces of The Cerebral Assassin's promos to follow, fans were able to piece together reasonable theories. The prevailing logic was that Helmsley saw Rollins as weak for getting injured in late 2015, and as a failure for not being able to beat Balor at SummerSlam. So, Triple H gave up on him, and hurt him for wasting his time.
Triple H Vs. Seth Rollins At WWE WrestleMania 33
Seth Rollins and Triple H had a heated feud in early 2017 that included The Game bringing in Samoa Joe as a mercenary of sorts to handle The Architect for a time. Finally, though, Rollins got what he wanted in the form of a WrestleMania match with his former mentor.
Indeed, some fans theorized Triple H vs. Seth Rollins may have been the plan for WrestleMania 32 if Rollins hadn’t been injured. Regardless, the situation panned out well enough for them to have a featured bout in 2017. While some fans found the match plodding, others readily called it one of the best matches of that year’s WrestleMania. Regardless of how spectators felt about the match itself, though, it marked a milestone for Rollins as he became the last man to ever defeat Triple H one-on-one at a WrestleMania.
The Real-Life Bond Between Triple H And Seth Rollins
Like many great things in wrestling, The Shield has a number of individuals who take credit for it. CM Punk has laid claim to pitching the idea, and Triple H implicitly has to some extent, too. Whoever had the original idea or the biggest role in getting Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose, and Roman Reigns into a position to succeed, there’s no question that the concept did work and set up three fresh main event talents.
Related: Is The Shield The Most Successful Star-Making Stable In Wrestling History?Between Triple H’s roles in managing WWE’s developmental system and talent relations, he has to get some credit for at minimum giving The Shield guys--and particularly Rollins--key opportunities to thrive in WWE. The Road Dogg explained on an episode of The Wrestling Outlaws (h/t Sportskeeda) that Rollins “and Hunter had a special relationship from NXT, from the beginning.” Indeed, there’s a famous photo of Triple H and Dusty Rhodes celebrating with Rollins after he won the very first NXT Championship, as an early vote of faith that clearly carried through across the decade to follow.
This summer, Triple H took charge of WWE creative and interestingly enough seemed to have an early clash with Seth Rollins when The Game took the match between Rollins and Matt Riddle off the card for SummerSlam. It’s telling that when Rollins spoke out against the choice on Twitter, Triple H didn’t treat as insubordination, but rather publicly reassured The King Slayer that he heard him.
It's clearly Helmsley respects Rollins and maybe even sees a bit of himself in the contemporary star.
