Triple H came into the WWF in mid-1995 as the snob from Greenwich Connecticut. He gained wins over undercarders like Doink the Clown and beat Bob Holly at SummerSlam in his pay per view wrestling debut. He went on to beat Fatu at the October IYH, and seemed stuck on the undercard for the rest of '95.
In the spring of 96, it was announced Hunter would be the opponent for the Ultimate Warrior at WrestleMania XII. The Warrior embarassed Helmsley and beat him at 1:38. Helmsley berated his valet for the night, Sable. As he did this, Todd Pettengill was interviewing newcomer Marc Mero, who took exception to Helmsley's treatment of Sable. A feud developed, and Mero beat Helmsley at IYH: Beware of Dog. Helmsley also dropped a first round King of the Ring match to Jake Roberts on Raw. Then a problem developed. Mr. Perfect Curt Hennig would come down to ringside and steal away Helmsley's valets. This made Hunter mad and he challenged Perfect to a match on Raw. Before the match, Hunter injured Perfect's knee, and Hennig's friend, Marc Mero volunteered to take his place. Helmsley said he would only wrestle him if he put his IC belt on the line. Mero said he would, and at the end of the match Perfect deliberately nailed Mero with a chair, and Hunter was the new IC Champ. Hunter and Perfect then revealed it had been a plot all along.
At IYH: It's Time, Hunter tried to get Marlena to accompany him, which enraged Goldust and Helmsley beat Goldust at the Royal Rumble. Then, as Goldust would have his matches, a huge woman would jump through the crowd and attack Marlena. It was later revealed she was in cahoots with Helmsley, and her name was Chyna. Helmsley lost the IC belt to rookie Rocky Maivia in an upset on Raw, and beat Goldust at WrestleMania XIII. He went through Crush, Ahmed Johnson, and Mankind to win the 1997 King of the Ring tournament.
He pedigreed Mankind through a table to win, and wrestled Mankind to a no-contest at IYH: Canadian Stampede, a match which spilled all over the arena, and outside of it! They wrestled in a steel cage match at SummerSlam, and Mankind beat Helmsley after elbowing him from the top of the cage. Supposedly to get even, Hunter and Chyna distracted Mankind during a bout with Shawn Michaels, allowing Rick Rude to hit him with a chair. We found out there was indeed an alliance, and DeGeneration X was born.
At IYH: D-generation X, Helmsley beat Sgt. Slaughter, who came out of retirement for the match. In a faux match on Raw, Shawn laid down and let Helmsley beat him for the European title.
A week later, Helmsley couldn't wrestle Owen Hart because of a knee injury, and couldn't defend the belt. In late January, Slaughter ordered Helmsley to defend his title, but Helmsley sent Goldust, who was dressed as Triple H, to wrestle Owen Hart. Owen won, and the Sarge said that since Goldust did such a good job portraying Helmsley, he was awarding the European title to Owen Hart. Helmsley won it back two weeks before WrestleMania, preying on Owen's injured ankle, and beat Owen with the Pedigree at WrestleMania XIV. Shawn dropped the title to Steve Austin that night, and the next night, Helmsley announced he was taking over DX, and introduced Sean Waltman, renamed X-pac.
"When you recruit for an army, you look to your family... you look to your blood... you look to the Kliq!"
Later that night, X-pac and Helmsley brought The New Age Outlaws into DX as well. At IYH: Unforgiven, Helmsley beat Owen Hart when X-pac nailed him with a fire extinguisher. The next night, Owen joined the Nation, and DX feuded with them, turning DX face! This feud has been escalating to new heights ever since after King of the Ring, when DX dressed up as the Nation. Triple H was "The Crock", Jason Sensation was Owen Hart, X-pac was "Mizark Henry", Jesse James was "B-Lo", and Billy Gunn was "The Gunnfather". D-Lo managed to beat Helmsley for the European Title on Raw. Helmsley faced the Rock at IYH: Fully Loaded and went to a time limit draw, but won the IC belt from him at SummerSlam in a ladder match. He injured his knee, however, and had to forfeit the belt. After a ceremony where he had to hand over the belt to new champion Ken Shamrock, Triple H was attacked by Shamrock furthering his knee injury.
Helmsley returned shortly before Rock Bottom, and did another impesonation with the rest of DX of the Corporation, reprising his role as "The Crock." He challenged The Rock to a title match, but won by DQ when Test made his debut and attacked Triple H. DX befriended Mankind, and supported him against The Corporation. Vince sanctioned a match between HHH and Mankind for a spot in the Royal Rumble. Triple H won with a fast count by referee Shane McMahon. Triple H said that he'd do anything to get the WWF Title, and gave McMahon the Pedigree and told Mankind "Happy New year. He's all yours." before leaving. HHH didn't win the Rumble, but got a shot at The Rock in an "I Quit" match the next night on Raw. As he was about to Pedigree him through a table, the rest of the Corporation came out and Kane threatened to chokeslam Chyna if HHH didn't say "I Quit." Triple H saved her by saying the words, and got into a staredown with Kane. Chyna then came from behind with the low blow on Triple H and hugged all the Corporation members.
Over the next few months, he and X-pac feuded with Chyna and Kane. Just before WrestleMania XV, Kane accidentally hit Chyna with a fireball. When she showed up for the HHH/Kane match at WMXV, she sided with Triple H, and they hugged after the match. Later that night, during the Shane McMahon/X-pac match, they made another appearance, helping Shane win and turning against DX. He beat X-pac at IYH: Backlash, and when the Corporation merged with the Corporate Ministry, he and The Undertaker became friends. They threw The Rock and Steve Austin off the ramp, setting up a HHH/Rock match at Over the Edge which Triple H lost by DQ. He started having problems with UT, but it all turned out to be a ruse, and he helped Undertaker beat The Rock at King of the Ring. He beat The Rock at Fully Loaded in a strap match and received a title match with Steve Austin at SummerSlam. However, he kept losing the spot: In a Triple Threat Match, he lost it to Chyna, who lost it to Mankind, who went to a no contest with HHH. Triple H and Mankind both got the spot and Mankind won the belt at SummerSlam, but lost it the next night to HHH. Triple H lost it to Vince McMahon after Austin interfered a few weeks later. McMahon put the belt up for grabs at Unforgiven in a Six Pack Challenge, which Triple H won. He successfully defended it against Austin at No Mercy, but lost it to The Big Show at Survivor Series in a Triple Threat Match. Before Survivor Series, he had reformed DX for his feud with McMahon. His feud with Vince grew more personal as HHH showed footage of him marrying a drugged Stephanie during Stephanie's wedding to Test. Vince and HHH wrestled at Armageddon. HHH won when Stephanie turned against her father, getting him back for having her abducted by The Undertaker earlier in the year. As a result of the match with Vince, HHH got a title shot at the Royal Rumble.
However, he gave himself the shot early and he beat The Big Show in early January for the title. Mankind made a turn into Cactus Jack to challenge HHH at the Royal Rumble but was unsuccessful. Jack asked for a rematch, and if he lost, he would retire. But it had to be in the Hell in a Cell. HHH agreed, and beat Jack in the Cell at No Way Out. There was a dispute over who would get the title match at WrestleMania between The Rock and the Big Show, so when Vince finally returned, he made it a Triple Threat Match. Linda McMahon then made it a Fatal Four Way, bringing back Mick Foley for one night only. A McMahon sided with each participant, but in the end, HHH walked out of WrestleMania with the title after Vince turned on the Rock and sided with Triple H. HHHH lost the belt to The Rock at Backlash, but won it back at Judgment Day in an Iron Man Match. The Undertaker and Kane returned soon after, and a six man tag was made for King of the Ring, with Rock, Kane, and Taker vs. HHH, Vince, and Shane. If anyone on the McMahon-Helmsley Faction's side lost, HHH would lose the title. The Rock ended up pinning Vince, and became the champion. HHH turned his attention to Chris Jericho, who made some comments about Stephanie. He beat him in a Last Man Standing Match at Fully Loaded. After that, he started to feel as though his wife's friendship with Kurt Angle was getting a little too friendly. They met, along with the Rock, in a Triple Threat Match at SummerSlam. The Rock won, but a brawl afterwards ended with Stephanie unconscious and leaving in the arms of Angle. HHH and Angle met at Unforgiven, with HHH winning when his wife chose him over Angle. HHH feuded with Chris Benoit after he headbutted Steph. He beat Benoit at No Mercy. He appeared to be helping Austin one night on Raw in a match against Rikishi and Angle, but HHH shocked everyone by hitting Austin with a sledgehammer and revealing himself to be the man behind the plot to have Stone Cold run over a year ago. They met at Survivor Series in a match that ended when Austin foiled an attempt by HHH to lure him into the parking lot to run him over again, only to have his car lifted into the air by a forklift and dropped. HHH lost a six man Hell in a Cell match at Armageddon in a match involving The Rock, Angle, Rikishi, Austin, and The Undertaker.
He got a title match with Angle at the Royal Rumble, but Austin intervened and cost him the match. Irate, Triple H agreed to a match at No Way Out, but Vince McMahon said that if Austin touched HHH after signing the contract, he would lose his WrestleMania title shot and if HHH did so, he would be suspended for six months. After weeks of mind games, HHH won the right to choose stipulations. He made it a Two Out of Three Falls match. However, the first fall would be a regular match, the second would be a streetfight, and the third a cage match. At No Way Out, Austin won the first fall and Triple H the second. With both exhausted, HHH squeaked out a victory in the cage. He took a week off and returned on Raw, bragging that no one in the company could beat him. The Undertaker took exception and challenged him to a match at WrestleMania. Undertaker won, but the bigger story of the night was Austin alligning with Vince McMahon. Triple H seemed to take offense, but helped Austin beat down the Rock the next night. Triple H won the Intercontinental Title from Jericho a couple of weeks later, but lost it to Jeff Hardy and then won it back again. He and Austin beat Undertaker and Kane for the tag team belts at Backlash. He took on Kane in a strap match at Judgement Day and lost the IC belt to him. The next night, they lost the tag belts to Chris Jericho and Chris Benoit. HHH sustained an injury that kept him out of the ring for months.
Triple H finally returned in January of 2002, but Kurt Angle interrupted his return. HHH won the Royal Rumble match after eliminating Angle, and began having problems with his wife Stephanie McMahon. She became increasingly manipulative, and when she faked being pregnant so Triple H would renew their wedding vows, HHH broke up with her. She responded by becoming the valet of WWF Champion Chris Jericho. HHH took the title from Jericho at WrestleMania X-8, and beat Jericho and Stephanie in a Triple Threat Match the next week to banish Stephanie from the WWF once and for all. The roster split occurred, but since HHH was the champion, he could appear on both shows. Hulk Hogan had just returned and earned a shot at the title at Backlash. HHH lost the title to Hogan after interference from Jericho and the Undertaker. Triple H was sent to Vince McMahon's Smackdown brand, and had problems with his soon to be former father-in-law. McMahon put him in a Hell in a Cell match with Jericho at Judgment Day, which Triple H won. HHH got back in the title hunt and challenged the Undertaker to a title match a King of the Ring. The Rock got involved and accidentally cost HHH the title match. When new General Managers were announced, Eric Bischoff to Raw and Stephanie McMahon for Smackdown, both tried to sign Triple H to their side. Triple H made his decision at Vengeance and was going to go with Stephanie, but Shawn Michaels came to the ring and convinced him to come with him to Raw. HHH agreed and made Shawn his manager. Michaels became angered at being called a manager, but HHH convinced him to take the job. On Raw, they came out wearing DX shirts, and started to do their old routine. However, HHH turned on Shawn and gave him a Pedigree. He explained his actions the next week, saying that he was the new Showstopper, the new Icon, and just like Shawn used him to stay at the top, he used Shawn to get to the top and now he had surpassed Shawn. He was interrupted and called to the parking lot, where Shawn had been brutally attacked and put through a car window. Triple H had a change of heart and vowed to find whoever did it. The next week, Shawn revealed some distorted footage from a security camera he had found and cleaned up, revealing Hunter as the culprit. HHH admitted it, and said he did it to prove that Shawn was weak. Shawn challenged HHH to a fight at SummerSlam, and HHH accepted. Bischoff said he wouldn't sanction it, so officially it never would have happened. Shawn beat HHH at SummerSlam, but HHH attacked him with a sledgehammer after the match, putting him in a wheelchair. The next night, he wrestled the Undertaker to determine who would get a shot at Brock Lesnar's Undisputed Title. Triple H won, but Brock left Raw, revealing that Stephanie had signed him to a contract to compete exclusively on Smackdown. Since he was the champion, that meant the title was once again disputed. Bischoff called Triple H out and gave him the former WCW Title, the World Title, since he was the number one contender before Brock left. Rob Van Dam won a Fatal Four Way to receive a shot at HHH's World Title at Unforgiven, but Triple H won when Ric Flair turned on RVD and became Triple H's advisor. Kane was the next to go after Triple H, but HHH revealed a secret about Kane's past, calling him a murderer. Kane confessed to having gotten drunk after a party one night and having an accident, killing a girl he was interested in. Triple H mocked him relentlessly, and managed to beat Kane at No Mercy. Shortly thereafter, Eric Bischoff announced that the main event of Survivor Series would be the first ever Elimination Chamber match for the World Title, with HHH defending against Chris Jericho, Kane, Rob Van Dam, Booker T and Shawn Michaels. HHH lasted until the end, but Shawn was able to beat him for the title. HHH sustained an injury in the match, but returned a couple of weeks later and won the belt back from Shawn at Armageddon.
HHH formed the group Evolution, along with Flair, Batista and Randy Orton. He was also confronted by Scott Steiner, who wanted a title shot. Evolution terrorized him for a few weeks, and HHH lost to him by DQ at the Royal Rumble. Batista and Orton both went out with injuries, but HHH managed to beat Steiner in a rematch at No Way Out. Booker T received a title shot at WrestleMania, with HHH getting the win. He was then confronted by his old friend Kevin Nash, who teamed with Booker and Shawn against HHH, Flair and Chris Jericho at Backlash. HHH got the pin over Nash after using a sledgehammer. Nash got his title shot at Judgment Day, but only managed to win by DQ.
Time to play the Game
Time to play The Game!
Hahahaha!
(Chorus)
It's all about The Game
And how you play it!
It's all about control
And if you can take it!
All about your debt
And if you can pay it!
It's all about pain
And who's gonna make it!
I am The Game
You don't wanna play me!
I am control
No way you can shake me
I am heavy debt
No way you can pay me
I am the pain
No way you can take me!
Look over your shoulder
Ready to run
Like a good little bitch
From a smoking gun
I am The Game
And I make the rules
So move on out
And you can die like a fool!
Try and figure out what my move's gonna be
Come on over, why don't you ask me?
Don't you forget there's a price you can pay
'Cause I am The Game and I want to play!
It's time to play The Game!
Hahahaha!
Time to play The Game!
(Chorus)
Play the Game
You're gonna be the same
You're gonna change your name
You're gonna die in flames!