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00:00Because on the line, we have the World Heavyweight Champion, if I'm not mistaken.
00:03Triple H, are you there?
00:04I am here, Dr. Tom. How are you doing?
00:06Fantastic. Josh is sitting to my right, attempting to be the host about this.
00:11Attempting is the key word?
00:12Yes, sir.
00:12Most things you do is attempting.
00:14Yes, sir.
00:15How are you feeling? How is your overall health these days?
00:18My overall health is pretty good. I'm feeling good.
00:22You know, a little head trauma on Raw a couple weeks ago, but other than that, I feel great.
00:29You know, 100% is the best I've felt in a long time.
00:32So it's been nice to be injury-free for a few months.
00:36Very good.
00:37We've got Judgment Day, of course, this Sunday.
00:39So much going to happen on Judgment Day. It's such a great card from top to bottom.
00:42But, of course, we have your match, the World Heavyweight Championship.
00:44You go one-on-one with your former best friend, Kevin Nash.
00:47Can you give us your thoughts on this match?
00:49Yeah, I mean, you know, former best friend, but, you know, Kevin Nash came in here,
00:54I think, on his own agenda trying to put something together that really had no right to be put back
01:01together,
01:01which is the click, I guess.
01:03And we've all gone our separate ways, and that's business.
01:05The one thing I've learned in this industry is that business first, you know, and friendship later.
01:11And I try to tell that to Kevin, we could certainly get along, and we can certainly be friends,
01:17but it's got to be on my terms, because I'm the World Heavyweight Champion, and I'm the man.
01:22And, you know, he took exception to that, so we're where we're at now.
01:25You know, Kevin didn't want to take my word for it, so now I'm going to have to show him.
01:29I told him on, you know, on Raw that if he was with me, it was us against the world.
01:35If he was against me, he was part of the world that I was against,
01:38and now he's one of the people that I'm against in life, and this Sunday,
01:42he's going to find out what happens when you go up against a game.
01:45Well, Triple H, let me ask you this real quick.
01:48A lot of people on the Internet, a lot of people out there have been critical.
01:52There have been a lot of naysayers.
01:54There have been negative reports, articles, what have you.
01:59How do you respond to them, especially going into Judgment Day against a guy like Kevin Nash,
02:04who not a lot of people have been kind to as of late?
02:08When it comes to this, do you, do you, how do you react to your critics?
02:12Well, you know, when it comes to the critics, this match is kind of like the Antichrist versus the devil.
02:18Yeah.
02:18You know, but you know what, honestly, when it comes down to looking at the Internet
02:24and all the people that are on it, basically the Internet is basically just a forum
02:30for people to criticize anonymously.
02:32I don't take it worth anything.
02:36You know, as far as I'm concerned, and I don't mean to piss anybody off that's on ByteDust right now,
02:41but it's a bunch of 12-year-old kids giving their opinion about something they know absolutely nothing about.
02:45And that goes for the people that are heading up the columns, too.
02:50I'm supposed to take the criticism of some jack-off that's never stepped foot in the ring
02:54but has wanted to his whole life and is basically just a frustrated wannabe.
02:58Right.
02:59You know what I mean?
02:59And those opinions don't mean anything to me.
03:02They report about an industry they know nothing about.
03:06But Josh just turned 13, by the way, so he's no longer 12.
03:10Yeah, well, you know, once puberty hits, then you can start, you know,
03:14expressing your opinion better.
03:15And Josh, you're almost there.
03:16Close.
03:17I'll be there hopefully pretty soon.
03:19Brock, Triple H, going back to Judgment Day,
03:22how do you feel about the Intercontinental title coming back
03:24and, you know, having this battle royal for it this Sunday at Judgment Day?
03:27I think it's great.
03:28I think that the Intercontinental title has always been a figurehead, so to speak,
03:34or a marking stone, so to speak, of this industry.
03:41It's been a very important title.
03:43If you look back over the history, I had some of the greatest names in this industry
03:47have held that title.
03:48And I think that at the time it made sense to get rid of the title just to, you know,
03:55as the brands went their separate ways, it allowed for less confusion
04:01and, you know, more direct focus on things.
04:05But I think now that, you know, the brands are standing on their own
04:13and are solid on their own, I think that it's time to bring that back,
04:16and it's a very important title.
04:19You know, some people say it's a stepping stone, but I don't even know if it's that.
04:23I think it's its own platform.
04:25I think some of the greatest matches in the history of this business
04:28have been fought over the Intercontinental title.
04:30You know, when you look back and you look at WrestleMania X
04:33and you think Shawn Michaels versus Razor Ramon,
04:35one of the greatest matches ever in a ladder match,
04:37and, you know, that was over the Intercontinental title.
04:40Yeah.
04:41But speaking of Shawn Michaels,
04:44what do you think about his partition back now in the World Wrestling Entertainment?
04:49Do you like the fact that Shawn is back and offering his two cents, so to speak?
04:56I like the fact that Shawn is back as long as he stays out of my way.
05:00Right.
05:00You know, but I think that, you know, all grievances aside with Shawn Michaels,
05:07he's one of the greatest athletes to ever step foot in the ring,
05:10probably the best pure athlete, I think, ever in the business,
05:14and, you know, he's one of the all-time greats.
05:17So to have Shawn around in any form or fashion,
05:22whether you agree with him or you don't agree with him,
05:24I think is great for the business.
05:25It's great for the young guys that are coming up and that are trying to learn
05:30to look at a Shawn Michaels,
05:31who I still consider to be one of the greatest performers in our industry today.
05:35You know, there's not very many guys in the world that could come back
05:38after a five-year layoff and perform better than almost anybody in the industry.
05:43And, you know, Shawn did that.
05:45Shawn has proven time and time again how good he is,
05:48and even on his limited schedule.
05:50And, you know, hopefully he can do that for a longer period.
05:55of time, but I think that as a little or, you know,
06:00if Shawn is around, it's a good thing for business in general.
06:04Well, Shawn, a question outside of the ring.
06:06What other projects are you involved in right now?
06:08I mean, I know there was talks of a workout book or a video or something like that.
06:13Yeah, I'm in the process right now of putting together kind of a training book
06:18that will come out hopefully for Christmas.
06:22And it's basically going to be a how-to workout book,
06:27kind of tell you what I did.
06:28I've been training since I was 14,
06:30so it's going to kind of tell you what I go through training
06:33and what I would recommend for people, you know,
06:36trying to get into weight training and trying to get in shape.
06:40But it's also going to be a bit biographical.
06:42It's going to tell you about my career, you know, places I've been,
06:46things I've done, things like that.
06:48But it's not going to be too much in-depth into that.
06:50It's going to be more of a training manual and a workout book.
06:54Because I feel like it's one of the questions I get asked the most, you know,
06:59outside of just strict wrestling questions is, you know,
07:03I get so many young guys come up to me and say, you know,
07:06how can I get bigger, how can I get my arms bigger, you know,
07:09how many days a week do you train, things like that,
07:12that I wanted to kind of help those people out and give back in that sense
07:16what somebody gave to me at one time, you know.
07:19Because at one time I was the 14-year-old kid at the gym
07:21trying to ask everybody what to do to get bigger, you know.
07:25Right.
07:25Now, Josh is the 13-year-old kid trying to get bigger.
07:29What do you tell the younger superstars today backstage who are looking to you
07:37for advice, the guidance to make it in the business today?
07:41I mean, are you, obviously you're a leader back in the locker room as well.
07:46What kind of advice could you give the up-and-coming superstars?
07:50I think it's, you know, try to be more of an all-around performer
07:58as opposed to, you know, we have a lot of guys that want to go out
08:01and just be, do flashy moves, you know.
08:06We have a lot of guys that are all the same.
08:08Do something to make yourself stand out.
08:10Be larger than life, you know.
08:12Don't be one of the same as everybody else.
08:16I think that's one of the things that are missing in our business
08:18is characters, and I don't mean that from a writing standpoint
08:22because I believe, you know, from a writing they can only do so much,
08:27but I mean pure characters as they were in the business 10, 10, 12 years ago,
08:32and I think making yourself larger than life
08:34and then learning the fundamentals of the business, I think,
08:37is something that is so overlooked.
08:40I see so many guys that, you know, go to the ring and can do a moonsault
08:45or some kind of flip over the top rope, but ask them to grab a top wrist lock
08:49and they look like you've got two heads.
08:51They don't even know what that is.
08:52Right.
08:53And when you don't have the fundamentals of the business, you know,
08:59it's, you know, to me you're just kind of spinning your wheels.
09:02It's like having a nice car, but the engine can't really go, you know.
09:06And I think for most of our young guys,
09:09it's learn the fundamentals of the business.
09:11Don't worry so much about who can do the highest flip
09:14or who can take the prettiest bump or who can do the biggest thing.
09:19You know, leave that up to the Internet kids
09:22to determine who does the prettiest moonsault
09:25because that's all they care about.
09:27And then if you learn how to work,
09:29you'll be the guy that's making money for the company
09:31and drawing fans to the arenas, not just the guy that does flips.
09:36That's a great point.
09:38Let's go to the phones now.
09:39Here on Bite This, let's go to CJ calling from Tennessee.
09:42CJ, you're on the phone with Triple H.
09:44Oh, hi, Triple H.
09:46How you doing?
09:47Oh, I'm fine.
09:48I just love you to death.
09:50Well, of course you do.
09:51You are the most wonderful wrestler in the whole world.
09:54And I missed you when you were gone the whole year.
09:56I wrote you a poem and sent it to you.
09:59Well, thank you very much.
10:00I'm sure I got it, and I'm sure it was lovely.
10:02I think you're just wonderful, and I can't wait.
10:04I hope you do come back to Chattanooga so that I can see you.
10:08CJ, you sound like you're getting very excited.
10:10Oh, I am.
10:11I am.
10:11I'm a big wrestling fan, but I've just been a big fan of yours ever since you first started.
10:17And I just, you know, excited to be talking to you.
10:22Did you have a question?
10:23Did you have a question, or did you just want to sit by the phone, scantily clad?
10:27I just wanted to say hello to you, and I wanted to congratulate you on your engagement to Stephanie.
10:33She's a very lucky girl, and I hope the two of you last forever.
10:39Well, thank you.
10:39And my question is, do you ever worry about your knee, and are you going to get over this problem
10:45with it
10:46so that I don't have to worry about you getting hurt as much?
10:48I think the problem with my knee is pretty much behind me.
10:52You know, in this business, nothing is ever 100% safe.
10:56You know, I mean, you train as best you can.
10:59And I feel like my knee is, you know, as good as it's ever going to be right now.
11:04I don't have any problems with it.
11:06I don't feel like I favor it.
11:10You know, I feel like I'm about as good as I'm going to get with it.
11:13It took me a long time.
11:14It took me probably close to a year to get to where I felt really comfortable on it.
11:18But I do now, and I don't think re-injuring it is a factor now.
11:23Very good.
11:24Let's go back to the phone.
11:25We've got Brock from Philly.
11:26Brock, you're on with Triple H.
11:28Is this Brock Lesnar?
11:31Brock?
11:31Hello.
11:33Hey, good call, guys.
11:34It must be Brock.
11:35You can't get a syllable out.
11:37Oh, very nice.
11:38Yeah.
11:39Triple H, I asked Brock just a minute ago when he called in.
11:43How would you feel about maybe unifying the titles again
11:48and having one champion wrestle on Raw and SmackDown?
11:52Well, I mean, I think he could do it.
11:55I don't necessarily think that it's the best.
11:58I think that having things the way they are now down the line leads you to the big Super Bowl
12:03match if it ever takes place between the two competing groups.
12:12I don't think one champion is that big of a deal.
12:15I think it's better for the fans to have in their mind what would happen if.
12:22And I think it's good to keep it that way, you know, especially since a lot of people don't like
12:28me
12:28and I would just go in and slap Brock Lesnar around and take the title off him.
12:32You know, it would probably make a lot of people angry.
12:34Perhaps.
12:35Let's try Brock again from Philly here on the telephone.
12:38Brock, are you there?
12:39I'm here now.
12:39All right, you got a question for Triple H?
12:41Do I ever.
12:42First of all, Dr. Tom, I was the guy who won your 101 Wrestlers Names contest.
12:46Just wanted to put that out first.
12:47Did you get the book?
12:49No, I got tickets to Raw.
12:50Oh, great.
12:51Where I saw Triple H.
12:52Triple H, you're awesome, man.
12:53Thank you very much.
12:54Yes, I know you care what I think.
12:56But anyway.
12:57Actually, I do if you like me.
12:59It sounds good.
13:00What was that?
13:01I have a question, but I want to get on your bad side.
13:04That's all right.
13:04Okay.
13:05Because I read the Internet and like every other 12-year-old.
13:09But I was wondering if you really do sit in on the booking meeting
13:13and if you think that is a conflict of interest.
13:15No, I don't sit in.
13:17You know, people think it's just like a little group session
13:21where everybody sits down together at a particular time
13:24and decides the fate of the business.
13:26And I'm there, you know, telling people what to do.
13:29You've got to understand something.
13:31There are ideas thrown around 24 hours a day,
13:34seven days a week in our business.
13:37Sometimes I'm around when those ideas are thrown around.
13:39Sometimes I'm not.
13:40Sometimes those ideas come from me.
13:42I do go to a lot of meetings, you know, production-wise at the shows,
13:46but other talents are allowed to do that, too.
13:49You know, I'm singled out as the only guy that does it,
13:52but Austin's in there.
13:53Sometimes Shawn Michaels is in there.
13:54You know, Jericho's been in there.
13:56Angle's been in there.
13:57You know, I'm just a guy that does it more frequently, probably.
14:01But the bottom line is that everybody has to understand,
14:05this is Vince McMahon's company.
14:07And Vince McMahon's sole goal in life is to make this company
14:10as profitable and as successful as possible.
14:14And I don't care if that means who he has to tell they're wrong.
14:19It doesn't matter to him.
14:20You know what I mean?
14:21And that's all.
14:22What everybody fails to see is that we're all just trying to make the business better.
14:27We're all trying to improve the product.
14:30And, you know, if people want to believe I'm the Antichrist
14:33and I run this and I run that and I ruin the business, that's fine.
14:37I could care less what they think.
14:38You know, I know what I do.
14:40I know why I do it.
14:41And I know the benefits and the detractions to that.
14:44And if anybody has a problem with it, that's just too bad.
14:47Heck, Dr. Tom, for which even I'm in the production meetings.
14:50Yeah.
14:50Yeah, exactly.
14:52I think that's a point you're trying to make.
14:53Well, somebody's got to get the drinks.
14:54Right.
14:55That's right.
14:56My coffee was a little cold last time, too.
14:58All right.
14:59Very good.
15:00Thanks a lot, Dr. Tom.
15:02Well, Triple H, we'll let you get back to enjoying your weekend.
15:05Hey, thanks.
15:05And we'll see you Sunday for Judgment Day, big match, World Heavyweight Championship,
15:09Triple H was one-on-one with Kevin Nash.
15:12Can't wait to see it.
15:13Yeah, you know, I can't wait Sunday.
15:15You know, we're going to be in Charlotte, Nature Boy's backyard,
15:18so that ought to be interesting.
15:20And, you know, Kevin and Nash and I, we've been around each other in this business for a long time,
15:26and this is kind of our first head-to-head encounter, and it should be a good one.
15:32Absolutely.
15:33Very good.
15:33Well, best of luck to you and stay healthy.
15:35Thanks, guys.
15:35See you, Triple H.
15:36All right.
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