World Wrestling Entertainment is in a new era. While corporate leadership is headed up by Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan, the on-screen wrestling product comes from the mindset of WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque. Following Vince McMahon’s retirement this past summer, Triple H assumed all creative responsibilities within WWE’s main roster and has slowly but surely shapedย Monday Night Raw and WWE SmackDown in his vision. This has been most abundantly clear by the recent wave of returning WWE superstars, most of which were considered “Triple H guys” when they worked under him in NXT.
The roster is not the only thing that Triple H is changing. WWE is re-assessing its premium live event schedule, refining its focus to be on bringing more stadium shows to international markets, the success of WWE Clash at the Castle and WWE Crown Jewel being driving forces for that decision. Reports have also circulated that WWE is trimming back on its “gimmick” shows, with WWE Hell in a Cell being left on the cutting room floor.
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Responding to a question from ComicBook.com’s Liam Crowley at the WWE Survivor Series press conference, Triple H addressed those rumors, noting that he sees the Hell in a Cell match specifically as a “giant blow-off” to a feud rather than something that’s a date on the calendar.
“Hell in a Cell stepping away, for me… I think there’s a lot of feeling that Hell in a Cell is one of those things that it’s a giant blow-off. If you’re calling somebody out at the end of something, you can challenge them to the Hell in a Cell,” Triple H said. “I hear this speculation among fans a lot, and all of you (reporters) as well: Hell in a Cell, Money in the Bank, Elimination Chamber. Maybe those things should all go away.”
Triple H continued by emphasizing the gimmick events do serve different and distinct purposes.
“No one is ever going to challenge somebody and go, ‘That’s it, I’m tired of you, I’m challenging you to an Elimination Chamber match with five other guys.’ It doesn’t work, right? Same thing, ‘That does it, I challenge you to Money in the Bank.’ Right? I feel like there’s a difference there,” Triple H continued. “I think we have to re-evaluate all of that. I think we have to look at that. It’s really looking at the overall calendar and saying what is the best place to put this? What is the best way to entertain our fans? What makes the most sense, one after the other?”
Regarding the future of the War Games match itself, Triple H added that it’s not necessarily glued to WWE Survivor Series as it could become a stipulation that shows up on other events.
“It’s up in the air, but I think it’s something we think about on a regular basis,” Triple H added.
WWE’s next premium live event, WWE Royal Rumble, goes down on January 28th, 2023.
