The Complete History of the WWE Championship - Part 9

Triple H (January 3, 2000 - April 30, 2000)

Triple H: Won his third WWE Championship on the January 3, 2000 Raw

Triple H had not quite garnered permanent headline status during his first two Championship reigns in late 1999.

"The Game" did not win the strap from Stone Cold Steve Austin at SummerSlam 1999, which would have been an immediate credibility builder. Instead, he won the belt from Mankind and lost it to his boss, Vince McMahon.

His second title win came in a six way, but was marred by the fact Austin stunnered him and left him laying immediately afterwards.

With Stone Cold on the bench from November 1999 onwards, "The Cerebral Assassin" began his march to permanent main event status unimpeded. He regained the strap from The Big Show clean in a title bout on Raw, before engaging on a terrific run of title defences.

His street fight with Mick Foley's other alter ego, Cactus Jack, was a major stature enhancer. In a highly violent classic, Triple H beat Cactus at his own game, earning the win with a Pedigree on thumb tacks, after absorbing all sorts of punishment himself - including a nasty gash to his calf and a huge cut to his forehead.

Triple H followed that performance up with another classic inside Hell in a Cell. This time, with Cactus Jack's career on the line, he survived another hardcore onslaught to defeat Cactus and end his career (for three weeks anyway).

"The Game" rewrote the record books when he became the first heel to win the main event of WrestleMania when he successfully defended the strap in a four way elimination bout versus The Rock, Mick Foley (who finally would retire post-match, for four years) and The Big Show at WrestleMania 200.

That set up a singles bout between the company's two biggest stars, Triple H and The Rock at Backlash 2000. Although "The Game" would not be successful on that occasion, his reign had been a glorious one and the Backlash encounter would be another superlative effort.