Without a doubt, The Game is one of the all-time greats in WWE history. Triple H is a 14-time world champion and whilst he is no longer a full-time competitor, he has certainly paved the way for many to follow in his footsteps.
However, Triple H is the son-law of WWE Chairman Vince McMahon which means he has a lot of stroke around the company. That was especially true during his nine-month reign as World Heavyweight Champion from December 2002-September 2003, with many top wrestlers suffered during The Game's reign of terror who could have benefitted from a title run during this time. In fact, HHH has won several feuds that he didn't need to.
10 CM Punk
CM Punk's meteoric rise to greatness was there for everyone to witness in 2011. The Second City Saint became the Undisputed WWE Champion at SummerSlam with Triple H as the special referee. However, Kevin Nash returned and assaulted Punk which allowed Alberto Del Rio to cash in his Money in the Bank briefcase. Ultimately, Del Rio stole the WWE Championship from Punk.
The Straight Edge Savior would turn his attention to The Game and they would engage in a short rivalry with both men as faces. There was no need for Triple H to gain a victory over Punk at Night of Champions. Nonetheless, Punk did not suffer from this loss but a huge win over Triple H would have looked even better on his resume.
9 Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam continued his rich vein of form in 2002 after being one of the hottest stars to come out of the Invasion angle. RVD had some exceptional battles with Eddie Guerrero, Chris Benoit, and Chris Jericho over the Intercontinental Championship. However, RVD was ready to go to the next level as he challenged Triple H for the World Heavyweight Championship at Unforgiven.
The problem for RVD was that The Game was just crowned as the new World Heavyweight Champion. Van Dam looked strong in this match, and the crowd was firmly behind him. Moreover, Ric Flair got involved by nailing RVD with a sledgehammer which allowed Triple H to retain the title.
8 Booker T
Mercifully, Triple H's horrendous feud with Scott Steiner came to an end at No Way Out, and The Game turned his attentions to WCW legend Booker T in 2003. Booker eliminated The Rock in a battle royal to compete for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania XIX.
It seemed inevitable that the five-time WCW Champion would hand The Game his just deserts at WrestleMania. Booker was subjected to racial slurs from Triple H and Ric Flair in the build-up to their match but once more Triple H's ego got the better of him as he beat Booker with a Pedigree, which would take Booker a few years to recover from.
7 Randy Orton
Arguably, Randy Orton was the standout superstar of 2004. The Legend Killer became the youngest World Heavyweight Champion at SummerSlam but Triple H was clearly jealous. Nonetheless, on the Raw after SummerSlam, The Game, Batista, and Ric Flair savagely assaulted Orton and kicked him out of Evolution.
Orton turned face and it was a perfect opportunity for him to retain the title at Unforgiven. Unfortunately, that did not materialize as The Game became a nine-time world champion. Triple H would continue to bury Orton at New Year's Revolution in the Elimination Chamber match and the 2005 Royal Rumble. Orton's face run immediately ran flat with Triple H defeating him comprehensively.
6 Umaga
2007 summed up Umaga's transition from a main eventer to a mid-carder. The Samoan Bulldozer's momentum was halted by two of the biggest stars in WWE history. John Cena ended his unbeaten run at the start of the year but Umaga failed to redeem himself in his feud with Triple H in the fall.
The Game successfully defended his newly won WWE Championship in his match with Umaga at No Mercy. Unfortunately, Umaga failed to bounce back in another soul-destroying loss in a Street Fight at Cyber Sunday. Umaga was never the same after losses, and he should have gone over Triple H to continue his push as a monster heel.
5 Chris Jericho
Triple H and Chris Jericho have a storied rivalry that dates back to 2000. Y2J "defeated" Triple H to win the WWF Championship but the decision was overturned. Moreover, The Game dominated Jericho in a sensational Last Man Standing match at Fully Loaded.
Two years later, The Game returned to the WWF and was pushed right to the top as he won the 2002 Royal Rumble. He dismantled Jericho in one of the worst WrestleMania main events at WrestleMania X8. Y2J's back luck against Triple H continued as he lost in a Hell in a Cell match at Judgment Day. Jericho deserved to be treated better in his feud with The Game but maybe because they disliked each other in the past, it had an impact on the outcome of their matches.
4 Shawn Michaels
Both Triple H and Shawn Michaels made their triumphant returns to WWE television in 2002 after lengthy injury lay-offs. The Game teased the reunion of DX but turned heel on HBK and they went on to have one of the best feuds in the Ruthless Aggression era. Shawn was victorious at SummerSlam and solidified his return by dethroning Triple H as the World Heavyweight Champion in the inaugural Elimination Chamber match at Survivor Series.
However, their rivalry became one-sided as The Game regained the title at Armageddon. The Cerebral Assassin continued to assert his dominance over HBK in 2004 with another strong victory in a Hell in a Cell match at Bad Blood.
3 Jeff Hardy
Jeff Hardy was destined for the main event scene in WWE as he upset Triple H at Armageddon 2007 to earn a shot at Randy Orton's WWE Championship at the 2008 Royal Rumble. However, Jeff and Triple H's feud would reignite when both men were drafted to Smackdown in 2008. The Game was now the WWE Champion and he did a good job as a babyface, instead of being a heel, a role more suited to The Game.
Their chemistry together was brilliant but The Cerebral Assassin always came out on top. Triple H retained the title in two exceptional bouts at No Mercy and Cyber Sunday. Furthermore, Edge's WWE Championship win at Survivor Series was clearly done so Hardy did not have to beat Triple H directly at Armageddon in a triple threat match. It was still a huge moment for Jeff but it would have been bigger if he had shocked Triple H in a one-on-one match.
2 Stone Cold Steve Austin
While Stone Cold Steve Austin was recovering from neck surgery in 2000, Triple H took over as one the faces of the company. The Game won multiple WWF Championships and ran roughshod with his wife Stephanie McMahon-Helmsley by his side. However, Stone Cold Steve Austin returned to in-ring action by October and was determined to find out who ran him over at the 1999 Survivor Series.
It was revealed to be Rikishi but Triple H was the mastermind. Their high profile showdown at Survivor Series ended as a no-contest but they clashed again at No Way Out 2001 in a Three Stages of Hell match. Surprisingly, The Game went over but Austin should have won this match, and take momentum into his WrestleMania X-Seven WWF Championship match with The Rock.
1 Goldberg
Goldberg finally joined the WWE, on the Raw after WrestleMania XIX in 2003. Goldberg made a statement by defeating The Rock at Backlash. However, Goldberg had his eyes on Triple H's World Heavyweight Championship.
At SummerSlam, Goldberg should have had his crowning moment by winning the title inside the Elimination Chamber match. Triple H went over but Goldberg finally ended The Game's lengthy nine-month reign as World Heavyweight Champion at Unforgiven. Unfortunately, they contested one of the worst main events in Survivor Series history with Goldberg coming out on top again with The Game nursing a groin injury. Nonetheless, Goldberg's momentum was unceremoniously ended at Armageddon, when Triple H regained the title in a triple threat match that featured Kane.