Even though wrestlers spend their entire careers, and often the majority of their lives, with the same group of people, most of them will tell you that they can count their close friends on one hand. It's not a surprise really, and no different to any other walk of life. You might need to be wired a certain way to be a professional wrestler, but that doesn't mean the locker room isn't filled with a multitude of different personality types.

For the most part, though, it is plain to see which stars get along and which ones don't. Perhaps one of the most famous friendship pairings is that of Shawn Michaels and Triple H. It began in the mid-1990s when The Game made the jump from WCW to WWE and it continues today. The two of them have enjoyed an extremely bumpy ride over the past two decades or more but remain good friends. During that time they have been best friends, fierce competitors, bitter enemies, and multiple time World Champions, and some of those weren't strictly restricted to the ring.

The tale of HBK and Triple H's friendship is a fascinating one, and here are fifteen things about it that you probably didn't already know.

15 Shawn Michaels Took Triple H's Spot At WrestleMania 23

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One of Shawn Michaels' many nicknames is Mr. WrestleMania, and rightly so. The Heartbreak Kid has had some incredible, memorable, and historical matches on The Grandest Stage Of Them All. From his iconic ladder match with Razor Ramon at WrestleMania X to his two final matches at The Show Of Shows against The Undertaker. Two other men who have also made a lot of history at WrestleMania are Triple H and John Cena. In fact, at WrestleMania 22 Big Match John and The Game went one on one for the WWE Championship. The match went down so well that Vince McMahon wanted to do it again a year later, once again at WrestleMania.

Unfortunately, an injury threw a spanner in the works. Triple H tore his quad and was put out of action for the better part of a year. That meant WWE needed a replacement and who better than the man labeled Mr. WrestleMania, The King of Kings' good friend Shawn Michaels? Not only did the match make for an incredible headline bout, but it was also a dream match that many fans never thought they would see. Two top Superstars from different generations clashing on the biggest stage.

14 Shawn Michaels Came Up With The Name Triple H

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Triple H has been in the business for so long that it is hard to imagine him as anything or anyone else. The Game began his career in the early 1990s and will likely remain in the industry for the rest of his life. Believe or not, and we know this will come as something of a shock, his real name is not Triple H. That isn't what his parents named him nor is it the name he went through high school with. In fact, it wasn't even the name he started his wrestling career with. While competing he has gone by his real name, Paul Levesque, the awfully thought out Terra Ryzing in WCW, and of course Hunter Hearst Helmsley.

If you know what the Hs stand for then you will obviously know why he is called Triple H.

That seemingly straightforward nickname, and the one he has now used for two decades, didn't come straight away even though it was staring everyone in the face. It was actually his good friend Shawn Michaels that started calling him that behind the scenes. Vince McMahon didn't like it at first but clearly, the name grew on him and the rest is history.

13 Shawn Michaels Is Partly Responsible For Triple H Coming To WWE

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Even though Triple H and Shawn Michaels give off the impression that they have known each other their entire lives, there was obviously a time when they had never actually met. HBK was already well established in WWE long before The Game ever showed up. He had a top tag team career alongside Marty Jannetty, stole the show at many WrestleManias, and had become one of WWE's top guys. Meanwhile, The Game was trying to make a name for himself in WCW as a couple of the names mentioned in the previous entry. Although they hadn't met, Michaels knew who Triple H was and would play an important role in his future.

He and other members of The Kliq would watch WCW and admired the young Kingslayer's in-ring ability. In fact, they loved it so much that they went to Vince McMahon and pushed him to hire Terra Ryzing, or Paul Levesque, or whatever persona he was portraying at that particular point in time. Clearly that pressing worked as Mr. McMahon eventually did hire The Game. Michaels and The Kliq didn't leave it there of course, and as soon as Triple H arrived they took him under their collective wing.

12 Shawn Michaels Did Not Want To Bring Back DX

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Triple H and Shawn Michaels are responsible for an almost endless amount of incredible ideas and moments across WWE history, both as singles stars and as a tandem. When it comes to the latter, their lasting impression on the company will undoubtedly be D-Generation X. Throughout the latter half of the 1990s, when DX was in its original form, the two of them portrayed anti-authority troublemakers and fans watching at the time simply couldn't get enough of them. Then in 1998, Michaels suffered a serious back injury and was forced to retire, not knowing at the time that he would return four years later. DX carried on in his absence with a litany of new members, but eventually, it fizzled out.

In 2006, when Michaels had been back four years, The Game brought up bringing back DX. Although it eventually happened, HBK was apparently dead against it to begin with. Not only were he and Triple H a lot older but Michaels was a changed man. He had found God and even though the person he had portrayed during DX's original incarnation was probably close to his real persona, it wasn't any longer. Somehow Triple H talked him into it though.

11 Neither Of Them Wanted Goldberg In The WWE Hall Of Fame

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Earlier this year Goldberg was inducted into the WWE Hall Of Fame. The discussion surrounding who should and shouldn't get in is often a heated one among fans and executives alike. There are names who are yet to make it in and it's unclear why, and there are also wrestlers already in there whose inductions have left many fans scratching their heads. With Goldberg, for the most part, no one seemed to think he wasn't deserving of the honour, having just revitalized his legacy with a great run. That wasn't the case in 2010, however. In separate interviews, both Triple H and Shawn Michaels discussed why they didn't think Goldberg would be a deserving Hall Of Famer.

The Game claimed that if there was a rumour about the former WCW Champion going in, then he must have started it himself.

At the time Bruno Sammartino hadn't been inducted, and Triple H named The Living Legend as someone more worthy than Goldberg. HBK's comments were even harsher than his friend's. Michaels claimed that Goldberg was "not even in the ballpark" when it came to a potential HOF induction. He went on to say that to warrant a place among pro wrestling's elite, you need to demonstrate longevity.

10 Triple H Helped Shawn Michales Make It To WrestleMania XIV

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A little earlier in this article, we briefly mentioned the injury that led to Shawn Michaels' first retirement. It happened during a casket match against The Undertaker at Royal Rumble 1998. HBK was launched over the ropes by The Deadman, however, he didn't quite clear the casket outside, painfully catching the base of his back on it. Despite the injuries that HBK suffered, he was determined to make it to WrestleMania XIV so that he could defend his WWE Championship against the legendary Stone Cold Steve Austin.

It was supposed to be a passing of the torch moment, akin to the one that had happened between Michaels and Bret Hart two years prior, and even though it was, it didn't turn out to be the match that it should have been. It was okay, but not the dream match fans would have wanted. In reality, they should count themselves lucky that it happened at all. Michaels had already been spiralling out of control due to personal problems that were affecting his behaviour, add in the back problems and he was a real handful. Triple H helped him get to WrestleMania, and apparently even helped dress him for the match with Austin.

9 Shawn Michaels Let Triple H And WWE Down At WrestleMania X-Seven

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Even though Shawn Michaels was forced to retire after WrestleMania XIV due to his back injuries, he didn't disappear from WWE altogether. The former WWE Champion continued to make appearances and even had a run as the promotion's on-screen commissioner. The trouble was he was still the same old, trouble-making and problematic Shawn that he was before he retired. Now though he didn't have his good friend Triple H to keep him in check. The bad behaviour and poor decisions continued and got out of hand.

Fast forward three years and we arrive at WrestleMania X-Seven. To this day the event is considered by many to be one of the best and most stacked PPV in WWE history, if not the best. Believe it or not though, it was supposed to be even bigger. WWE had ideas to bring Michaels in and include him on the show somehow. Those plans quickly fell through when HBK showed up for a meeting barely able to speak because of the amount he had consumed, impairing him to the point he wasn't fit to fight. At that time he had a confrontation with The Game, things were said, and the two of them didn't speak for over a year.

8 The Call That Brought Them Back Together

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Some strong words were apparently said between Shawn Michaels and Triple H when they ran into each other prior to WrestleMania X-Seven, things that would have warranted them never speaking to one another ever again. It was during those twelve months, however, that HBK turned his life around. Clearly, whatever his former best friend had said to him while he was in a semi-comatose state had hit close to home. On top of that, HBK now had a wife and child.

If you can't give up all the substances and become a better person when you have a family to think of, well it's probably never going to happen. As is evidenced from how he is years later, it was at this time Michaels found God, so a pretty stark turn around from the man he had been throughout most of the 1990s. If he had returned to WWE then and there he would have likely been unrecognizable. Triple H and HBK's mutual friend Kevin Nash was the one who got the friends back together, convincing the latter that he needed to call the former and mend those fences. Apparently, it led to a lot of tears over the phone.

7 The Comeback Match That Sparked Eight More Years

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There are so many wrestlers who leave the business while fans think they still have more to give. The WWE Universe still thinks that of Shawn Michaels today, so imagine how everybody felt when he first retired 20 years ago. Thankfully, a few things in his life convinced him that he was not done, namely the phone call with Triple H detailed above and the fact that he had become a new man. Michaels didn't want a long run though. It sounds as if The Game had twisted his arm and HBK finally agreed to have one more match, at SummerSlam 2002.

There was just one condition for this to happen, that the match was against the only man he trusted not to hurt him at the time, his friend The Game.

Unsurprisingly, the match was an instant classic. 30 minutes of two best friends going back and forth, reminding everybody that Michaels is probably the best in-ring performer of all time. Mr. WrestleMania simply couldn't leave it at that, and he would go on to wrestle for eight more years. Many fans would argue that the second run after his first retirement turned out to be even better than his first.

6 D-Generation X Got Raw In A Lot Of Trouble

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The Attitude Era towards the end of the 1990s effectively saved WWE. Vince McMahon and his promotion were up against the ropes as WCW began to dominate and win the Monday night ratings war. Something needed to change. That change came in the form of a much racier product aimed at an older demographic. It featured more violence, more risky language, and more scantily clad women. Quite a few Superstars had big roles to play in this new WWE, and two wrestlers who led the way were Triple H and Shawn Michaels.

As D-Generation X, the two best friends would push the envelope each and every Monday night on Raw. The USA Network began to receive complaints as parents who viewed wrestling as a family show weren't happy with their kids watching men perform crotch chops while saying and doing extremely suggestive and charged things. Somehow the two of them convinced Vince McMahon to let them respond to the complaints, and they did so via a public "apology" that was peppered with foul language. The bad words were bleeped out when shown on TV of course, but it likely still ruffled some feathers. With WWE being extremely family friendly these days, we doubt Vince would let the same behaviour fly now.

5 Stephanie McMahon Thought They Were More Than Friends

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There are a number of pro wrestling couples in WWE, right now and even more throughout history. Some iconic ones include Randy Savage and Miss Elizabeth, Matt Hardy and Lita, and also Edge and Beth Phoenix. However, there has been no power couple quite like Triple H and Stephanie McMahon. The two of them were put together for on-screen purposes during the Attitude Era and it didn't take long for them to develop real-life feelings for each other. In fact, one day the two of them will likely be running WWE as husband and wife sooner than we might think.

In an interview from a few years ago, Stephanie was asked about her first memories of the man that she would one day come to marry. The Billion Dollar Princess recalled watching him and HBK on Raw while she was still at college. What was interesting about this revelation is that Stephanie added that she thought the DX members were a little more than friends. That's right, McMahon's first impression of the father of her children was that he was in an actual relationship (more than friends) with one of the greatest wrestlers of all time. They're close, Stephanie, but not that close.

4 Stephanie Calls Shawn When Triple H Needs Calming Down

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There are a handful of personalities in the wrestling business who are labeled as being busier than anyone else. Well, Triple H may actually be the busiest person in wrestling. It's a minor miracle that The Game manages to spin as many plates as he does. The fourteen-time World Champion is the Executive Vice President of WWE, runs NXT, has a wife and three daughters, travels the world looking for potential new Superstars, recently took the reigns of 205 Live, and somehow manages to still wrestle from time to time too. He may not show it when he's on camera, but The King of Kings must be extremely stressed a lot of the time.

That's why it would be completely understandable if he loses his cool every now and again, and apparently, when that does happen, there is only one person who can calm him down, and that is his friend Shawn Michaels. Both Stephanie McMahon and HBK have confirmed that the former calls the latter and asks him to come over when The Game is stressed to breaking point and needs someone to air his grievances to. Clearly, sometimes a guy just needs his best buddy to bounce ideas off of.

3 Triple H Took The Heat For The Curtain Call

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One of the most infamous moments in pro wrestling history took place in 1996, and it involved both Triple H and Shawn Michaels, as well as fellow Kliq members Kevin Nash and Scott Hall. Hall and Nash were about to leave WWE and head to WCW. Knowing that, they and their Kliq brothers decided that they were going to share a moment in the ring together at a live event in Madison Square Garden. Since on screen and in the ring they were supposed to dislike each other, this did not go down well with many in the business.

In fact, many of their colleagues took it as a slap in the face as they were exposing what they do and making a mockery of it.

Whether he wanted to or not, Vince McMahon had to punish somebody. Hall and Nash had gone so he couldn't punish them, and Michaels was WWE Champion and the company's top guy so he couldn't punish him either. That meant Triple H had to take all the heat for not just his best friend HBK, but also for the departing Hall and Nash. It stunted The Game's career somewhat, but he was luckily able to recover.

2 Triple H Vs Shawn Michaels Was Supposed To Happen In 1996

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Triple H and Shawn Michaels may be best friends, but they have had some epic clashes against one another inside the ring. A couple have been touched upon in this article, including HBK's comeback match in 2002. That really is just the tip of the iceberg. However, their in-ring rivalry was actually supposed to begin years before it eventually did. Prior to The Game being punished for the Curtain Call, it's common knowledge that he was being lined up to win the 1996 King Of The Ring tournament. Instead, Stone Cold would win and Austin 3:16 was born.

Rumour has it that wasn't the only thing WWE had planned for Triple H at the time. Apparently, a young Game was also being considered for a WWE Championship program against, you guessed it, Shawn Michaels. He probably wouldn't have ended up winning the title back then, but to be in a program with the champion at that time would have been an extremely big deal for his career. Instead, Triple H was forced to return to the bottom of the pile and work his way back up. We would thankfully get the classic matches between the best friends years later.

1 Shawn Michaels May Return For Triple H's Retirement Match

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Not many wrestlers have the "perfect retirement". A situation where they say they are going to retire and they actually stay retired. Hulk Hogan couldn't do it, Mick Foley couldn't either, and perhaps the most annoying example of it actually involved HBK. Michaels perfectly retired Ric Flair at WrestleMania XXIV, but Naitch couldn't help but wrestle again when TNA came calling. Michaels retired two years later, and he has never wrestled since. It isn't as if he hasn't had offers either, as he remains one of the most popular and iconic wrestlers ever, all while maintaining his great shape.

WWE tried to coax him out of retirement last year for a match against AJ Styles and even hit him up to compete at Greatest Royal Rumble a couple of months ago. HBK has no interest though and doesn't want to tarnish his career and his perfect send off. However, he has hinted that there is one situation which could convince him to wrestle again. He didn't give a definite answer, but he has insinuated that if his good friend Triple H asked him to compete in his own retirement match, he would strongly consider it. Michaels did also say that he hoped The Game would understand if he declined.