Triple H appeared on Stephen A.’s World on ESPN yesterday where he announced his retirement from in ring action due to heart failure.
Triple H said it has been an incredible tough six months to go through and after SummerSlam was done, he thought he had COVID as he was feeling really run down. He revealed that he did have COVID in the past even after getting vaccinated twice but had no symptoms back then.
He was eventually diagnosed with viral pneumonia and his lungs were inflamed. It got worse every day and went to get checked where docs realized he had fluid in his lungs.
By the time he was in the ER, he was in heart failure and was nose-diving where you don’t want to be for your family and future. He said once he did the MRI, they found that he had 99% blockage in his left anterior artery. He said it was a genetic issue with his great grandfather, grandfather, and father all having heart issues.
Triple H said Stephanie was a rock, never wavered and stayed by him all the time. He got emotional talking about his three kids and when they were putting him under, thinking is this it? Is this the one that you won’t wake up from? “It’s tough to swallow,” Triple H said. “It makes you think different about life.”
The host remarked how Triple H handled the public-side of this, staying quiet and not talking to the media about it. “It’s very surreal and certainly you don’t want to misspeak about it,” Triple H said. “You don’t want to speak about something and be wrong.”
Regarding the future, “As far as in ring, I’m done. I will never wrestle again,” Triple H said, adding that he had a defibrillator in his chest now and it won’t be fun getting zapped on live TV.
He did reveal that he had talks with Vince about doing something for WrestleMania this year and there were plans for it but obviously when this happened, those plans were gone.
Triple H said that he will not give up on his executive role in WWE and he will concentrate on identifying new talent for WWE to ensure the future of the industry is set for years to come.
“My foot’s not off the gas, I got to step back a little bit, I’m still in recovery,” he added, noting that he’s back in the office a little bit now.