Who is REALLY better? Shawn Michaels or Triple H

[HBK-aholic]

Following in the footsteps of all who has made this type of thread..who is the better wrestler?

They have a colourful history, to say the least. Best friends, enemies, best friends. Had arguably one of the best feuds of all time, and some of their best matches were with each other. But which of the DX members are to thank for that?

Triple H is a wrestler who gets more criticism than he deserves, down to his relationship with Stephanie McMahon. But when you look past that, he is one of the best ever in the business. He's always the top star on whichever brand he's on, and has had more title reigns than most, many of which are for long periods of time.

I have to go with Shawn Michaels here though; the most well-rounded wrestler to ever step foot in the ring. The fans love him, and he has a string of achievements to his name, including being the first Grand Slam Champion, and participating in many 'first' matches e.g. Hell in a Cell and Elimination Chamber. Winning both, may I add. He missed out on what should have been the best 4 years of his career due to a crippling back injury, but when he returned he was surprisingly as great as ever, and some of his best matches were after his return. Not many wrestlers could say this.

 

[Uncle Sam]

From a personal point of view, it's Shawn Michaels. No doubt. Firstly, I find his wrestling style infinitely more entertaining than Triple H's. He's more charismatic and original, too. I mean, I don't mean to sound like a moody teenager ("gosh, that is, like, so unoriginal") but yeah. Simply put, I'm a big fan of Michaels but not as much as Triple H.

The Game has perhaps been more successful in the business, but I think Michaels has been much more influential and inspirational. I also don't think people will look back as fondly on Triple H as they do Michaels. Not nearly as fondly.

But, for the record, Randy Savage is "the most well-rounded wrestler to ever step foot in the ring".

 

[Hillmania]

This isn't even a question... HHH's multiple title reigns are just his attempt to form a legacy. Now I won't say he doesn't deserve to be at the top, but to answer this question is simple... When you hear HBK vs _____ or HHH vs _____, which do you get more excited for? The answer is obviously HBK. Mainly because it doesn't matter who the other guy is, HHH will still wrestle the same match whether it's 1998 or 2008. HBK wrestles a similar ending sequence, but otherwise, his matches are great. Honestly, I've been amazingly entertained by matches like HBK vs Khali... So I think that says it.

 

[klunderbunker]

I'll take Shawn as well. These two are really two incredibly different styles. Shawn is the flashy one. He's all over the ring, running, jumping, diving, striking. He can do it all and he makes it look as smooth as silk. Then on the other hand you have HHH, who is actually a power guy. WIth him it's not about what he does that's great, but what he doesn't do wrong. I defy you to show me one major hole in HHH's in ring style. He is as close to perfect as you want to get. People like to say that HHH is the second coming of Harley Race and Shawn is the second coming of Flair. HHH is indeed the second coming of Race. Go watch an NWA Race match and some promos. His style is the same on the mic and in the ring. Michaels isn't Flair though. Michaels is a modern day Savage. Flashy, smaller, quick, energetic, and better than HHH.

 

[ztwhite]

In my opinion, and as you can see from my signature, I'm a huge Triple H fan... BUT Shawn Michaels is the better performer.

From a wrestling standpoint, I believe HHH gets the nod.

No one... and I mean NO ONE... not Stone Cold and not the Rock... can carry a storyline like HBK.

Whether it's his rivalry with HHH, the Montreal Screwjob, his stabbing Hogan in the back, God as his tag team partner, retiring Flair, his recent feuds with Jericho and JBL or the dozens of others I don't mention in this thread-- the man simply does it better than all the others !!

Aside from his days in DX and his aforementioned rivalry with HBK, I challenge anyone to provide me with a truly memorable HHH storyline. Sure, some were good like his wedding angle with Steph or his feuds with past Legacy members, but I don't know if any of them will go down in the annals of the Hall of Fame (if one ever gets built).

The reason HHH has held the belt so many times is because that's his legacy.

HBK doesn't need the belt to cement his legacy -- he simply may be the best well-rounded wrestler of all time -- in the ring, on the mic and entertaining the fans.

 

[Jane]

HBK. Shawn Micheals can make any fued great. I get excited whenever Shawn gets in the ring, and you never know how it is going to go. Triple H is getting more and more predictable and I don't even care when he gets in the ring anymore. Triple H might have the 12 world title reigns, but it doesn't mean much compared to what Shawn has done. They are both legends, but to me, Shawn is the true definition of the word. I think that Shawn will be remembered as the next Ric Flair, with Triple H as Hulk Hogan. Triple H might be bigger and more remembered, but I think Shawn is just the best their is.

 

[trevis.hull]

I am going to have to go with Triple H. I am a huge HBK fan but I am not a big fan of his style. Some say Triple H is nothing but a power wrestler and that is complete garbage, Batista is a power wrestler, Triple H is probably one the best well rounded wrestlers in the industry minus 2002 when he was carrying all that unneeded muscle. You can say he is only great because of his wife but guess what Stephanie doesn't wrestle his matches and cut his promos...he does. The great thing is that he can play an amazing heel and a pretty damn good face, he is much better as a heel though.

 

[Zeitgeist]

In my personal opinion I easily choose Triple H, but in the grand scheme of the "WWE Universe" HBK would technically be the better one. I don't find HBK particularly interesting in the ring... how many times can he get irish-whipped into the turn buckle and flip himself upside down? I find him to be an incredibly poor actor especially when he's trying to act serious like back in the Jericho feud or currently now with the JBL situation, when he tries to put on that super serious face of his I just don't buy it at all.

Triple H is incredibly versatile, seems like he can go from heel to face in the blink of an eye and still be believable either way. Unlike HBK, he's believable when he is angry or intense, and occasionally funny. Inside the ring, like "trevis.hull" mentions above me, I don't find him to be a boring power wrestler, he is pretty well rounded.

 

[HBK-aholic]

In my personal opinion I easily choose Triple H, but in the grand scheme of the "WWE Universe" HBK would technically be the better one. I don't find HBK particularly interesting in the ring... how many times can he get irish-whipped into the turn buckle and flip himself upside down? I find him to be an incredibly poor actor especially when he's trying to act serious like back in the Jericho feud or currently now with the JBL situation, when he tries to put on that super serious face of his I just don't buy it at all.

Triple H is incredibly versatile, seems like he can go from heel to face in the blink of an eye and still be believable either way. Unlike HBK, he's believable when he is angry or intense, and occasionally funny. Inside the ring, like "trevis.hull" mentions above me, I don't find him to be a boring power wrestler, he is pretty well rounded.

I have to disagree with you here, completely. I think he's one of the few wrestlers who can pull off completely serious; when he was contemplating working for JBL, or when Jericho had just puched his slag, his face showed it all, and I think he's just as versatile as Triple H, if not moreso. He can turn from the flamboyant Sexy boy, to serious Shawn Michaels, and both are believable.

He is working a lot more at being serious nowadays, with the end of his career slowly looming, but he does it really well.

 

[Poop Master Flex]

The nod goes to HBK and that's without thinking. I agree HHH gets alot more criticism than he should, but he is not as good as the WWE makes him out to be (HHH can't do shit by himself, whenever he had a great feud someone was always there carrying the load (Austin, The Rock & HBK all carried the heavier part of the load). HBK can make a pile of dog S$!% look like a star. HBK had help along the way, but he was able to bring people with him. HHH may have had more longevity as a main eventer, but he never delivers on the same level as HBK. Hands down Michaels is the better of the 2.

 

[fossi984]

Neither...HHH was mid-card before dating the bosses daughter, he was a good wrestler before he started doing hgh, steroids and all those other drugs, I mean come on, he was tiny when he started, then out of nowhere he comes back from an injury jacked up barely able to move left and right, now he has 4 - 5 moves that he does in every match and that's it, nothing else...and Shawn is filth, he worked his way up, until he left the rockers, then he stepped over everyone he could, held anyone that he could back and cared about nobody but himself, and now he's a born again christian...yea ok, he's a very good entertainer and very charasmatic, but I hate him and people like him with a passion, garbage

 

[thelcon21]

Probably the two best wrestlers of this generation. I got to give the nod to Shawn though. No one in this business can out perform Shawn Michaels in any match. He can take a person like Hulk Hogan, John Cena and a 60 year old Ric Flair and turn their match into a classic. I think the WWE can take Shawn and do really anything they wanted with him and he would make that angle or role that they put him in and turn it into gold.

As for Triple H I do think was was great for the business. When people like the Rock left for Hollywood, Angle left to TNA, Stone Cold stopped wrestling he was the one constant over the last 10 years. He might have not earned the legacy he has fairly but the only person better than Triple H on the mic is Shawn Michaels.

The real difference between the two is Triple H cares about winning titles and remaining in the spotlight and Shawn Michaels only cares about wrestling and giving us the best match he can give us. I always say its a real shame that he won't accept another long title reign before his career ends because no one deserves to have the WWE title or World Championship more then HBK.

 

[HBK-aholic]

Shawn is filth,

Blashpemy.

he worked his way up,

As everyone does.

until he left the rockers,

You meant that time when he threw Jannety threw the barber shop window, and everyone was so shocked because it'd never happened before, that Shawn played a great heel from all the heat?

then he stepped over everyone he could,

Because he was better than them.

held anyone that he could back

Not true. Vince McMahon calls the shots, not Shawn Michaels. Why would he hold anyone back?

and cared about nobody but himself, and now he's a born again christian...yea ok, he's a very good entertainer and very charasmatic, but I hate him and people like him with a passion, garbage

So basically, you don't like the rumours about him, but think he's a very good wrestler?

 

[foundation611]

Probably the two best wrestlers of this generation. I got to give the nod to Shawn though. No one in this business can out perform Shawn Michaels in any match. He can take a person like Hulk Hogan, John Cena and a 60 year old Ric Flair and turn their match into a classic. I think the WWE can take Shawn and do really anything they wanted with him and he would make that angle or role that they put him in and turn it into gold.

As for Triple H I do think was was great for the business. When people like the Rock left for Hollywood, Angle left to TNA, Stone Cold stopped wrestling he was the one constant over the last 10 years. He might have not earned the legacy he has fairly but the only person better than Triple H on the mic is Shawn Michaels.

The real difference between the two is Triple H cares about winning titles and remaining in the spotlight and Shawn Michaels only cares about wrestling and giving us the best match he can give us. I always say its a real shame that he won't accept another long title reign before his career ends because no one deserves to have the WWE title or World Championship more then HBK.

I can't say it any better. I like Trips but love Shawn as an entertainer. Triple H gets too much heat for marrying Steph but I basically agree with most of you on all your points. Shawn is better at carrying a match and has always been a better all around performer than Triple H. Someone suggested Triple H would be more well remembered I don't see that either. Shawn is in a different class and Triple H is in the class below him I would say. The whole having a million title reigns is also a bit much for me. Trips has held the belts too many times but when you've married the bosses daughter what can anyone else do. That's his legacy. Shawns is about wrestling and stealing the show with great matches.

 

[notorious102]

Following in the footsteps of all who has made this type of thread..who is the better wrestler?



Triple H is a wrestler who gets more criticism than he deserves, down to his relationship with Stephanie McMahon. But when you look past that, he is one of the best ever in the business. He's always the top star on whichever brand he's on, and has had more title reigns than most, many of which are for long periods of time.

No he is not one of the best ever to step foot in the ring. You are just mislead to believe that. He has the machine backing every little thing he does. Trust me, I watched him since his debut. He is one of the most overrated wrestlers of all time that got everything he has ever accomplished becuz of people he knows or knew.

With Triple H it truly isn't what you know, but who you know!

 

[jazzua]

Easy....Michaels. You can say it's his in ring performance: top two of all time. You can say it's his ability to create so many "moments": most likely the top. The truth is, Michaels is the who's who of wrestling. Say what you want about the guy but in the end you can only call him insanely talented. Triple H is solid in every area of the business. He better be, most likely one day he will run it. What sets Michaels apart, other than the fact that he's better in all facets of the game, is that he has been able to build something amongst the fans that few are ever able to do. He has that connection with the people that only Hogan, Flair, and maybe Austin and the Rock had. It doesn't really matter what HBK is doing on the card. When his music hits thats all anyone in the building or watching on tv cares about for that 15 minutes. Triple H just doesn't have that. It has taken HBK 20 years of giving his body like nobody else every night to create that bond. That's the real difference.

 

[Stingfan81]

You know there have been alot of good posts on here but I think Shawn Micheals proves that more total reigns doesn't necessary mean your the best of all time. For me it comes down to three variables, in-ring ability, mic ability and versatility (the ability to work well as both a heel and a face). While I think Trips has had a great career you don't expect him to be the highlight of a Wrestlemania like Shawn Micheals regardless of if he is main-eventing or not. Shawn has proved that he can make anyone look good in the ring, even a 60-year old Ric Flair (who had some of the greatest matches ever in his prime). Furthermore, Shawn has the ability to carry a storyline better than anyone in the business and to an extent innovated many of the gimmick matches we have today such as the ladder match (which led to tlc) and hell in a cell (which influenced the elimination chamber). In all fairness, Triple H did innovate 3 stages of hell with Steve Austin. However, I think Shawn has had a bigger impact on the business in creating stars and innovating matches through his in-ring ability and mic ability. As for Triple H he helped make Randy Orton and Batista bigger stars but their storyline and matches didn't have the quality of matches like a Shawn Michaels-Steve Austin. Finally, the fact that Shawn could come back from such a severe back injury and still put on 5 star matches seals the deal for me. Trips is great.... but if I had to choose one wrestler to build a promotion with or without the belt it would have to be Shawn. Hopefully, Shawn will get one more run as champ before he retires, now that Jeff Hardy has won his title, no one else deserves it more than Shawn.

 

[Hillmania]

I can say one good thing about Triple H... He doesn't botch spots... But that is about it. And it's not like he's ever had a real spot to botch. I'm sure he gets more scrutiny than he should, but you can't say anything about his title reigns and being a consistent main event wrestler as a positive thing in his favor... As a matter of fact, THOSE are the reasons why he is under such constant scrutiny. It is just all too obvious that he uses his power to get in that position.

 

[jazzua]

No he is not one of the best ever to step foot in the ring. You are just mislead to believe that. He has the machine backing every little thing he does. Trust me, I watched him since his debut. He is one of the most overrated wrestlers of all time that got everything he has ever accomplished becuz of people he knows or knew.

With Triple H it truly isn't what you know, but who you know!

Here is another trying to tell us that we are all caught in the corporate facade built by the big bad bully that is WWE. How dare anyone have a mind to look past the crap that is "HHH marrying the boss' daughter and have the awareness to see that he is that damn good. I believe sir, that you are a poorly guided soul. A fan pushed to the demon side that is the internet wrestling world. You say she is small-minded enough to have watched most likely years of Triple H on tv and be fooled by WWE's ability to book a man in a top spot for 10 years who has absolutely no talent but banging the Big Coconuts daughter? I find extreme humour in the fact that you believe people are that gullible. Note check....Vince doesn't really run the wrestling world...we do. He can(and has) pushed guys to the moon because he believed they were what the people wanted. He has shoved them down our throats thinking they eventually would get over. But at some point he sees it's not working and moves on. If anyone throws a John Cena out here just remember who sells the most WWE merch. and than forget your comment. Fact is, HHH could be banging Vince and his push would stop eventually if he wasn't good and excepted by the peope. Note checked...

 

[Stoppa]

I don't mean this rude, but this is a question that shouldn't even be considered, asked, posed, etc.

HHH is good. No one but simps who know squat about wrestling would say otherwise. He's very good. He delivers on all points: Work, mic, charisma, draw, etc. He CAN be great, but it's something he grazes, not something he is.

He cannot touch Michaels. One is very good, sometimes great. The other is great, sometimes very good.

Best comparison I can think of to give you, Vince of 1996 vs Turner of 1996. One the one hand, you have a very rich man. On the other, one of the richest men in the world.

Sorry, this is just a no-brainer.

HBK by landslide.

 

[Doberden17]

This is a hard one to figure. Arguably HHH has the better promo ability while HBK brings more energy to the ring. Back before HHH put on all that muscle his stlye in my opinion was somewhat similar to HBK's (turnbuckle flips and all). They would both bounce around the ring during a beating in a similar manner. HHH seemed to have really changed during his Ken Shamrock feud, knee problem and completely once HBK was out. HHH then started to bulk up and not move around as fast as he was once able to. People say that Stephanie put HHH where he is today. I disagree, she has kept him there, but I feel HHH hanging with HBK put him where he is. HHH was smart enough to make friends with HBK to launch him to where he is. Now it is different, I feel HBK is where he is because of his behind the scenes friendship with HHH. Of course HBK's crowd responses keep him there. Without HBK, HHH wouldnt be shit. They both work their best in my opinion as heels, with their DX team second to that. HBK was always a great heel. Any way I would say they are pretty equal, with both of them now having two totally different styles.

 

[cubwannabear]

Shawn Michaels has proved himself to do what's best for the story line instead of his win/loss record. Against Brett Hart, Ric Flair, The Undertaker, Kevin Nash, Chris Jehrico & JBL Michaels can carry a storyline and the wrestler he's involved. Giving a storyline the teeth a wrestling fan can sink into. I'm not a Shawn Michaels mark but I do give a person with his experience who has his athletic ability that can do more than just "wrestle" a match and that wrestler in Shawn Michaels.

Triple H is an awsome wrestler. He's has had some amazing matches. Triple H is more worried about hitting his spots in the ring and being the next Ric Flair with title reigns in tow than wrestling an epic wrestling story line. You know why the young guys haven't gotten over wrestling Triple H on Raw or Smackdown? Because he won't relenquish his high spot on the roster. His feud with Jeff Hardy could've gone further as well as Vladimir Kozlov. During his 2 on 1 handicap match w/ Big Show & Vladimir Kozlov have MVP do a run-in to make the save & start his face turn. This after the rub MVP got from Hunter the week before when Hunter help MVP. Nope, didn't happen. We're going to see anoth Hunter "against all odds" type scenario where he has to go through a number of obsticals to get to the world title and in the process the obsticals he went through are still relagated to mid card status. Thus my point, Triple H is too worried about his own career than furthering a new story line that would benefit both participants and last longer than a PPV or 2.

So my answer is Shawn Michaels....

 

[waylonmercy]

It is difficult to say who is truly better. We have a great bias against HHH because he is married to Stephanie and have the perception that he is being overpushed. I think wrestling wise Shawn Michaels is more exciting as in he took greater risks to better himself, but he was someone who had greater attitude issues which caused him to look better than he really was.

I think if Shawn was as humble as he seems to be now I would say Shawn Michaels is a better overall wrestler.

 

[Hillmania]

Remove all the Stephanie stuff, all the things that people hate him for, and he is STILL less than HBK. It's a simple fact. What interests you more; Triple H vs Khali, or HBK vs Khali? I remember the ONE Monday Night Raw HBK had a match with Khali, and he made Khali look like a deserving champ. HHH didn't fail to deliver a good match by any means, but he still didn't make an interesting match.

I'm not a fan of any kind of wrestling newsletters, but who is consistently given the match of the year? And what about the 5 star rating? Triple H never got one, neither did even Kurt Angle. But HBK did.

 

[danahm]

I dont want to take anything away from HBK. He could carry a story with Hornswoggle. But he isnt HHH.

I gew up during the Attitude era and for my money there isnt any wrestler better than HHH.

When Triple H's music hits, it changes the arena. No matter face or heal "The Game" is simply the best there ever was. His ability to changehis character at any given time makes him the best. And im sick of hearing about him marrying Steph. They have 2 children together so obviously its real, not just a career move. His ability to make the show funny (with HBK) or his ability to make you hate him (McMahon-Helmsley era) puts him at the top. I mean cmon he is the master of the Hell in a Cell match. Ive probably seen the HHH/Jericho Hell in a Cell from 2002 100 times and i dont think it gets any better.

HHH is the best ever.