The Rock backstage with WWE CCO Triple H

Wrestling veteran Stevie Richards thinks The Rock and TKO could be messing with Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, and Shawn Michaels, keeping them under constant stress.

While The Game is the Chief Content Officer and The Heartbreak Kid is leading WWE NXT, The Final Boss returned earlier this year to join TKO’s Board of Directors. The Rock and the former members of D-Generation X reportedly had real-life heat during their early days in the Stamford-based promotion as in-ring competitors. Triple H and Michaels reportedly made The Rock’s life difficult nearly three decades ago.

Although The Rock and Triple H seemed to have buried the hatchet, Stevie Richards believes The People’s Champion might still desire revenge. The wrestling veteran pointed out on The Brand podcast that The Final Boss and TKO might be torturing The Game and The Heartbreak Kid, in addition to others associated with them, as a receipt.

“The thing with Hunter and Shawn, Rocky’s not stupid and Rocky is, like you said with The Young Rock, he still harboring somewhat of a grudge. Is Rocky and TKO making Hunter and Shawn and Bruce [Prichard] and anybody connected, Stephanie [McMahon], are they making them all sweat to see what they do, because that’s where you really can torture somebody?” Richards said.The former Hardcore Champion added:

“Like, they talked about The Kliq starving people like Shane Douglas, and you’re not going anywhere but we’re gonna make you think it’s coming, then it’s not coming, then it might be, then… That’s stressful and that could be a little bit of a receipt thrown in right there.” [8:40 – 9:18]

What did Shawn Michaels say about his real-life heat with The Rock in WWE?

During a recent episode of WWE Rivals, Triple H admitted that he and The Rock initially did not see eye to eye. However, he claimed that they were past that as they grew up. The two were seen hugging and talking backstage several times over the past few years.

Meanwhile, Shawn Michaels addressed his relationship with The Final Boss in an interview with ImPaulsive in 2022.

“I don’t think it was as bad as everybody made it up to be, you know what I mean. I mean, I know that I gave everybody a hard time back when I was younger. But you know like when I came back, I made sure I went up to everybody and at least was like, ‘Sorry.’ Honestly, that’s the best that I could do. When I came back in 2000, it was important for me to go around and make amends.

You know at least tell everybody, like, ‘Sorry, I was the way I was and I got no excuse but I’m willing to earn back, and if you never talk to me again, I’m cool with that too.'”

While Shawn Michaels and Triple H have retired from in-ring competition, The Rock recently returned to action after eight years of absence to team up with his cousin Roman Reigns to defeat Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins at WrestleMania XL. After the event, The Game praised The Final Boss’ performance at the press conference.