Triple H

D-Generation X (1997–1999)
Main article: D-Generation X

Helmsley's push resumed in 1997, when he won the 1997 King of the Ring tournament by defeating Mankind in the finals.[22] [27] Later that year, Shawn Michaels, Helmsley, Chyna and Rick Rude formed D-Generation X (DX). This stable later became known for pushing the envelope, as Michaels and Helmsley made risqué promos—spawning the catchphrase "Suck It", using a "crotch chop" hand motion,[28] and sarcastically deriding Bret Hart and Canada. By that point, Helmsley had fully dropped the "blueblood snob" gimmick, appearing in T-shirts and leather. During this period, his ring name was shortened to simply Triple H.[22] Even after the DX versus Hart Foundation storyline ended, Helmsley continued to feud with the sole remaining member Owen Hart over the WWF European Championship. This ended in a match between the two at WrestleMania XIV, with the stipulation that Chyna had to be handcuffed to then-Commissioner Sgt. Slaughter. Helmsley won after Chyna threw powder into Slaughter's eyes, momentarily "blinding" him and allowing her to interfere in the match.

After WrestleMania, Michaels was forced into temporary retirement due to a legitimate back injury sustained at the Royal Rumble,[29] with Triple H taking over the leadership position in DX,[22] claiming that his now-former associate had "dropped the ball". He introduced the returning X-Pac the night after WrestleMania and joined forces with the New Age Outlaws.[22] [30] As 1998 went along, D-Generation X became more popular, turning the group from villains to fan favorites. It was also during this time that Triple H began a feud with the leader of the Nation of Domination and rising WWF villain, The Rock.[10] This storyline rivalry eventually led to a feud over the Intercontinental Championship, which Triple H won in a ladder match at SummerSlam.[10] He did not hold the title long, however, as he was sidelined with a legitimate knee injury.[10] When The Rock won the WWF Championship at Survivor Series,[31] the rivalry between the two continued, as DX fought The Corporation stable, of which The Rock was the main star. Triple H received a shot at the WWF Championship on the January 25, 1999 edition of Raw in an "I Quit" match against The Rock, but the match ended when Triple H was forced to quit or see his aide Chyna chokeslammed by Kane.[10] This began a new angle for Triple H, as Chyna betrayed him by attacking him after the match and joining The Corporation.[10]

As part of the storyline, at WrestleMania XV, Triple H beat Kane with the aid of Chyna, who was thought to have rejoined DX.[10] Later on in the night, he betrayed his long-time friend and fellow DX member X-Pac by helping Shane McMahon retain the European Championship and joined The Corporation.[10] After Triple H's villain turn in early 1999, he moved away from his DX look, taping his fists for matches, sporting new and shorter wrestling trunks, and adopting a shorter hairstyle.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-time_9-10">[10] Levesque's gimmick changed as he fought to earn a WWF title shot.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-time_9-11">[10] After numerous failed attempts at winning the championship, Triple H and Mankind challenged WWF Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin to a Triple Threat match at SummerSlam, which featured Jesse "The Body" Ventura as the special guest referee. Mankind won the match by pinning Austin.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-31">[32] The following night on Raw, Triple H defeated Mankind to win his first WWF Championship.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-time_9-12">[10]

Triple H dropped the WWF Championship to Vince McMahon on the September 16, 1999 edition of SmackDown! before regaining it at Unforgiven in a Six-Pack Challenge that included Davey Boy Smith, Big Show, Kane, The Rock, and Mankind. He defeated Stone Cold Steve Austin at No Mercy before dropping the title to Big Show at Survivor Series. Triple H then continued his feud with Vince McMahon by marrying his daughter, Stephanie McMahon. He then defeated McMahon at Armageddon. As a result of the feud, an angle with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon began which carried the WWF throughout the next seventeen months; together they were known as the "McMahon-Helmsley Faction".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-crap257_32-0">[33]

McMahon-Helmsley Era (2000–2001)
By January 2000, Triple H dubbed himself "The Game," implying that he was at the top of the wrestling world, and was nicknamed "The Cerebral Assassin" by Jim Ross. On the January 3 edition of Raw is War, Triple H defeated The Big Show to win his third WWF championship.<sup class="Template-Fact" style="white-space: nowrap;" title="This claim needs references to reliable sources from April 2010">[citation needed]

Triple H feuded with Mick Foley in early 2000 in a storyline that ended with a Hell in a Cell match at No Way Out that sent Foley into retirement.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-33">[34] Triple H pinned The Rock at WrestleMania 2000 to retain the title,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-34">[35] but lost it at Backlash to The Rock.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-35">[36] He regained it three weeks later, in an Iron Man match at Judgment Day,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-36">[37] only to lose it back to The Rock at King of the Ring.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-pwi106_37-0">[38] Hunter then entered a storyline feud with Chris Jericho, which culminated in a Last Man Standing match at Fully Loaded.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-pwi106_37-1">[38]

A later storyline feud between Triple H and Steve Austin started when it emerged that Triple H had paid off Rikishi to run down Austin at Survivor Series, causing him to take a year off. In reality, Austin's previous neck injuries started bothering him again, forcing him to have surgery. In 2000, Triple H and Austin had a match at Survivor Series that ended when Triple H tried to trick Austin into coming into the parking lot to run him over again, only to have Austin lift his car up with a forklift and flip the car onto its roof 10 feet high. Triple H returned a few weeks later and attacked Austin. The feud continued into 2001 and ended in a Three Stages of Hell match in which Helmsley defeated Austin. In 2001, Triple H also feuded with The Undertaker, who defeated him at WrestleMania X-Seven.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-38">[39]