These days, it is common knowledge among "smart" fans that Triple H was the scapegoat for the infamous MSG incident when the Clique broke kayfabe and said farewell to their friends. Helmsley was quickly stripped of his promised King of the Ring victory that year and buried even quicker. It would be years before he really got to break though and show himself to be one of the best in the business today.

But months before any of this went down, Hunter Hearst Helmsley was a solid mid-carder who was being groomed for a main event push. Enter Jim Hellwig, AKA The Ultimate Warrior. Years before, the Warrior was a big star for the WWF, but his drawing power proved to be short-term. After a lengthy absence from the WWF resulting from a monetary dispute, Hellwig signed a contract to return to the federation and hopefully reclaim a past glory.

Obviously, the Warrior's return was an event of great magnitude, and it had to be done in a big way. Wrestlemania was coming up, and what better way to reintroduce the man to the fans of the federation than by having him dominate a mid-carder whose career could survive with that kind of a loss. One can easily agree with that line of thinking, but very few were happy with the WWF's choice of mid-carder.

Helmsley was just starting to get serious wins under his belt, and was slowly developing heat through hard work and natural charisma. Surely the WWF wouldn't be so blind and stupid and serve him up to the Warrior? Think again, because in booking reminscent of Hogan-era WCW booking, they did just that.

The match itself didn't last more than five minutes, if that, and as if a squash defeat wasn't degrading enough to Hunter's career, the Warrior easily kicked out of the Pedigree, nearly ruining any chance that Helmsley had to become a star. It's hard to underestimate the importance of a finisher: would Steve Austin be as big as he is today if he were still using the Million Dollar Dream? Of course not, the Stunner is such an integral part of his character that he'd be lost without it. So went with Triple H, who managed to survive this horrible incident, and an even worse one months later, to become one of the biggest stars in the game (no pun intended) today.

Danny Birdwell on the match:,br> This match was absolutely pointless as The Ultimate One left the WWF shortly after this match as quickly as he came back. Again, why destroy an up-and-coming heel. Of course I think Triple H has turned out ok.