Triple H says goodbye to wrestling: The 52-year-old WWE legend announces retirement after suffering heart failure while fighting viral pneumonia last September, saying he nearly died and now has a defibrillator in his chest
- WWE legend Triple H retired from wrestling after suffering heart failure while battling viral pneumonia back in September, he revealed on Friday.
- Speaking to ESPN’s Steven A. Smith, the 52-year-old New Hampshire native explained that he doubted he would survive and now has a defibrillator.
- It was an examination by his doctor on the advice of his wife, the daughter of WWE CEO Vince McMahon, Stephanie, who may have saved his life.
- After learning the results of their tests, Triple H was ordered to urgently go to the hospital.
- Born Paul Levesque, Triple H wrestled under various names and won 14 world titles during his WWE career, which began in 1995.
- He and his wife Stephanie McMahon, Vince’s daughter, have three girls.
WWE legend Triple H retired from wrestling after suffering heart failure while battling viral pneumonia back in September, he revealed on Friday.
Speaking to ESPN’s Steven A. Smith, the 52-year-old New Hampshire native explained that he doubted he would survive the illness and now has a defibrillator in his heart that will keep him out of the ring again.
“I will never wrestle again,” said Triple H, whose real name is Paul Levesque. “Firstly, I have a defibrillator in my chest, which, you know, is not a good idea to be discharged on live television.
It was an examination by his doctor on the advice of his wife, WWE CEO Vince McMahon’s daughter Stephanie, who may have saved his life.
“I had viral pneumonia,” Triple H said. “My lungs became inflamed and over the next few days, when I got home, I got worse. My wife saw blood and stuff that I was coughing up and I went to get checked out.
“I had fluid in my lungs, I had fluid around my heart,” he continued. “So they checked it out, they did an EKG, an echo and all that stuff.”
WWE legend Triple H retired from wrestling after suffering heart failure while battling viral pneumonia back in September, he revealed on Friday. Speaking to ESPN’s Steven A. Smith, the 52-year-old New Hampshire native explained that he doubted he would survive the illness and now had a defibrillator in his heart that would keep him out of the ring again.
Triple H pictured with Stephanie McMahon at Wrestlemania. These two are actually married.
Although he wrestled under several names, Levesque is best known as Triple H. The 14-time world champion made his WWE debut in 1995 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019 along with other members of his group, D-Generation X
Upon learning of the results of their tests, Triple H was ordered to rush to the hospital.
“I got a quick text message saying, ‘Don’t waste your time, pack your bag quickly, go to the emergency room,'” he said, explaining that he nearly died.
“I was nose-diving and I was kind of on the 1-yard line where you don’t really want to be, for your family and your future,” Triple H said. “This is all? Do you wake up from this? It’s hard to swallow and it makes you think differently.”
Triple H and his wife are raising three daughters under the age of 15, which he says influenced his decision to retire.
Although he wrestled under several names, Levesque is best known as Triple H. The 14-time world champion made his WWE debut in 1995 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019 along with other members of his group, D-Generation X.
His last match took place in Tokyo in June 2019 but was not televised. Triple H’s last television appearance as a wrestler was on June 7, 2019 against Randy Orton in Saudi Arabia.
He will remain head of development for WWE, NXT.
