While Vince McMahon's bogus "retirement" from WWE gave Paul "Triple H" Levesque a little more power in the company, the former Chairman still had the final say and continued making sweeping changes to RAW, SmackDown, and NXT remotely.
When McMahon was accused of sex trafficking and abuse several months later, new WWE owners Endeavor pushed him out of the company he once had total control over. As a result, The Game has been able to reshape WWE into a promotion which is hotter now than it has been for years.
His WWE is selling out arenas and receiving widespread critical acclaim. Crucially, it's also proving to be a much better place for professional wrestlers to work.
Talking at a panel at Fanatics Fest in New York City recently, CM Punk - who had his fair share of issues with McMahon - revealed another hugely positive change that's happened on Triple H's watch.
"I can look back at 10 years ago and tell you would have, could have, should have. At the rate I was going, 100 percent burnout was inevitable," the Second City Saint started. "I said that I took myself off the hamster wheel because nobody else would. I was looking around begging somebody [like] please, get me out of here. Certain people were around then were like, nope we need you, you gotta keep going."
"Look at [Stone Cold Steve Austin's] run on top. It wasn’t that long. I’m sure we can all look at that and say, 'Well gosh, why was it so short?' It’s because he was going so hard for so long when finally he got to the top. I think in that way, burnout is inevitable."
Punk continued, "What I think is now in place is a system and management that understands that. The talent is so rich that if Cody needs a show off, he can take that day off. If I need a day off, I can take that day off. I’m still flabbergasted. There’s a tab on the WWE app that you can click and you can request days off. Brother, it still blows my mind. It’s a brave new world."
McMahon was known for making his Superstars work as much as possible, even if it meant keeping them away from their families over the holidays. Simply put, he had no regard for their physical or mental well-being.
Triple H has altered things for the better and, as Punk explains, the company and talent are better off for it.
Let us know your thoughts on these comments in the usual place.