Triple H is all about superstar safety.
WWE has always warned fans to not try what they see in the ring, at home. Over the years, WWE has taken immense safety precautions, ranging from crash pads under commentary tables to banning certain high impact moves. One move that has been on the "banned" list for years has been the piledriver. The move was a staple in WWE throughout the '90s but has been rarely used over the last decade.
Knowing the move is not commonplace in today's WWE makes it stand out even more when it is used. And when flair is added to the move, people begin to really take notice. On the Jan. 9 episode of SmackDown Live, Rey Mysterio and Andrade performed a Canadian Destroyer that caught the attention of the wrestling word.
.@WWEGraves: "I could watch this one on loop!"@reymysterio is amazing! pic.twitter.com/eg1df4MYFy
— TDE Wrestling (@totaldivaseps) January 9, 2019
Andrade and Mysterio went back to the well this past Tuesday in their two-out-of-three falls bout.
DESTROYER! @reymysterio and @AndradeCienWWE are tearing the house down all over again! pic.twitter.com/RgXiy6Smd4
— TDE Wrestling (@totaldivaseps) January 23, 2019
Fightful asked WWE Executive Vice President Triple H on the NXT TakeOver: Phoenix media call where the line is when it comes to using certain high impact moves that had previously been banned.
"It all comes down to talent safety. We're looking out for the long-term health of the talent," explained Triple H. "It all comes down to things that can be performed and performed safely. If there's a risk of it not being performed safely, then we're not going to allow it to happen or be done, for their own well-being. They are thoroughbred horses and will run themselves into the ground. We have to protect them from that. It comes down to the talent and knowing the things that they can do safely and having that belief in them that they can do it safely. Not taking away the risk, totally, but knowing it'll be done safely and properly."
Shortly after Rey and Andrade did the aforementioned move on WWE TV, NXT stars Punishment Martinez and Matt Riddle pulled off impressive Canadian Destroyer on an NXT live event that led many to believe the unique piledriver was approved for use across the board in WWE.
Unbelievable end to a battle!@RealPunishment vs. @SuperKingofBros pic.twitter.com/Hifcx0WNfB
— JJ Williams (@JJWilliamsWON) January 12, 2019
As it turns out, Fightful is told that's not actually the case. Rey and Andrade are a special case of Rey's experience and trust in Andrade. While WWE management is still very high on both Riddle and Martinez, it was a case of them seeing the move on WWE TV and assuming it was good to go. They were told after the match that wasn't the case.
You can listen to the entire media call with Triple H in the video above, where he speaks to us about the use of the moves, and raves about Matt Riddle.
