Jim Ross Comments On The Claim That Triple H Stole His Gimmick From An ECW Original

Triple H’s WWE career went to the next level in 1999, and for a time, many fans considered him the best pro wrestler in the world. However, many of his detractors at the time would accuse him of taking elements of his gimmick and even look from ECW’s Shane Douglas. Additionally, some felt that Triple H’s nickname, “The Game,” was in response to Douglas calling himself “The Franchise.”

However, while discussing Triple H during this time period on his popular podcast , Jim Ross has played this down, although he would acknowledge he’d heard the comparisons.

“I have heard about it vaguely, Conrad, but I’m not sure how accurate that assessment is. I just thought it was a no-brainer. He was the next great heel, and that fact was proved out. He had an amazing run as that amazing character, and he drew a lot of money for WWE. He established himself as a main player, so I never picked up on the connectivity between Triple H and Shane Douglas.”

Douglas, real name Troy Martin, broke into the business in the early 1980s and would notably work enhancement matches for WWE against the likes of Randy Savage, Paul Orndorff, and Harley Race while gaining experience. Subsequently, he would join WCW, memorably becoming one of The Dynamic Dudes with Johnny Ace. From there, he jumped to WWE in a more prominent position before returning to WCW and then establishing himself as an arrogant, foul-mouthed heel in ECW.

Still, despite being a main eventer in ECW, he re-joined WWE in 1995, dropping his successful gimmick to become a college dean called Dean Douglas, a character that seriously flopped. Yet, he did hold the Intercontinental Championship for around twenty minutes during this run, which, until he won the United States Championship in WCW, was arguably the most prestigious championship of his career if you don’t include the NWA Championship he famously threw down.