Fans Accuse Triple H of 'Hating' WWE Legend After He Ranks Top of ESPN Analyst List

Paul 'Triple H' Levesque made a guest appearance on the show to discuss this Saturday's PLE at Gaindbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. ESPN used this opportunity to ask Stephen A. Smith, the face of the network, who his all-time favourite wrestlers were.

The results made for compelling reading as he named Road Warriors fifth, The Rock, fourth, Hulk Hogan third, Ric Flair second and Goldberg first. Triple H's response sent the studio hysterics: "Let me break this down for you. What he does for a profession is piss people off, right? So what he did was he bait-switched it; he set up a list that is arguably accurate. Road Warriors, The Rock, Hogan, Flair, he left out a few because it's just a top five"

Levesque added: "But then what he does is he comes in and he Stephen A's it, Goldberg at number one because he knows that is the name that is gonna piss off the maximum amount of people, that's all time, putting Goldberg at one. I'm not gonna say that he's not great, I love Bill, he's a great performer, he had great moments in this business. But putting him at one? Come on."

Goldberg could be viewed as a divisive pick given that many question his in-ring abilities, but he was still a hero to many of the pro wrestling audience during his time in the ring. The former WCW World Heavyweight Champion was booked as an unstoppable machine and went unbeaten for 173 matches in WCW before arriving in WWE in March 2003.

The 58-year-old retired in July at Saturday Night's Main Event after losing to Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship. He appeared in the ring alongside Triple H in the build-up to that match, but they used to be at loggerheads behind closed doors.

The pair didn't see eye-to-eye because of backstage politics, and tension grew during Goldberg's early years with WWE as he threatened The Game's status as the top dog. But they seemingly buried the hatchet years later when the WCW legend returned for a part-time run in the late 2010s.

Fans Think Triple H Still Has A Vendetta Against Goldberg

Triple H's reaction to Stephen A. Smith's didn't go unnoticed by fans who feel WWE's CCO still has a grudge. Goldberg, interestingly, wasn't too happy with the manner in which his retirement was handled, and some think there may still be issues between the pair.

One fan wrote:

"HHH hating on Goldberg because he had a bigger impact on the business.

Another alluded to the Saturday Night's Main Event ending:

"Now we know why Goldberg had his retirement speech cut. Triple H hates him."

One fan backed Triple H up though:

"Valid crashout because having Goldberg in any top 5 is insane."

Another added:

"He couldn't stand it because he is jealous of Goldberg."

Triple H and Goldberg's rivalry in the early 2000s saw them face one another five times, with the World Heavyweight Championship at stake on four occasions. While some may argue that the former WCW star warrants a place on an all-time list, there are many, including real-life rival Bret Hart, who, much like The Game, would ridicule it.