HHH Recalls Telling Talent She Couldn’t Compete In Mae Young Classic

Being the boss can lead to some unpleasant interactions. Triple H experienced just that in the lead-up to the Mae Young Classic, when he had to tell one contracted women's wrestler that he did not have a spot for her in the 32-woman tournament.

The WWE COO and creative mind behind NXT and tournaments such as the Mae Young Classic and last year's Cruiserweight Classic recalled that difficult moment during an interview with UProxx's McMahonsplaining podcast.

While HHH did not name the competitor that was held out of the tournament, he did say she had been working at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando "for a while", meaning that whoever it was, she has been under contract.

"She's kind of always been on this cusp and the timing has always wrong," Triple H said. "And I had to go to her, and I wanted to do it personally because I felt like I owed it to her, to say, 'I can't put you in the tournament. You should be in the tournament, but I don't have the spot for you.' To watch her fight the tears and the ultimate disappointment of that, it's tough, man. That's a hard thing to do. But you've got to keep in mind that you want the opportunity to be the biggest it can across the platform."

Maximizing the exposure across the WWE platform was one reason, he said, that Kavita Devi was part of the Mae Young Classic field. Devi became the first female wrestler from India to appear for the company.

"To put her out to a market in India, for them to see somebody succeed and get to that level and know what that means to them, it's opening up a whole world to them," Triple H said, adding, "You've got to keep that bigger picture in mind. It's tough to do."

The Mae Young Classic, which was widely praised, concluded earlier this month with the live finals, which saw Kairi Sane win the tournament.