Wrestler Recalls Taking Infamous Pedigree From Triple H
Triple H was known for his devastating Pedigree finisher and there was one wrestler who recalled taking it in a devastating way in 1996.
In his current role as the WWE Chief Content Officer, Paul “Triple H” Levesque has hung up his wrestling boots and is content with running the show instead of beating people up in the ring.
During his WWE Hall of Fame career which saw him win 14 WWE/World Titles in his career and nearly 20 years in the main event scene, Triple H finished off dozens of opponents with a finishing move called the Pedigree.
The Pedigree was a move that Triple H used early in his WWE career that started in 1995. It’s a move where Triple H places the opponent’s head between his legs, then he hooks their arms across the back and jumped up in a move where he spikes the opponent’s head into the mat.
While it looks devastating, it is a safe move because when Triple H lands, his knees are really what were hitting the mat. Seth “Freakin” Rollins uses it regularly these days as well.
Marty Garner is a veteran wrestler that appeared on WWE programming often as an enhancement that lost matches to regular television stars.
When Garrner faced Hunter Hearst Helmsley during a televised match in 1996 (about a year before he was called Triple H on TV), Hunter hit a Pedigree and Garner landed right on his head as if he was spiked into the mat. In an interview with Fightful’s Jeremy Lambert & Joel Pearl on In The Weeds, Garner talked about taking that move.
“Hunter was new there, and I was new there. I didn’t want to tell him that I didn’t know what the Pedigree was. I had no idea what the Pedigree was, and when he said, ‘Are you good with taking the Pedigree?’ I said, ‘Oh yeah. Sure, man.’ When he locked me into it, it felt like it was going to be a powerbomb because he put my head between his legs. I’m like, ‘Okay, I’m going to kick hard.’ I didn’t think it was a piledriver, but I didn’t really know what it was. I should’ve probably asked [laughs], looking back.”
“It made for a good picture and it showed up in a few magazines. A few years later it showed up again in a magazine, Triple H came up to me and goes, ‘this picture is making its rounds.’ ‘Yeah, it is.’ I never get any autographs from anybody, I never get anybody to sign anything, but I did get him to sign a picture of me in the air with him doing what looked like a double-underhook piledriver.”
“I have a picture of that signed. Of all the people, everywhere I’ve been and all the movie stars and people I’ve met, that’s the only autograph I’ve ever gotten.”
After taking that devastating Pedigree, Garner spoke about if Triple H
“When it happend, he said, ‘[Goddamn,] are you alright?’ ‘I’m good, bro.’ When I came to the back, he was like, ‘Dude, that looked really good. I just want to make sure again, are you okay?’ ‘I’m great.’ He goes, ‘Bro, wow.’ He just shook his head like he couldn’t believe I was living and standing there talking to him.”
“I wasn’t proud of that, really, because I messed up. It was a video of shame for me for a long time and then I just accepted it. I made a mistake, mistakes happen, I was trying to impress somebody and it didn’t work out quite right. It is what it is.”
Check out the move from the June 1, 1996 episode of WWE Superstars below.