When D-Generation X got inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2019, it should have been a pure celebration. Triple H, Shawn Michaels, Road Dogg, Sean Waltman, Chyna, and Billy Gunn all going in together — that’s a moment. But Triple H apparently couldn’t resist taking a shot at AEW during the ceremony, and Billy Gunn has not forgotten it.
Gunn was already working for AEW at the time of the induction. AEW hadn’t even run its first show yet, but the company was already on Triple H’s radar enough for him to throw a jab during what was supposed to be a celebration of one of wrestling’s most beloved factions. Gunn called it a ‘dick move’ — and he’s right, because taking shots at a competitor during your own Hall of Fame speech doesn’t make you look confident, it makes you look threatened.
That context matters a lot now. This wasn’t Triple H the WWE authority figure making a business statement. This was a guy standing next to his friends and former stablemates, one of whom was literally about to go work for the competition, and he chose that moment to go sideways. Gunn was right there on that stage when it happened.
Billy Gunn has been one of the most important behind-the-scenes figures in AEW since the beginning. He came in alongside Cody Rhodes and the Young Bucks as part of the original crew that helped build the locker room, and he’s spent years coaching and developing talent. His son Austin Gunn and nephew Colten Gunn both work for the company. AEW isn’t just a job for him — it’s been a second act that most wrestlers in their 50s never get.
So when Triple H used the Hall of Fame stage to take a swing at the company Gunn was about to help launch, that stung on a personal level, not just a professional one.
The DX Hall of Fame induction itself was a big deal regardless of the backstage drama. Getting Chyna recognized as part of that group was something fans had been pushing for for years, and having the full core lineup inducted together felt like proper closure for one of the most successful acts in wrestling history. Road Dogg, X-Pac, Billy Gunn, HBK, Triple H, and Chyna — that’s a murderers’ row of charisma and in-ring talent that defined the Attitude Era.
But Triple H’s decision to use that stage to poke at AEW hung over the night for at least one member of the group. Gunn has been pretty candid in the years since about how he felt in that moment, and calling it a ‘dick move’ is about as plain as it gets.
The relationship between WWE and AEW has obviously shifted a lot since 2019. Triple H is now running creative on the WWE side and has generally been credited with taking a more respectful tone toward the rest of the industry. But words from five years ago don’t disappear just because the temperature has changed.
Billy Gunn said what he said, and honestly, it’s hard to argue with him.
