WWE history: Triple H in tears backstage as Finn Balor vacates Universal title

The backstory

Finn Balor was already an established Superstar before signing with WWE in 2014. Balor made waves in NXT and won the NXT Championship on one occasion. He made his way to the main roster as part of the 2016 WWE Draft and was Monday Night Raw's fifth pick. Balor soon earned a shot at the newly-established Universal title and came out at SummerSlam as The Demon King. He went on to defeat Seth Rollins to become the first-ever Universal Champion.

In an unfortunate turn of events, WWE reported that Balor sustained a shoulder injury during his match against Rollins. The next night on Raw, Finn Balor relinquished his Universal title in an emotional segment. As the sea of fans cheered for Balor, Mick Foley took the Universal title from him. As he was leaving to the back, Seth Rollins' music hit and he came out to a strong negative reaction, with an evil smirk on his face.

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The tear-jerking moment

WWE consistently comes up with WWE 24 specials for the Network. Back in 2017, WWE produced a 24 special featuring Finn Balor. One scene from the special certainly stood out among others. During the segment where Balor relinquished the title, Triple H could be seen watching the entire thing from the "gorilla position".

It's no secret that Triple H has a very special place in his heart for NXT, and he works incredibly hard to make it a must-watch brand in the eyes of the fans. This particular scene from the 24 special features Triple H watching Finn Balor in the ring, with tears in his eyes over the fact that one of his most promising call-ups went to the sideline almost immediately after his arrival on the main roster.

The aftermath

Balor made his TV return after WrestleMania 33 and is now one of the most popular Superstars on the main roster.

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