Daniel Bryan vs. Triple H: Recapping the Road to WrestleMania for Both Stars

When World Wrestling Entertainment presents WrestleMania 30 from New Orleans' Mercedes-Benz Superdome this Sunday night, fans will have the opportunity to see the culmination of a coming-of-age story play out before their very eyes when Daniel Bryan takes on Triple H in the evening's most anticipated bout. 

The past year has seen Bryan shed the label of comedy midcard act and become a legitimate main event star. In the process, he has established a fanbase that has passionately supported him in arenas across the country. Chants of "YES!" have accompanied him to the ring for every match he has competed in. The so-called Yes Movement has dominated WWE programming, overwhelming matches the Aberdeen native is not even a part of.

The chants have become so popular, in fact, that sporting events outside the WWE Universe have embraced them. Just after winning the Super Bowl, the Seattle Seahawks organization tweeted Bryan a graphic emblazoned with his trademark catchphrase. USA Today and Rolling Stone have written articles based on the phenomenon that is Bryan and his legions of fans.

There is no hotter star in professional wrestling than Daniel Bryan, making him the must-see Superstar come Sunday night's entertainment extravaganza.

Triple H, on the other hand, has completely invested himself in the role of hated Authority since last August. He is equal parts disingenuous corporate type and vile, career-threatening villain and has been at his very best heading into the Showcase of the Immortals.

He has toyed with the lives and careers of Bryan, Big Show and the Rhodes brothers and has taken great glee in doing so. He has blatantly abused his power, making decisions in his own best interests and doing so under the guise of what's "best for business."

At WrestleMania, he will compete in a match for the first time since 2013's Extreme Rules pay-per-view.

How did Daniel Bryan and Triple H get to the point where they will compete against one another in the most heated, personal and intense match at WrestleMania?

In the Beginning

The popularity of Daniel Bryan was undeniable as WWE entered the month of August and prepared for its SummerSlam pay-per-view. He was on the receiving end of some of the loudest ovations of the night, and his stellar in-ring performances had positioned him atop the WWE mountain as its best worker.

Those two elements made it impossible for management to justify keeping him in the position he was in prior, and the decision was made to elevate him to the next level via a WWE Championship match against the industry's top star, John Cena.

Bryan delivered the performance of a lifetime, wrestling a five-star classic against one of the best big-match competitors in WWE history. He sprinted out of the corner, caught Cena with a knee to the face and ignited what should have been the Daniel Bryan era in WWE.

Confetti fell from the sky. Pyrotechnics exploded from the stage, and the fans in Los Angeles' Staples Center broke out in a unified "YES!" chant. Bryan was the center of the WWE Universe...for three minutes.

Randy Orton's arrival coupled with a shocking betrayal by WWE COO Triple H, who had been the guest referee for the title bout, resulted in the end of Bryan's brief stint as champion and was the genesis for a feud between Bryan and The Authority that would stretch eight months.

Trials and Tribulations of a B+ Player

Bryan would defeat Randy Orton for the WWE title at September's Night of Champions pay-per-view, seemingly enjoying the defining moment that was stolen out from underneath him a month earlier. Unfortunately, a controversial fast count from referee Scott Armstrong would result in Triple H and The Authority stripping Bryan of the title and holding it in abeyance. 

It was announced that Bryan would have an opportunity to regain the championship at October's Battleground pay-per-view when he met former champion Orton in a rematch. It appeared as though the odds were stacked against him heading into that pay-per-view, however. He had been assaulted by Orton, by The Shield and by Big Show, who had been manipulated and humiliated repeatedly by The Authority with the threat of unemployment hanging heavy over his enormous head if he did not comply.

At Battleground, Bryan and Orton had another stellar match, but unlike the Night of Champions bout, it ended in no contest when an irate Big Show hit the ring and left both competitors lying unconscious. Both the live and viewing audiences were less than thrilled about the idea of using a pay-per-view event to set up a Monday Night Raw storyline, but that was the case as the saga continued.

With the championship still in abeyance, it was determined that Bryan and Orton would meet inside Hell in a Cell at the second of two major October shows. For that match, only one man could ensure that no outside interference or referee blunders would hinder the crowning of a new champion.

That man? Shawn Michaels.

His friendship with Triple H caused a few people to raise eyebrows, however, one being Bryan. No one could have imagined that Bryan would fall victim to betrayal at the hands of the man who trained him. It is for that reason that so many were shocked when Michaels delivered Sweet Chin Music just moments after Bryan laid out Triple H with the running knee, costing Bryan another shot at the title.

A disappointed and furious Bryan would gain a measure of revenge the following night on Raw when he locked Michaels in the Yes Lock and forced a tapout from the Hall of Famer, but he was still missing the coveted WWE title and still facing an uphill battle against the all-powerful Triple H and wife Stephanie McMahon.

A Detour on the Road to WrestleMania

The Wyatt Family assaulted Daniel Bryan the night after Hell in a Cell, setting up a months-long rivalry between them. After Bryan was beaten down by the creepy, enigmatic trio, it was announced that he had been found abandoned in a parking lot. There was no real follow-up to that story element as Bryan returned to television the next week looking a lot like he did prior to the abduction.

At Survivor Series in November, he teamed with CM Punk, who had also become a target of the Wyatts, for a tag team match against Erick Rowan and Luke Harper. The bout was well-wrestled but nothing out of the ordinary. Bryan and Punk, two former WWE champions, defeated the newcomers and seemingly ended the program.

Punk would move on to The Shield shortly thereafter but Bray and his merry gang of psychopaths would interject themselves into Bryan's life again, continuing to be major thorns in his side and setting up a three-on-one Handicap match for December's TLC pay-per-view. The Wyatts won that match and it became clear that all of the obstacles placed in Bryan's path to the top of the industry may be taking their toll.

On the December 30 episode of Raw, a tired, worn, dejected Bryan stunned the world by giving into Bray Wyatt and accepting his offer to join the Wyatt Family. It was a shocking moment because WWE was seemingly taking its most over Superstar and turning him heel for no good reason. As it turned out, it was simply a hoax on Bryan's part. Following a cage match against the Usos, which Bryan and Wyatt lost, the leader of the Yes Movement beat Wyatt senseless and left him lying to close out a memorable edition of Raw.

A somewhat questionable loss to Wyatt at the Royal Rumble in January notwithstanding, Bryan escaped the aborted heel turn unscathed and, somehow, more popular than ever.

Meanwhile, Triple H was ruling over WWE with an iron fist.

He degraded and berated Big Show on a weekly basis, moving the giant to tears in front of millions of viewers. When Show threatened a lawsuit, he had no choice but to give into the World's Largest Athlete and grant him a shot at Randy Orton's WWE title.

At Survivor Series, Triple H and Stephanie provided a well-timed distraction that allowed Orton to defeat the giant and retain the title. It was around this time, however, that The Game began questioning whether or not Orton was really worthy of being recognized as the "Face of the WWE." Orton had become a whiny, cowardly heel who relied too heavily on the interference of Triple H to retain his title, and the COO called him out on it.

In December, Triple H would put Orton in the greatest jeopardy of his title reign when he announced the unification of the WWE and World Heavyweight Championships in a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match at the TLC pay-per-view. On that night, Orton proved that he was still a reliable competitor, using handcuffs to detain Cena and shoving him into a table before retrieving both titles and standing atop the WWE mountain as the WWE World Heavyweight champion.

Triple H would once again watch as Orton successfully retained the championship against Cena in January at the Royal Rumble, but he was never able to rest comfortably with the Viper as his champion.

Not with Daniel Bryan rearing his bearded face again in February.

On the Road Again

At February's Elimination Chamber, Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton outlasted four other competitors to become the final two remaining stars inside the brutal structure. On the line? The WWE World Heavyweight Championship and the opportunity to headline WrestleMania 30.

The Authority's Director of Operations, Kane, interfered in the bout and again ensured that Bryan would not leave with the title. Frustrated beyond imagination, Bryan approached Triple H and Stephanie in the parking garage the following night and demanded a match against the COO at WrestleMania. The WWE's resident power couple laughed it off, Triple H claiming that he does not lace up a pair of boots for a B+ player.

Bryan was booked in a series of matches against Kane, all of which he won, but could not shake his desire to get his hands on Triple H. Finally, on the March 10 episode of Raw, Bryan hijacked the Monday night broadcast and staged an Occupy Raw movement. Dozens of fans filled the ring and the ringside area as Bryan refused to leave until The Authority heard the fans and granted them, and the bearded Superstar, what they wanted.

Triple H and Stephanie attempted to end the demonstration, but neither WWE Superstar Damien Sandow nor the company's security wanted anything to do with the display of unity and defiance. Finally, the COO agreed to Bryan's demand for a match at WrestleMania. Just as it looked like everyone would have a happy ending, Bryan threw in one more stipulation: If he defeated Triple H, he would receive a WWE World Heavyweight Championship opportunity later in the evening against Orton and the top contender, Batista.

An irate Triple H accepted.

The following week, he responded to Batista and Orton's whining by announcing that there would definitely be a Triple Threat match for the WWE title at WrestleMania. If Triple H beat Bryan, it would be The Game joining them in the championship main event.

Later in the evening, Triple H and Stephanie set Bryan up in epic fashion. The Game feigned respect for the leader of the Yes Movement and seemed furious when Stephanie ordered Bryan arrested for pulling the charade that he did the previous week.

Triple H entered the squared circle, called off what were revealed to be fake police officers and proceeded to beat Bryan to a pulp. He brutally pummeled the detained Bryan around ringside and onto the announce table. He then delivered a hellish chair shot that left the popular star unconscious and put an exclamation point on the assault with a Pedigree.

On the March 24 episode of Raw, Triple H introduced a new era in WWE, the Reality Era, and vowed to end the Yes Movement at WrestleMania. He would not be quite as confident when Bryan made his return seven days later and assaulted Triple H. He beat the COO around ringside, took out Orton and Batista, and Bryan left The Game retreating up the ramp to end the final broadcast before WrestleMania.

There have been tremendous highs and unfathomable lows for Bryan over the last eight months. At the center of both? Triple H.

Sunday night, one of two things will happen: Bryan will exorcise the one demon that has followed him around since that fateful night in August, or Triple H will turn Bryan's childhood dreams into adulthood nightmares.

At the heart of the issues between Bryan and Triple H is the latter's refusal to accept that a short, bearded, "B+ player" such as Bryan can truly be the face of a global entertainment empire. In one of the main events of this year's show, Bryan has the opportunity to prove his biggest doubter wrong.

The key to Bryan achieving championship glory is a defeat of Triple H in what will ultimately be the biggest match of his critically acclaimed career. Without it, he will find himself back in the same spot he occupied back in October while Triple H has the opportunity to take the title his rival so covets.

Regardless of what happens, fans are in for an intensely personal match that has every element of a show-stealing, Match of the Year candidate. If the performers can back up a great story with an even better in-ring effort, a classic will be born at this weekend at WrestleMania.