When you think of WWE icons, a number of names spring to mind. 

The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Undertaker... take your pick. 

But today we're not celebrating any of them. Instead, we're wishing a happy 51st birthday to The King of Kings, Triple H. 

He may not be on many people's 'Wrestling Mount Rushmore' or mentioned in quite the same breath as those above, but there's no denying The Game is a true legend. 

Let's take a look at why. 

Hall of Fame career

What he achieved in the ring is quite phenomenal. Triple H is a 14-time world champion and was once tipped to match - if not surpass - the records of Ric Flair and John Cena. 

He's featured on 23 WrestleMania cards and only The Undertaker has made more appearances on the grandest stage of them all (27). 

HHH has made many WrestleMania appearances

But the less said about HHH's dodgy WrestleMania record (10 wins and 13 losses) the better. 

Don't let that take away from the fact that he's a Triple Crown and Grand Slam champion in WWE, holding every title imaginable while winning the Royal Rumble match and the King of the Ring tournament. 

Yep, it's fair to say Triple H is a legend and fully deserves his spot in the Hall of Fame, which came in 2019 alongside his D-Generation X stablemates. 

Triple H is a Hall of Famer

Building the future

What he's is doing away from the ring now though, is arguably even more impressive.

The Game is focusing all his attention on building the future of WWE and has been overseeing the rise of NXT. 

Many fans argue that the developmental brand is actually better than RAW or SmackDown, due to the characters and storylines featured. 

HHH has been a senior producer for NXT since the start

So much of the success is down to Triple H and any WWE Superstar that graduates to the main roster is full of gratitude for their former boss. 

In fact, so many have been desperate to return to NXT, either as a one-off appearance or full-time. Finn Balor - we're looking at you! 

Replacing Vince McMahon one day?

So good is Triple H's oversight of the Black and Yellow brand, that many fans are desperate for him to take over WWE from Vince McMahon when he steps away. 

Reports suggest HHH could take over WWE one day

Jim Ross even suggested a couple of years ago that Vince is preparing HHH to one day take over.

"I think that, if I'm guessing, and it's gonna strictly be a guess - that the money would be on - probably, Paul Levesque to be Vince's successor," JR revealed. 

"Vince is kind of preparing him for that in a lot of ways. You always knew that he was different from the other guys because he was very studious, and very under control.

Vince and HHH backstage

"He didn’t drink. No drugs. He looked to be a lifer early on, and he got a lot of that from being a fan all his life. So, I think he's probably the heir apparent."

Now that would be an exciting prospect for many fans, wouldn't it?

Happy Birthday, Triple H!

But Vince is nowhere near done yet, so as it stands The Game will continue in his role as WWE's Executive Vice President of Global Talent Strategy and Development. 

Triple H continues his work BTS

He'll also continue to build NXT into one of the most exciting wrestling brands in the world. 

Just remember, Triple H is doing all of this after a Hall of Fame career that saw him win 14 world championships, become a Grand Slam champion and feature at 23 WrestleManias. 

Triple H is a legend in WWE

With a CV like that, he truly does deserve to be named as a WWE legend. There's really only one thing left for us to say. Happy 51st birthday, Triple H!