Paul Levesque didn't become an accidental superstar, nor was he born into the business. And, as of this writing, he hadn't yet married into it. His journey to WWE's pinnacle has been a slow and steady one. Here are the 12 steps he has taken to become one of the biggest stars on Raw.

1. Young Levesque trained with fellow body builder Ted Arcic, who had a breif stint with WWE. In addition to winning several regional bodybuiling championships, Levesque - already a big wrestling fan - became more familiar with the business theough his association with Arcidi.

2. He was introduced to legendary heel Killer Kowalski, who owned a wrestling school in Malden, Massachusettes. Kowalski taught him how to wrestle and, just as important, how to swagger.

3. As Terra Ryzing, he debuted against Tony Roy in Kowalski's IWF in March 1992. Four months later, he beat Mad Dog Richard for the IWF title in his first shot at the championship.

4.Still with the Terra Ryzing moniker, he defeated Keith Cole in his WCW debut on February 1, 1994. WCW changed his name to Jean-Paul Levesque, and his most notable matches were against Johnny B. Badd (Marc Mero), Larry Zbyszko, and Alex Wright.

5. Levesque retained the blue blood persona he developed in WCW when he joined the WWF in mid-1995. The WWF changed his name to Hunter Hearst Helmsley. He defeated other mid-card competition, but didn't win any break-through matches.

6. Helmsley defeated Marc mero in 1996, and the heel feuded with emerging fan favorites such as Goldust and Rocky Maivia (The Rock). He introduced Chyna as his bodyguard at that year's WrestleMania.

7. He became the 1997 King of the Ring by defeating Ahmed Johnson in the semifinals and Mankind (Mick Foley) in the final. Chyna's interference was the determining factor in both victories.

8. Shawn Michaels joined forces with helmsley and Chyna in the fall of 1997 to create DeGeneration X, and dubbed Helmsley "Triple H." After Michaels was sent into retirement in 1998 due to a back injury, Helmsley proclaimed himself the new leader of DX and recruited the New Age Outlaws and, later, X-Pac.

9. Triple H attacked X-Pac during his match against Shane McMahon at Wrestlemania XV and joined Chyna in Vince McMahon's Corporation. Triple H then went on a rampage, claiming he was no more a "student of the game" but the "whole damn game."

10. Stephanie McMahon shockingly joined Triple H to celebrate his no-disqualification victory over her father, Vince, at Armaggedon 1999. This ushed in the "McMahon-Helmsley Era."

11. In 2000, Triple H became the first heel to win a WrestleMania main event. He beat The Rock, Mankind, and The Big Show to emerge victorious in what was billed as a fatal four-way.

12. After spending eight months on the sidelines due to a torn quardriceps muscle, and with overwhelming fan support, Triple H returned at the 2002 Royal Rumble. He last eliminated Kurt Angle the victory.