Michael Hayes Says Triple H Has Picked Bobby Roode as the Next Michael Hayes

WWE may already know who will one day take over one of the most important jobs backstage. Michael Hayes says Triple H has picked Bobby Roode to eventually succeed him as the company's lead producer.

What Michael Hayes said

Hayes revealed it during an appearance on Stephanie McMahon's podcast, What's Your Story? He said Triple H had a direct conversation with him about the future, telling him that he was not going to be around forever.

Then Triple H gave him a new job. "You're our Pat Patterson," Hayes recalled him saying. "I need you to make Bobby Roode 'Michael.'"

The comparison says a lot. Pat Patterson, the first Intercontinental Champion, spent decades as one of the most trusted minds backstage in WWE, helping to shape matches and mentor wrestlers and producers. Triple H wants Hayes to play that same role for Roode.

Who is Michael Hayes?

Before he was one of WWE's top producers, Hayes was a member of the Fabulous Freebirds, one of the most influential tag teams of the 1980s. The Freebirds were inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2016. Hayes has spent decades working backstage in WWE, and as lead producer he plays a big part in how matches are laid out and how the biggest shows run behind the scenes.

Bobby Roode's road to the producer's chair

For a lot of fans, Roode is best known for his years in TNA, where he was one half of Beer Money with James Storm and had one of the most memorable runs as TNA World Heavyweight Champion. He then became a sensation in NXT, where his Glorious entrance made him an instant favorite and he won the NXT Championship in 2017.

On the main roster, he went on to win the United States Championship and tag team gold. A neck injury in 2022 ended his in-ring career, and he moved into a producer role backstage, where his work has reportedly earned plenty of praise from people inside the company.

What it means

Producers rarely get the spotlight, but they shape almost every match fans see on Raw, SmackDown and Premium Live Events. They help wrestlers lay out their matches, time segments and make sure the show runs smoothly. The lead producer is one of the most trusted voices in that room.

Picking Roode now, years before Hayes is expected to step away, shows how much Triple H likes to plan ahead. It also says a lot about how highly Roode is rated backstage. He was never a WWE world champion as a wrestler, but he could end up being one of the most important people in the company behind the curtain.

Hayes, who is 67, also opened up about his health on the same podcast. He has had a hip replacement and several other surgeries since 2020, and he said he still needs more, with one of his shoulders in particularly bad shape. "I'm so sick of surgeries, and I need more," he said. On a brighter note, he credited Diamond Dallas Page's DDP Yoga program with improving his mobility, and said he has lost 50 pounds.

Hayes has not said when he plans to step back, and there is no sign that it will happen soon. For now, Roode is learning from one of the best.