 One of the featured preliminary matches was between Ric Flair versus Triple H for the WWE Intercontinental Championship. On the October 3 episode of Raw, WWE Homecoming, Triple H returned after a four-month hiatus. He took part in a match, teaming up with Flair, who was a fan favorite during Triple H's absence, to take on Chris Masters and Carlito. The duo defeated Masters and Carlito; after the match, Triple H turned on Flair and hit him with a sledgehammer. The following week, Triple H explained his actions, saying he saw that Flair had become mediocre when he was spat at and when he won the Intercontinental title. Triple H continued to say that he needed to end Flair's career so his memories of Flair would not be tarnished. On the October 24 episode of Raw, a singles match was scheduled between Flair and Triple H at Taboo Tuesday, in which the fans would be given the opportunity to choose the type of match they compete in. The choice of the matches were a regular match, submission match, or a Steel Cage, a match where the ring is surrounded by walls of steel, for the Intercontinental title.
