At WrestleMania, WWE veteran Kofi Kingston defeated Daniel Bryan to win the WWE Championship for the first time in his 11-year career. Kofi overcame many obstacles over the past 11 years–especially in the past few months–to earn his opportunity at the WWE Championship. Here’s a brief history of Kofi’s experience in the WWE.
2008-2009: The Jamaican Sensation
Kingston debuted as the first ever Jamaican WWE superstar (even though he has no heritage or ties to Jamaica). He was on a roll for the first few months of his WWE career, holding an undefeated streak for several months. In his first title opportunity and his first match after being drafted to Raw, he defeated Chris Jericho for the Intercontinental Championship, which he held for three months. He captured the United States Championship in June 2009, and defended it at several Pay-Per-Views before losing it in October. Shortly after his title loss, he dropped the Jamaican accent, and it was revealed that he actually hailed from Ghana.
2010-2012: Intercontinental and Tag Team Championship Reigns
Kofi was drafted to Smackdown, where he competed in a tournament for the vacant Intercontinental Championship. He won the tournament, but was stripped of the title when Drew McIntyre, the title holder before him, returned. Kofi defeated McIntyre and held the Intercontinental Championship for two months before relinquishing it to Dolph Ziggler. He defeated Ziggler three months later to regain the championship before losing it to Wade Barrett after another two months. Kofi also held the united States Championship for about a month before losing it to Dolph Ziggler.
Toward the end of 2011, Kofi teamed up with Evan Bourne to win the WWE Tag Team Championships. The duo, known as Air Boom, reigned from August to January, but their time as champions came to an end after Evan Bourne was suspended a second time for violating WWE’s Wellness Policy. In April of 2012, Kingston teamed up with R-Truth to win the championships once again, holding the titles until September.
2012-2014: Third United States Championship and Battle Royal Appearances
From October to late December, Kofi held the Intercontinental Championship as he consistently feuded with Wade Barrett. In April of 2013, Kingston defeated Cesaro to become a three-time United States Champion, but lost it a month later due to an elbow injury.
Over the past few years, Kofi had gained notoriety for his creativity in avoiding elimination at several Royal Rumble matches and other battle royal matches. Kofi has utilized handstands, other wrestlers, steel steps, an office chair, and the barricade to propel him back to the ring and allow him to continue to compete in the match. However, this has yet to result in a battle royal victory for him.
2014-2019: The New Day
Near the end of 2014, WWE played vignettes advertising the trio of Kingston, Big E, and Xavier Woods as preachers backed by a gospel choir. They debuted at the end of November, but didn’t win their first Tag Team Championships until April of 2015. They lost the titles after two months, but regained them two months later. They then became the longest reigning tag champions in WWE history after holding the title for over 331 days. After 483 days, they lost their championships in December of 2016.
Throughout their title reign, they transformed from preachers into their made-up unicorn horn-wearing, pancake-eating gimmick. They talked about being and loving “booty”, Xavier Woods played the trombone, and they all frequently gyrated their hips. They hosted WrestleMania 33 in 2017, and still made appearances on TV while Kofi was sidelined with an ankle injury. They returned and defeated the Usos for the SmackDown Tag Team Championships and went on to pass the titles back and forth between the Usos twice. Whether they held the title or not, The New Day consistently played a part in WWE programming for five years, something Kofi had not done before his partnership with Big E and Woods.
2019-Now: Kofi’s Road to WrestleMania
In February, Kofi was selected to replace an injured Mustafa Ali in the WWE Championship Elimination Chamber match. He entered the Chamber third and lasted until the final two before being eliminated by Daniel Bryan. Due to his fantastic performance, Kofi earned a championship match at Fastlane, but was stripped of the opportunity so Kevin Owens could have it. Kofi was told that he would have a chance at the WWE Championship if he could defeat five men in a gauntlet match. He outlasted the five men, but was then defeated by Daniel Bryan in an additional non-title match.
WWE CEO Vince McMahon gave Kofi one more obstacle to a WWE Championship opportunity when he announced that his partners from the New Day could earn the opportunity for him if they defeated five tag teams in a gauntlet match. Big E and Xavier Woods won the gauntlet, and Kofi was finally given the WWE Championship match he had been put through many obstacles to achieve. At WrestleMania 35, Kofi defeated Daniel Bryan to begin his first WWE Championship reign.
After 11 years of struggling to stay on TV, let alone stay champion, Kofi was finally able to overcome a significant amount of adversity and win the WWE Championship. With his victory this past Sunday, Kofi became the first African-born WWE Champion in history. He also became WWE’s 30th Triple Crown champion and 20th Grand Slam Champion.
This post was originally written on Katie's Digital Journalism Blog.