5 things you should know about Kofi Kingston 

#3. Kingston received a helping hand from CM Punk

CM Punk & Kofi Kingston

Kofi Kingston may forever be known for his historic WWE Championship run, but he's also a Hall of Fame caliber tag team wrestler. Having won gold with four separate teams, Kingston is a bonafide tag team expert. One of his former partners includes controversial former WWE Superstar CM Punk.

Kingston isn't one of Punk's many detractors, however. He credits the former WWE superstar with taking him under his wing,

"Every single tag team I've been in, I've learned so much from my partner. Punk was just a mountain of knowledge. He was one of the guys - in an era where it was cool to crap on people for no reason - he ended up taking me under his wing. I still don't know why, but I'm always so grateful that he did that because he didn't have to."

CM Punk encouraged Kofi Kingston before his very first WWE match,

"I remember doing push ups before my first match and seeing a set of feet in front of me. I look up and it's Punk. He knows I'm anxious and he said, 'Remember, these people came to see you.' It put me at such an ease."

The two became close friends,

"We rode together. He was gracious enough to let me travel on his bus with him and I learned so much from him and we had such a great friendship. I am definitely grateful for being in a tag team with him."

Kofi established himself in the tag team setup and remained ever so popular, prompting the WWE universe to call for his main event push. Fact of the matter is that CM Punk too was in a similar situation as the fans rallied behind him even after he parted ways with the company.