5 times Vince McMahon abruptly canceled a Superstar's push

Modified Jul 22, 2022 23:48 GMT

#3 Kofi Kingston

Around a decade ago, Kofi Kingston received a major push, thanks to his incredible popularity among the WWE Universe. Kofi began feuding with Randy Orton, who led a stable named The Legacy at that time. The rivalry turned Kofi into a star and he went on to defeat Randy Orton in the closing moments of a 5-on-5 Traditional Survivor Series match. Kofi also hit a Boom Drop on Orton at Madison Square Garden, which is regarded as a pivotal moment in his career at that point of time.

Also read: 5 huge mistakes that killed WCW

During a match on Raw, Kofi forgot to lay down for Orton to hit him with a Punt kick to the head. Orton was visibly angry at this and immediately delivered a thunderous RKO on Kingston, followed by calling him 'stupid' repeatedly. Soon after, Kofi's feud with Orton came to an end, and so did his push to the top. Kofi went back to being a mid-carder and it was rumored that Orton had a hand in halting Kofi's push.

About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

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Edited by Kaushik Das