Poor Kofi

[Showtime]

First, he gets a big singles win over Kane that puts him in the RAW EC match at NWO. What looked to be Kofi getting a honest look from the WWE brass with him being placed in a big main event match turned out to be all for nothing. His part in the EC match turned out to be him getting beaten down by Edge so Edge could take his place. Let's face it, WWE couldn't have Edge take down a big name like Cena, Jericho, Kane or Mysterio although that last one could've worked well, because they wouldn't want to make either of them look weak, same goes for Knox although that's only because he's still being pushed as unstoppable heel and not post Snitsky monster heel turned jobber. Throw in Kingston, who hasn't been around very long and hence hasn't moved up far on the WWE ladder and was the perfect victim for Edge's attack. Kingston won't lose any on his character by being Edge's victim, but it's still a shame for him as it looked like the WWE was actually looking for future talents, but we should've known WWE wouldn't be thinking that at all leading up to the big PPV. But then I actually wondered what is Kofi's future after this brief slip from anticipation to disappointment. The man Kofi beat to be in EC match still got into the match, making Kofi's win didn't matter as WWE planned to have Kane in it. Then, a chance for retaliation, missed, as Kofi was absent for RAW as Cena put's his name first to challenge Edge. What is Kofi's future in the WWE in 2009?

Well, I have a good feeling he'll be in the MITB match at Wrestlemania, but I am even more sure he won't win it. Beyond that, I have little idea what Kofi will do. With Punk as the middle card champion, the challengers are going to heels. He could feud with Punk, but they would really have to build on it to make it work. Neither one can or should turn heel and a face vs face feud just wouldn't work for me unless it was like a long and even feud where both traded back and forth the belt. Going to SD would make less sense as SD is over popularity with middle card faces. Other than that, I have no real ideas what Kofi's future will look like. I would hate to see Kofi thread water and get lost in the scuffle in 2009 as he is a talented and very over performer.

 

[klunderbunker]

This one had me shaking my head. I get that they needed to have Edge get into the chamber, but Kofi has just been thrown into the backseat. Why not Rey instead of Kofi? Rey has been in the main event for a long while and has little to prove anymore. Kofi was supposed to get his chance at the main event here, but to be fair that can come at any time. Rey isn't someone taht has a lot of time at this level left, so letting him in makes sense. What I don't get is why Kofi couldn't be on Raw last night but Shane could after the beating that he, a 40+ year old man got from three guys, but a 20 something year old can't show up after a beating like he got? Has me scratching my head.

 

[ulimate123]

Did anyone see how fake that chairshot to Kofi by Edge looked? Didn't seem as if Edge got any part of Kofi's head, only got the steel steps...

 

[The Mark of Zur-En-Arrh]

I think they'd have been better off taking Knox out instead of Kofi. Kofi would have made the 3 minutes Knox was in for seem that much more exciting imo.

Never mind, i'm sure Kofi will be in MITB and nearly kill himself by overshooting one of those bizarre cross body's he does where he jumps like a frog, and then he'll be a shoe in to wear the US title and IC title over and over, but rarely speak and never fued and get over barely through his high flying alone..... hmmm that reminds me of some one actually.... also African American, also young and has plenty of talent, also never does anything of real merit in terms of fueds, also gets huge pops for stupidly dangerous spots..... did a double DDT off the turnbuckle at RR........... ran up a tilted ladder....... springboarded from the ropes to a ladder......

Of course, i remember........ Ricky Ortiz!!!!!!!

Seriously though, all Shelton ribbing aside, i too was disappointed that Kofi didn't get the chance to shine Sunday night, but as i say, i'm sure he'll get a chance at WM in MITB. WTF else is he going to do? ECW Battle Royal?........

 

[Queers and Steers]

haha yeah koffi is defintely a shoe in for the MITB and he will do something exciting! im kinda disapointed he didnt get to show some of his stuff in the main event but honestly Edge winning was better so im not to disapointed. that said he should have tooken out mike knox because they had four heels and 2 face instead of three apiece

 

[Scott88]

I think Kofi getting beaten before entering the match could be a good think in the long run. Had he entered the match he probably would have lasted about as long as Chavo did last year at WM against Kane. (I love Jamie Noble on the mike and would love to see him and Santino together!) That could have buried him more than simply not getting a shot. This way he can say that he never got a chance to show what he got and let him chase and prove his worth. Probably won't happen that way but would be a good storyline and a good way to push a mid-carder.

 

[TheOneBigWill]

Why not Rey instead of Kofi?

I can answer this by simply saying.. Because without Rey Mysterio, the ending to that Elimination Chamber match wouldn't of even been a fraction of what it ended up being.

Rey Mysterio was the heart and soul of Sunday's Raw Chamber match-up. He fought with Chris Jericho from beginning to end, and Rey proved to the world that he indeed wasn't some fluke small guy, who only ever got near a Heavyweight title because of his best friend's passing.

If Mysterio would've been eliminated instead of Kofi Kingston, the ending would've had to of been Cena against Edge, or Jericho against Edge, as noone would've believed Kingston to stand a chance. And the way it worked out, Cena leaving early put all the focus on the trio it really belonged on.

Jericho, for almost delivering on a promise he guaranteed would happen.

Mysterio, for being the ultimate underdog, and almost, ALMOST pulling out what would've been his biggest victory, ever.

And Edge, the guy who once again found the Ultimate Opportunity to involve himself into a Championship match.

If anything, Edge's introduction single-handedly replaced any type of John Cena element. For Cena to have retained, would've been a massive failure on even putting Edge in, or taking Kingston out. And to not put Edge in, and having Cena retain, would've completely ruined the Pay per view.. as the match would've ended how everyone assumed it was going to, to begin with.. with noone standing a chance except Jericho, slightly.

SO.. the way I see it, Mysterio truly carried that Elimination Chamber match with all his hard work. And that's something Kingston just couldn't of done this soon in his career. And Edge made that Chamber match one of the most historical of all time, by the events that lead to it.

 

[ocwrestler23]

I Hope Kofi gets drafted to the same show as edge and wwe builds up a angry Kofi to fued with edge

 

[That's Just Weird]

I get that they needed to have Edge get into the chamber, but Kofi has just been thrown into the backseat. Why not Rey instead of Kofi? Rey has been in the main event for a long while and has little to prove anymore.

I agree with this wholeheartedly. Kingston is someone who is getting so much love from the crowd that he could be built up to be huge, probably directly under Cena, if he got more work on the mic. He seems to be one of the best mid-card workers on the roster right now.

I don't like the way the WWE is using the mid-card to put the top guys over, instead of the top guys having their own feuds, and the mid-card their own feuds. It seems that the WWE tried to "prove the Internet wrong" when they gave the champion to C.M. Punk, by showing us that he's not champion material, and we all know it was because he just wasn't ready to hold the belt yet. So what did they do? They got Randy Orton to bury him, and made him look like a pansy next to Randy Orton's LEG.

Anyone on the mid/top-card can be champion material right now if they are built up right, and got just a tad more training from the top guys.

 

[Mark0820]

I was a little disappointed, but this could actually be better for Kofi in the long run. Kofi comes out and challenges Edge, Edge dismisses him as a nobody and Steph sticks them in a tag match where Kofi gets the win. Kofi then gets a non-title match against Edge and say wins via DQ. That legitimizes him as an upper-card talent. It all but guarantees him a MITB shot. If done properly, it could EASILY push another solid talent up and get him into a bigger feud with one of WWE's top stars. It doesn't make Edge look weak and it just makes Kofi look all the more impressive.

 

[Banx21]

WWE needs to start lookig at their talent rigt...They r wasting talent away with kofi and shelton benjamin ...When will he actually let an african american get in a title picture besides the ECW title wich is just like the interconinental....

 

[tyler.durden]

kofi has a long way to go, i think what was done to him at nwo was ok. besides, he was spoon-fed an intercontinental championship right after being drafted to raw. i don't know why the wwe doesn't let him or shelton get on the mic for once. i mean, batista is the worst when it comes to mic skills and even he gets air time. to me, kofi doesn't have personality. he comes out and smiles. that's it. i would like the wwe to give him some air time and let him talk. let him develop his personality in front of us. imagine jericho coming out with a frown face and just wrestles... i'm sure he won't draw any reaction...

 

[crotchknocker]

Kofi needs to prove he can use the mic before he can get his push. He's an exciting guy, he flies around the ring, but really he would've only been good for a couple minutes in that match, before Jericho gave him the codebreaker or Kane chokeslammed him.

Kofi really only has a few moves in his arsenal, he would've drop kicked a few people jumped off the top rope and then he wouldn't have anything left to do so they'd have somebody do their finisher to him and bam. Maybe he can do some more moves, but they don't let him ever show it.

If this was real life Kofi would've came out and said something to Edge last night, but that will never happen because the WWE is reluctant to let him use the mic.

 

[RawIsRamsey]

Kofi is a mid-carder for life. Get over it folks. Just cause you can jump, flip, and make botched moves look good doesn't mean you're a solid talent. Kofi is a flash in the pan and will be released by the end of the year. Bank on it.

Besides, there are plenty of flippy guys working for other companies who not only do what Kofi does better, but are better talkers as well.

 

[Christian Battlez]

I fully expect Edge to get his soon. I'm a huge Edgehead and building Edge up is actually helping the WWE's young talent. I can see Kennedy,CM Punk,and Kofi all getting mini-feuds with Edge I guess as revenge for robbing the younger talent of their chances to be big stars. Plus now were getting Cena vs Edge again a classic by two of wwe's best workers.Edge will get his and it will be sweet.

 

[Starchild]

I really feel for Kofi in this situation, but I have to agree with Will...there was no one else it could have been. I was excited to see what he could have done on the big stage, but I'm sure we'll still get the opportunity in MitB.
Rey truly did carry that match and I gained a great deal of respect back for him..I had no idea he could still go like that. He even had me thinking a couple times that he might actually pull it off which would have been a swerve of a swerve.
And Knox is a monster heel that they are pushing and lacked in that match otherwise as Kane is just a glorified jobber as this stage of his career which is sad. No way could Edge have taken him out.

Where I think they did drop the ball (unless they plan to do this in the future) is not having Kofi on Raw and attacking Edge. I think he has alot of talent and testing him with some main eventers could be very good for his career. I even saw a remark on the LD where someone said they could have him win the title from Edge, but have it reversed (like that time when Jericho did so with Triple H in 2000 on Raw). Just anything to give Kofi some momentum and a little push would have been nice; I believe they actually owed it to him for having him beat Kane to get in and then never even having a shot in the Chamber.

But I think he will have a good showing in MitB and have a run or two with the IC or US title this year depending on which show he's on after the draft. He's one of the better midcarders imo and I can only hope he gets another shot.

 

[NSL]

I can answer this by simply saying.. Because without Rey Mysterio, the ending to that Elimination Chamber match wouldn't of even been a fraction of what it ended up being.

Rey Mysterio was the heart and soul of Sunday's Raw Chamber match-up. He fought with Chris Jericho from beginning to end, and Rey proved to the world that he indeed wasn't some fluke small guy, who only ever got near a Heavyweight title because of his best friend's passing.

If Mysterio would've been eliminated instead of Kofi Kingston, the ending would've had to of been Cena against Edge, or Jericho against Edge, as noone would've believed Kingston to stand a chance. And the way it worked out, Cena leaving early put all the focus on the trio it really belonged on.

Jericho, for almost delivering on a promise he guaranteed would happen.

Mysterio, for being the ultimate underdog, and almost, ALMOST pulling out what would've been his biggest victory, ever.

And Edge, the guy who once again found the Ultimate Opportunity to involve himself into a Championship match.

If anything, Edge's introduction single-handedly replaced any type of John Cena element. For Cena to have retained, would've been a massive failure on even putting Edge in, or taking Kingston out. And to not put Edge in, and having Cena retain, would've completely ruined the Pay per view.. as the match would've ended how everyone assumed it was going to, to begin with.. with noone standing a chance except Jericho, slightly.

SO.. the way I see it, Mysterio truly carried that Elimination Chamber match with all his hard work. And that's something Kingston just couldn't of done this soon in his career. And Edge made that Chamber match one of the most historical of all time, by the events that lead to it.

Thanks for keep your answer simple


I don't get why Kofi was taken out the way he was either. With Edge being "married" to Vickie, they easily could've done this on free TV the week before, and had Vickie state that if Edge loses, he's allowed in the RAW Chamber. This would avoid Kofi getting his ass kicked seconds before what could have been the biggest match of his career, and still got Edge the WHC.

I knew Kofi wasn't going to be a factor, but it would've been a push to just be in the match. Now, he's back to being a low mid-carder, and won't get close to any titles for a while.

 

[pandanwh]

the wwe has built too many stars into main eventers and as a result Kofi is going to get screwed continously.

Think about it with the likes of Edge, HHH, Jericho, Orton, Cena, Kane, CMPunk, Undertaker, Rey, Jeff Hardy, Big Show the WWE is dare I say too top heavy.
and that isnt even including Batista, hbk, and Bradshaw (Ialso must have forgot people)

While I feel for the guy where can they put him. I think the WWE needs to ditch some top level talent because they have run their course. (Who can HHH and Undertaker feud with anymore. Does anybody give a shit about the Big Show anymore)

Kofi will be buried for a while because it looks like Matt Hardy, Christian, Kozlov, and Swagger are getting built up to the main event over him.

 

[hArdyPUNKmArk]

It sucks for Kofi, but honestly who else was it going to be. It really could not have been Rey, Kane, Knox, Y2J or Cena....

I think that Kofi will get another chance later down the track but they really need to give him some mic time. All the main eventers have shown their personality and who they are and Kofi has never really been given this chance. Before anyone can be considered for the main event scene they need some mic time and some good promos to see how the crowd/fans respond, if they're popular they might get a proper chance at the ME scene.

Kofi will chill in the mid card for a while still but will hopefully get his chance sooner than later, but he needs some promos, a good fued with maybe Shelton or something would be good.

 

[Ghostboy259]

It sucks for Kofi, but honestly who else was it going to be. It really could not have been Rey, Kane, Knox, Y2J or Cena....

It could have been Knox, but that wouldn't make sense both of them being heel and all. thought a Victory over Knox could have been a good Win for his heel character

 

[.còrVétt3!`]

I wondered why Smackdown's Elimination Chamber match was set up to be more attractive than Raw's in terms of superstars (sorry Smackdown fans) - Kofi, albeit due a push, was clearly the odd one out in the Chamber schedule, so I figured something would happen to Kofi. Not saying he doesn't deserve such a push, but it did originally seem that his place in the Chamber was just for the sake of filling a 6th spot.

 

[ad21k]

I said before the PPV there was no logical reason for Kofi to be in the match, he lacks the skills in ring to compete at that level. Apart from been a comical jamacian there is nothing to his character and has nowhere near enough crediability to be in an important championship match (even with 5 other contenders). Did you really believe they were going to allow the match to go on with only 2 legit contenders in Jericho and Cena? Without Edge the match would have lacked enough star power to make it enjoyable. The elmination chamber may be a gimmick match, but it is no place for average, spot monkey, midcarders.

 

[Profit]

Kofi would have been exciting to see in the match though, I think it's a given that none of us thought he had a chance to win the match but he could have provided a couple high spots that made us all go "wow".

I think he'll be in the MITB this year, and get his chance to showcase what he has wrestling wise. I actually think he has a chance of winning it too, and if Edge was still champ maybe that could set up a feud between those two, call me neive but I think they could put on a good match.

As for who besides Kofi they could have had Edge take out, only one that would have been better would be Mike Knox but that wouldn't make sense. Having him take out Rey? Hell no, did you see what he did in that match? He by far had the best match he's had in a long time, he pretty much stole the show with that performance and made that match what it was.

 

[Sparky]

First, he gets a big singles win over Kane that puts him in the RAW EC match at NWO.

How is winning against Kane a big single win? Kane jobs to everybody.

What looked to be Kofi getting a honest look from the WWE brass with him being placed in a big main event match turned out to be all for nothing.

Wrong. why? you answer it yourself right here.

His part in the EC match turned out to be him getting beaten down by Edge so Edge could take his place.

See?

Let's face it, WWE couldn't have Edge take down a big name like Cena, Jericho, Kane or Mysterio

Why have him take out an entertaining wrestler when he could take out the Rookie that don't deserve to be in the ME title just yet.

Throw in Kingston, who hasn't been around very long and hence hasn't moved up far on the WWE ladder and was the perfect victim for Edge's attack. Kingston won't lose any on his character by being Edge's victim,

Well what was the point of this thread?

but it's still a shame for him as it looked like the WWE was actually looking for future talents,

Or maybe... just maybe it was the planj all along. Maybe they never intended him being in it.

but we should've known WWE wouldn't be thinking that at all leading up to the big PPV. But then I actually wondered what is Kofi's future after this brief slip from anticipation to disappointment.

The same as it was before hand. Nothing will change in his career because of this.

The man Kofi beat to be in EC match still got into the match, making Kofi's win didn't matter as WWE planned to have Kane in it. Then, a chance for retaliation, missed, as Kofi was absent for RAW as Cena put's his name first to challenge Edge.

he was the champion. automatic number one contender. and he THERE IS NO WAY IN FUCKING HELL Edge vs Kofi will headline Wrestlemania.

What is Kofi's future in the WWE in 2009?

Couplke of IC itle runs maybe a Tag team championship. you know typical Mid eventer stuff.

 

[d_henderson1810]

It sucks for Kofi, but honestly who else was it going to be. It really could not have been Rey, Kane, Knox, Y2J or Cena....

I think that Kofi will get another chance later down the track but they really need to give him some mic time. All the main eventers have shown their personality and who they are and Kofi has never really been given this chance. Before anyone can be considered for the main event scene they need some mic time and some good promos to see how the crowd/fans respond, if they're popular they might get a proper chance at the ME scene.

Kofi will chill in the mid card for a while still but will hopefully get his chance sooner than later, but he needs some promos, a good fued with maybe Shelton or something would be good.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

You say about all main-eventers got mic time. But remember with Chris Benoit. He was never very serviceable on the mike, but his ringwork was top-notch, so they had him win the title, at WM no less. So, you don't need to be a talker to be a main-eventer. Also, what about Jeff Hardy? He doens't cut lenghty promos, but is over huge, and they put the WWE Title on him.

Kane main-evented the first year he was in (at KOTR '98), and was pushed, but didn't really speak during that time. Also, currently, they don't have Taker talk much during the last couple of years (and he's a great talker) because it takes away from his gimmick. Also, Undertaker rarely spoke in his first incarnation when he first debuted, but had Paul Bearer mainly do his talking.

I think that Shelton Benjamin is definetly under-utililised. Shelton is great on the mike, is a very good wrestler, is over and puts his body on the line many times (look at all the ladder stunts he does). Shelton deserves a main-event run at some stage, and I can't understand them not utilising his talent. If Shelton or Kofi were white, I wonder if they would be given more of a go.