100 Days of Kofi Kingston as WWE champion: 3 positives and 2 negatives

Kofi Kingston overcame multiple obstacles in the build-up to WrestleMania 35 before defeating Daniel Bryan at the event to win the WWE Championship for the first time in his career.

Since then, the New Day member has defended his title against Bryan, Seth Rollins, AJ Styles, Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, Dolph Ziggler and Samoa Joe, while he also put together an incredible run of 21 televised victories in a row between April and July.

During this time, WWE has taken advantage of the ‘Wild Card Rule’ by using Kingston on both Raw and SmackDown Live, meaning he has become one of the most featured Superstars on Monday and Tuesday nights over the last three months.

Given that Kingston is the ultimate WWE babyface, the majority of fans have been overwhelmingly positive about his reign with the WWE Championship.

Now, as we reach the 100-day mark of his title reign, let’s take a look at the biggest pros and cons of his time as WWE champion so far.

---

#5 Positive: WrestleMania moment

WWE reportedly planned two WWE Championship matches earlier this year: Daniel Bryan vs. Ali at Fastlane and Daniel Bryan vs. Kevin Owens at WrestleMania 35.

However, following an injury to Ali in the build-up to the six-man Elimination Chamber match in February, Kofi Kingston took the former 205 Live Superstar’s spot and quickly gained a huge amount of momentum after lasting over an hour in a gauntlet match on SmackDown Live.

The former Intercontinental champion almost won the WWE Championship from Bryan inside the Chamber before finally earning a one-on-one rematch for the company’s top prize at WrestleMania 35, thanks to the help of his fellow New Day members in a qualifying gauntlet match.

Then, in a WrestleMania moment that will be remembered forever, Kingston defeated Bryan in the Match of the Night at MetLife Stadium to claim the WWE Championship after an 11-year wait.

See WWE Smackdown Live Updates, Highlights of event, & more on WWE Smackdown updates page

#4 Negative: Predictable title defences

WWE took the unusual approach of having three babyfaces (Kofi Kingston, Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch) win the company’s most important titles from four heels (Daniel Bryan, Brock Lesnar, Ronda Rousey and Charlotte Flair) at WrestleMania 35.

While Rollins immediately found himself in a dream match against AJ Styles at Money In The Bank, Kingston has mostly been involved in predictable title defences since his victory over Bryan.

Kevin Owens is a credible challenger for the WWE Championship – he is a former Universal champion, after all – but it felt obvious heading into Money In The Bank that Kingston would retain, and the same can be said for his matches against Dolph Ziggler at Super ShowDown and Stomping Grounds.

Before defeating Samoa Joe at Extreme Rules, the New Day member also defended his WWE Championship against Rollins, Bryan, AJ Styles and Sami Zayn in matches on Raw and SmackDown Live, but none of those opponents were realistically going to win the title.

#3 Positive: The New Day has stayed together

Five years on from their debut as a trio, Kofi Kingston is enjoying a three-month reign with the WWE Championship and Big E & Xavier Woods have just won The New Day’s sixth Tag Team titles.

There have been moments throughout The New Day’s alliance where a break-up has been teased, notably around the time of Superstar Shake-Ups and in November 2017 during their feud with The Shield, but it never seemed likely to happen.

WWE has a ready-made storyline in place right now if Big E & Woods were to turn against their partner, especially after they won the gauntlet match which ultimately enabled him to claim the WWE Championship.

However, in a rare show of unity between WWE faction members, the fun-loving group has remained loyal to each other and stuck to their word that they will never split up.

#2 Negative: Trouble In Paradise

When Baron Corbin, Drew McIntyre and Randy Orton hit their End of Days, Claymore and RKO finishers, the WWE audience has been conditioned to believe that the match will end within the next three seconds.

In Kofi Kingston’s case, he has been using Trouble In Paradise for several years as a frequent move, but it never particularly stood out as one of the most devastating finishers in WWE.

Since WrestleMania 35, however, Kingston has won almost every one of his matches with Trouble In Paradise – a move that, with respect to the WWE champion, is nothing special compared to the legendary finishers that have been used by people in his position in the past.

For example, the man who Kingston defeated for the title, Daniel Bryan, has multiple ways to win a match every time he competes, whereas the New Day member’s matches end the same way 90 percent of the time.

#1 Positive: WWE has put their faith in him

When Kofi Kingston won the WWE Championship from Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 35, one of the biggest concerns amongst fans was how long WWE’s decision-makers would allow him to keep hold of the title and how seriously he would be taken as champion.

Jinder Mahal, for example, held the WWE Championship for five months in 2017 but his storylines were often overshadowed by the likes of John Cena, AJ Styles, Kevin Owens and Shane McMahon on SmackDown Live.

In contrast, Kingston has become one of the most prominent Superstars on WWE programming ever since his WWE Championship storyline began in February, while he has already held the title for longer than many people expected.

When all’s said and done, Kingston’s reign as WWE champion will likely be viewed among the best of the last few years, and that is thanks to WWE putting their faith in him as one of the company’s top guys.