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What’s the story?
ROH COO Koff was recently interviewed by Josh Barnett of USA Today about Cole's recent move to WWE.
In case you didn’t know…
Former three-time ROH World champ Cole recently debuted on NXT Takeover: Brooklyn, running in after the NXT title match and delivering a superkick to new champ Drew McIntyre.
He is currently aligned with fellow ROH alums Bobby Fish and Kyle O'Reilly in a new three man stable.
The heart of the matter
Koff stated he feels the same way about Cole's departure just like anyone else's departure: proud.
"It always makes me feel like we did a good job on our part. We can look at the NXT roster, or the roster at Impact or even the RAW and Smackdown level and we're well-represented in that."
With the likes of Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins and, of course, Daniel Bryan going on to huge success in WWE, Koff believes it speaks volumes of the way ROH handles its business and gives talent the chance to shine.
"I really believe this to be case, Ring of Honor has raised the level of professional wrestling in the last three or four years."
What’s next?
Next up for Cole is undoubtedly a future NXT title shot against McIntyre, as for Fish and O'Reilly, it remains to be seen if they will adopt their former moniker of reDRagon.
They will almost certainly end up with a shot at Sanity's tag belts sooner rather than later, for now, the three-man stable seems content to destroy whoever is unlucky enough to be in their way on NXT.
Author’s take
WWE fans in the know have been clamouring for Cole since it became clear he wasn't going to re-sign for ROH. The 28-year-old is a well-travelled veteran and is only now hitting his athletic peak.
With a program at the very top of NXT, it is clear WWE Management has big plans for Cole and providing he stays injury-free, we see no reason why he can't go on to become a major player both in the short term and on the main roster when the inevitable call-up comes.
