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For over 100 days now, Kofi Kingston has ruled the SmackDown brand as the WWE Champion. The veteran member of The New Day has been WWE Champion longer than most had expected. Given that Kofi has had such a lengthy title reign, it is apparent that WWE has faith in him as a top star.
In the three and a half months since Kofi has been champion, he has successfully defended the WWE Championship numerous times. He ran through Kevin Owens at Money in the Bank, defeated Dolph Ziggler at Super Show-Down and Stomping Grounds, and he most recently overcame Samoa Joe at Extreme Rules.
However, as we head into the Biggest Party of the Summer, the current WWE Champion is without a challenger. As of this writing, there is no clear-cut opponent for the immensely popular champion. Last week on SmackDown Live, Elias, Samoa Joe and Randy Orton stepped up to individually challenge Kofi. Those challenges eventually led to a six-man tag team match between the aforementioned challengers and The New Day.
There are a plethora of deserving stars that would love a shot at the former Jamaican Sensation's WWE Championship. SummerSlam is the second-biggest event of the year, hence WWE ought to book the the champ in a high-profile match.
With that said, let's take a look at three stars who could potentially challenge Kofi Kingston for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam.
3. Drew McIntyre
Drew McIntyre is currently without a full-fledged feud. He does have an ongoing story-line with Cedric Alexander, but I doubt that the rivalry will continue for long. McIntyre deserves more than a feud with the former Cruiserweight Champion. WWE would be foolish to have him sit out of SummerSlam 2019 without a feud.
At Extreme Rules, McIntyre and Shane McMahon were unsuccessful in their attempt to conquer Roman Reigns and The Undertaker. The former NXT Champion looked impressive in the match and came out looking strong. Many had speculated that McIntyre would face Taker at SummerSlam. Although that match is still possible, there has been no build-up to that match at all. Hence, the chances of Taker vs McIntyre taking place are slim at best.
To be fair, McIntyre would be a great challenger to Kofi. The Scottish Psychopath has been one of the most dominant athletes in recent memory, and he would pose a great threat to Kofi's WWE Championship. If McIntyre inserts himself into the WWE title picture, Kofi's days as WWE Champion could well be numbered.
2. Roman Reigns
In what seems to be an extremely rare occurrence, Roman Reigns doesn't have a clear-cut path to SummerSlam. Granted, he does have unfinished business with Shane McMahon, but Shane seems to be more focused on Owens than he does with Reigns. Hence, The Big Dog doesn't have much going on for him right now.
However, the former Universal Champion could always enter the WWE Championship picture. Reigns has always been one of WWE's highest prioritie,s and Vince McMahon would never shy away from crowning Reigns WWE Champion at a monumental stage like SummerSlam - just look at last year's show. WWE can't afford to let Reigns tread water and sit out of SummerSlam. Reigns has proven to be a credible draw and he would prove a great challenger to Kofi Kingston.
Ever since his return from leukemia, Reigns has stayed out of the World Championship picture. In fact, he has been involved in stale story-lines with Drew McIntyre, Elias, and Shane McMahon. Reigns needs to move onto bigger things and it doesn't get bigger than the WWE Championship.
1.Randy Orton
The most probable and likely challenger for Kofi at SummerSlam has to be Randy Orton. Orton confronted Kofi this past week on SmackDown Live and declared his intentions to come after Kingston's WWE Championship. He later pinned the WWE Champion in a six-man tag team match to award his team the victory. The Viper made his statement clear on SmackDown Live.
Kofi better watch out.
Orton is a thirteen-time world champion, and he last won the WWE Championship in 2017 at WrestleMania. Orton would lose his title to Jinder Mahal in his first title defense, however. The Viper hasn't held the WWE Championship for more than two years now and that is a rarity.
After pinning the WWE Champion, Orton is on the top of the list for potential challengers for Kofi Kingston at SummerSlam. Kofi and Orton have a lot of history together - they fought each other numerous times in 2009. Orton got the better of Kofi in that feud, but Kofi did benefit immensely from it.
Fans would love to see The Viper take on Kofi for the WWE Championship. Orton might just be an RKO away from the WWE Championship.
Who do you think Kofi should defend his WWE Championship against at SummerSlam 2019? Share your thoughts in the comments down below!
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