Kofi Kingston retained the WWE Championship at Extreme Rules on the same night that The New Day became six-time tag team champions, but who will the faction’s esteemed leader face at WWE SummerSlam 2019?
In the midst of an all-time great run as WWE Champion, everything Kofi Kingston touches turns to gold. Whether he’s spreading the Power of Positivity or flipping off fools like Samoa Joe, Kingston is must-see whenever he appears on SmackDown Live or (Wild Card Alert!) Raw.
And his matches? Well, just go look at what he and Samoa Joe did at Extreme Rules. The man is one of wrestling’s best sellers, and the psychology in his matches are absolute genius. I can’t think of a single wrestler whose attention to detail is as meticulous as Kingston’s right now, but that isn’t surprising considering how long he’s been operating at an elite level in WWE.
WWE SummerSlam 2019 is a venue that needs huge matches, and Kingston can tear the house down with anyone. The Toronto crowd will be ready for Kingston to dazzle and blow their minds, but who will be his proverbial dance partner at WWE’s second-biggest show of the year?
Here are three possibilities to challenge Kingston for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam.
Ali
Ali vs. Kofi Kingston would be a dream match bringing everything full circle. It was Ali’s injury prior to the Elimination Chamber Pay Per View that opened up a spot for Kingston, who completely blew away WWE’s expectations when he took the spot with his insane Gauntlet Match performance and memorable night inside the Chamber.
The mutual respect between Ali and Kingston is a wonder to behold, because it’s real friendship at its finest. This respect will make a potential WWE Title match at SummerSlam even more intriguing, because Ali will want to truly prove his worth and test himself as an elite competitor against a man on top of his game.
Kofi seems untouchable right now. His match against Daniel Bryan was the best of 2019 thus far, and he had a great program with Samoa Joe for Extreme Rules. But a “feud” with Ali culminating in the likely Match of the Night at WWE SummerSlam 2019?
Well, that just might be a dream come true. The selling in this match would be off the charts, and both men are exceptional athletes, with Ali being a special high-flier. But the nuanced psychology will be the real treat, making the match more than befitting of main event status at such an important show.
Aleister Black
At Extreme Rules, Aleister Black took part in his first Pay-Per-View singles match on the main roster, and he passed his first test with flying colors.
Black vs. Cesaro had all the hype imaginable, as diehard wrestling fans were psyched at the prospect of two elite athletes and beloved in-ring competitors going hard at it. These two men certainly delivered, with Black showing why he became such a fan favorite in NXT.
Whether it was his barnburner with The Velveteen Dream or his great title matches with Andrade and Johnny Gargano, Black has put on classic after classic. He can steal the show, he can rule the main event, and he can even team up with a guy like Ricochet to put on great tag match after great tag match night-in and night-out. Remember THAT tag match to start NXT TakeOver: New York? Yeah, that was awesome.
Realistically, Black vs. Kingston probably isn’t happening, because WWE would likely choose a bigger name as Kingston’s opponent in a WWE Title match at SummerSlam. But we can dream, right? Just imagine how cool it would be to see these two guys duel it out for the title on the big stage? Kingston could definitely help Black get even more “over” with the main roster crowd.
Randy Orton
Fightful.com’s Sean Ross Sapp reported that Randy Orton is dealing with a neck injury, but if he can make a return by WWE SummerSlam 2019, he could be the perfect WWE Title opponent for Kofi Kingston.
Since Brock Lesnar cashed in on Seth Rollins to close Extreme Rules, Kingston isn’t threatened by The Beast Incarnate (at least not for now, perhaps that will change once Lesnar gets acquainted with SmackDown on FOX in October). But Kingston could face a different veteran performer hungry for a world title in Orton.
There’s so much history here that has still yet to be explored, even though the two had a poetic meet-up in a pivotal Gauntlet Match before WrestleMania 35. “Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!” is the man who underestimates Kofi Kingston, and Orton has seemingly (hopefully) learned better over the years.
We can only hope that Orton will be healthy and happy in the near future, because this could be a good SummerSlam match between two veteran performers. Though other excellent heels like Andrade could be opponents for Kingston’s WWE Title at SummerSlam, the company would probably prefer to go for a more proven name like Orton at such a big show.
Orton vs. Kingston practically sells itself, and this would be another marquee victory for Kofi as he heads into October as the face of SmackDown Live.