Ahead of his SummerSlam world title match against Randy Orton, Kofi Kingston caught up with the Ottawa Sun for an interview. During it, he discussed Randy Orton derailing his first major push in 2009 and what it means to finally settle the score.
Check out highlights below:
On his history with Randy Orton:
For those who don’t know, 10 years ago — in 2009 — I was on my way to the main-event scene and I was wrestling a top-tier guy like Randy Orton. The direction it seemed to be going was I would get main events — it didn’t happen. I come to find out Randy Orton had a lot to do with holding me back, using his influence to make sure I never got to the main-event scene. I’ve had Intercontinental championship reigns, U.S. championship reigns, tag team titles, but I’d never had a WWE championship match — not one time in 10 years (until Wrestlemania).
It’s going to be awesome. Here I am, the WWE champion against all odds and Randy Orton’s a bit upset about that. It’s a bit personal for me. It’s going to be a banger, it’s going to be an intense match and I can’t wait.
On it taking so long to get a world title reign:
We are a breed of people who want to be the absolute best. You’d love to be given the WWE title on your first day, but for the majority of people, that’s not the way it works out. As far as booking, I have zero control over that. What I can control is my ability to perform and deliver every night. It’s a long game sometimes. You have to find a way to get there, find a way to endure and be ready for the moment if and when that moment comes.
On forming the New Day and accomplishing their goals:
It’s always fun and laughs. Woods and E, without them I wouldn’t be here. When they approached me about being in the New Day, I didn’t even know if I wanted to keep wrestling because I was doing the same thing over and over — a guy that would come out and have a good match, I would do some cool moves and probably lose. It became monotonous. Woods and E approached me about getting in this group — guys who weren’t happy with their positions in the company. People told us we sucked, they rejected us. But it wasn’t long before they embraced us. Now, here we are, in a lot of people’s minds one of the greatest factions of all-time. Here we are, the WWE champion and the tag team champions — mission accomplished.
