Why Kofi Kingston Hasn't Been On WWE Television, Explained
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For over a decade,Kofi Kingston has been one of the most exciting and entertaining stars in the WWE. He is an extremely accomplished singles competitor as a former WWE Champion, Intercontinental Champion, and United States Champion. In addition, he has also been a part of one of WWE’s greatest factions of all time with The New Day. Since 2014, Kingston, Xavier Woods, and Big E have consistently been one of the best groups in the company. Despite Big E’s tragic neck injury, Woods and Kingston have preserved and continued to bring success to The New Day. Unfortunately, however, Kingston has been dealing with an injury that has kept him from competing in the ring.
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Kofi Kingston Has Been Dealing With An Ankle Injury Since March
Back on the March 3, 2023, episode of SmackDown, Kingston was a part of a segment in which he, Woods, Drew McIntyre, Sheamus, LA Knight, and Karrion Kross all tried to make their case for challenging Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania 39. During the segment, a brawl broke out between all of them. At one point, McIntyre dove over the top rope and landed on Kingston. It was here that Kingston sustained an injury to his ankle.
Since then, Kingston has been unable to wrestle in the ring. In his final match before getting injured, he was successful in a match against LA Knight on SmackDown. Kingston did undergo surgery for his injured ankle, but there's no timetable yet as to when he will be back teaming alongside Woods.
While Kingston has been dealing with this ankle injury and Big E has also been dealing with a neck injury, there were discussions to have all three New Day members make an appearance at WrestleMania 39. Dave Meltzer spoke of this on the Wrestling Observer Newsletter(h/t Bleacher Report), writing, “I don't think if anything will come of this or if Kingston's injury changes this, but we had heard of an idea for E to be at WrestleMania and the three of them would come out together if that would be the right thing to do and if E could come back soon.” However, an appearance with the three of them did not take place at WrestleMania 39.
The New Day Spent Their Time On NXT & SmackDown In 2023
Prior to Kingston’s unfortunate ankle injury, he and Woods were making appearances on both NXT and SmackDown. In NXT, The New Day challenged and successfully defeated Elton Prince and Kit Wilson, collectively Pretty Deadly, to win their first ever set of NXT Tag Team Championships at NXT Deadline. The duo held the titles from December 2022 until February 2023. During this time, they defeated the duo of Josh Briggs and Brooks Jensen to retain the titles on an episode of NXT. However, they ended up losing the titles in a fatal four way tag team match to Gallus. Chase U and Pretty Deadly were also involved in the match.
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In addition to being in NXT, Kingston and Woods were also making appearances on SmackDown. The New Day faced teams such as Imperium and Kingston defeated Santos Escobar in singles action. In addition, he also made an appearance in the 2023 Men’s Royal Rumble match.
Since both Kingston and Big E have been away, Woods has continued to entertain and compete on SmackDown. He competed in the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal on SmackDown, but was unsuccessful. He also competed in a number one contender’s match for an Intercontinental Title match at WrestleMania, but lost. However, he did recently challenge Gunther for the Intercontinental Championship, but did not win the title, though he has picked up a win over LA Knight.
Fans Cannot Wait To See The New Day Together Again
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Having spent over a decade in WWE, Kingston has certainly shown that he is one of the very best on the roster. With an incredible resume of championship and classic moments, there will for sure be even more waiting for him once he returns to WWE after healing from this injury. Big E has also been dealing with a very serious neck injury, which has seen him out of WWE for quite some time. While Woods and Kingston have done a phenomenal job of keeping The New Day’s momentum going, fans cannot wait until the trio is fully reunited and healthy again. Kingston has also remained optimistic and positive throughout this injury. After his injury, Kingston posted on his Twitter page, “...we march forward and into the hands of the best in the world at what he does! Let’s get this ankle right!” Fans cannot wait for Kingston’s eventual return back to a WWE ring.
