7 Wrestlers Who Benefited From ANOTHER Wrestler's Injury

Kofi Kingston becoming WWE Champion at WrestleMania 35 changed nothing.

It was certainly good that WWE finally crowned another Black World Champion, but they'd already done so before, so history wasn't made with that, and it also didn't change the idea of what a WWE Champion should look like. A perennial mid-carder and tag teamer, Kofi was never WWE Champion material, having been crowned only because the public forced Vince McMahon's hand. Who else since has fit the same bill? Sami Zayn, you could make a strong case for, but he's been positioned as a main eventer (or, at least, an upper-level talent) since his involvement in the Bloodline saga.

Had it not been Kofi, then it would have been Mustafa Ali.

The Chicagoan was first slated to enter the WWE Title Elimination Chamber match before a presumed meeting with Bryan at WrestleMania, but an errant boot to the face from Randy Orton on an earlier SmackDown made his eye swell shut, and his main event plans were canned. Kofi subsequently replaced him in both spots, having delivered a stargazing performance in a Gauntlet match on SmackDown that made viewers first get behind the idea of KofiMania.

Brutally, Mustafa recovered well in time for WrestleMania, but was relegated to the pre-show Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal, with a performance memorable only for him almost breaking his neck during his elimination.