Former WWE World Champion Returns From Five-Month Injury

This return simply rocks.

by Scott Carlson
The New Day
WWE.com

Kofi Kingston made his return to WWE programming Monday night after a five-month hiatus, teaming with fellow New Day partner Xavier Woods to defeat the Viking Raiders.

The former WWE Champion has been sidelined since March recovering from ankle surgery, leaving Woods to go it alone for a while. Woods himself disappeared from WWE programming in May, making Raw the first time we'd seen a member of New Day in three months, which is likely a record since the group formed in 2014.

Kingston looked sharp in his return, flying off the top rope and diving to the floor as he and Woods battled the Raiders. Afterward, Kofi and Xavier noted in a backstage interview that they're back to spread positivity after the tag division lost one of its best tandems with the Usos apparently splitting up after Jimmy betrayed Jey. One-half of the tag champs Kevin Owens is currently sidelined as well.

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New Day is a versatile act, as both wrestlers have achieved singles success -- Kofi is a former world champion, and Woods won the 2021 King of the Ring tournament.

Kofi's return is welcome news on the heels of fellow New Day powerhouse Big E revealing last week that he's been advised to not wrestle again after suffering a broken neck in 2022.

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Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.