Comparing the WWE Careers of Kofi Kingston and R-Truth

Former tag team partners, Kofi Kingston and R-Truth have both excited WWE fans with their athleticism, but haven't been able to crack the company's upper echelon.

Both men have been career midcarders so far, secondary titles filling up most of their resume. More than race and their tag team partnership connect them. There are several parallels between their WWE careers, chief among them continuing to hit their heads on the glass ceiling.

Neither is the complete package, and that explains why they have both been roosting on the middle rungs of the WWE ladder.

As fabulous as Kingston can be in the ring, he has been unimpressive on the microphone. He comes off as likable, but not magnetic.

Truth, on the other hand, has been endearingly goofy and fun to watch as a screwy guy who sees an invisible child. Truth's career is marked with hilarious moments like his rant on spiders, dressing up as a confederate soldier and all of his adventures with Little Jimmy.

This is what Kingston has been lacking. He doesn't have a component of his persona that's been all that interesting.

He does, though, have the advantage over Truth in terms of matches. Truth has been good in the ring, but it's hard to think of a long list of great matches he's been a part of.

Kingston's resume is much more robust in that department.

He's had a number of great battles with Dolph Ziggler. His U.S. title match against MVP  in 2009, his Elimination Chamber 2011 match against Alberto Del Rio, and most recently, his clash on WWE Main Event against Antonio Cesaro have all been highly entertaining.

Fans of either Truth and Kingston wondering why neither has made it to world-champion level only need to look at these deficiencies to see why both men's championship collections have all been of the midcard variety.

 

Championship Silver

In addition to the tag team championships Truth won alongside Kingston, he twice won the Hardcore Championship as K-Kwik along with the United States title in 2010.

After Bret Hart beat The Miz for the U.S. strap, "The Hitman" vacated it, and Truth took advantage by winning his first WWE singles title since 2001 with a victory over The Miz. Truth only held onto that belt for 24 days before The Miz took it back.

Truth wouldn't taste WWE gold again until he and Kingston teamed up to defeat Primo and Epico in April 2012.

Kingston's championship resume is much longer, but they are all secondary titles. A pile of bronze and silver medals can never add up to a gold.

The high-flyer should be proud of his four reigns as Intercontinental champ, his three times as the U.S. titleholder and his three times earning WWE tag team championships. Still, as hungry and competitive as Kingston appears to be, he has to pine for the belts that John Cena and Ziggler are carrying right now.

He has to ask himself if he has already hit his peak or if he has higher to climb.

The Peak

Even with all those championships, Kingston's highest point, so far, has come with no title on the line. It was his feud with Randy Orton in 2009 that has seen him get his biggest share of the spotlight.

A rivalry with a star as big as Orton allowed Kingston to showcase his abilities to a wider audience. Suddenly, he was given a chance to shoot promos and be given an edge to his character.

Years later, Kingston hasn't had a feud as high-profile or as compelling as his work against Orton.

For Truth, the highest point has been at a shot at Cena and his WWE title at Capitol Punishment in 2011.

Thanks to a conspiracy angle, Truth was put in a main event against the company's biggest star. It was but a brief glimpse of the top of the mountain, though. Like so many of Hulk Hogan’s opponents in his prime, Truth had a single chance, lost and slid back down the company hierarchy.

Neither Truth nor Kingston can be happy with those moments as the pinnacles of their WWE careers. In the struggle to climb higher, some stars will rise, and some will stay on the ground surrounded by the masses.

Kingston has the better chance of the two to break out of their midcard positions because he's 10 years younger than Truth. His lack of mic skills and his lack of versatility in going from face to heel may keep him where Truth is, a career midcarder who had one shot at the big time.

Were a scientist able to fuse Kingston's ring ability with Truth's mic work, WWE would have itself a certain world champ. As separate entities, Truth and Kingston's careers have been parallel, perpetually moving sideways.