Booker T thinks LA Knight is a hell of a talent. He also thinks that does not guarantee him a world title, and he does not see a problem with that. Knight challenges Roman Reigns for the World Heavyweight Championship at WWE Money in the Bank on October 10 at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans.
Discussing Knight’s chances on the latest episode of his podcast, The Hall of Fame, Booker compared him to “Mr. Perfect” Curt Hennig, who never held a world title in WWE.
“What didn’t Perfect do right?” Booker asked.
When co-host Brad Gilmore added Scott Hall and Roddy Piper to that list, Booker said that is simply how the business works.
“Did they win the title? That’s just the way it works. Everybody’s not going to be the champion. Everybody’s not going to have that,” Booker said. “And that’s why I get caught up, you know, where we are in this world today where everybody wants a turn.”
The three names share a record. Hennig was a two-time Intercontinental Champion in the WWF and held the AWA World Heavyweight Championship, but never the WWF’s top title. Hall held the Intercontinental Championship four times as Razor Ramon and never the world title. Piper, one of the biggest draws of the 1980s, won the Intercontinental Championship once, in 1992, and never held the WWF Championship. Booker said titles were never his own motivation.
“I always say, if they paid me a million dollars a year and I won no titles, I wouldn’t give a damn. Because I would have taken that money and I would have invested it and invested it and invested it over this last 36 years,” Booker said. “So for me, being the champion, it’s been great, but I never thought I was going to win the World Heavyweight Championship. I never dreamed about winning the World Heavyweight Championship, but I always wanted to be the best wrestler in the locker room, which propelled me to that position, and then it happened for me.”
Booker also put himself in the same group as the names on Gilmore’s list.
“LA Knight’s a hell of a talent, but just like you just mentioned all those great names who did not win the World Heavyweight Championship. Hell, I didn’t win it. I mean, I never won the WWE title,” Booker said. “So, I mean, I put myself in that same category, even though I won all the other ones.”
Booker did win the World Heavyweight Championship in WWE, beating Rey Mysterio at The Great American Bash in 2006 as King Booker, and he held the WCW World Heavyweight Championship five times. The WWE Championship is the one major title he never won, which is the distinction he appeared to be drawing.
The Money in the Bank match was set after the September 14 Raw in Mexico City. Reigns retained the title against Penta in the main event, and after the broadcast went off the air, Knight confronted him and hit the BFT. Reigns challenged him to the match on his way out, and Raw general manager Adam Pearce made it official the next morning.
Knight had been chasing the shot since SummerSlam, where Reigns retained against Seth Rollins. He confronted Reigns on the following Raw and demanded a title match without The Bloodline involved, and Reigns told him he had not earned one. The two have met once before, at Crown Jewel in 2023, where Reigns won after interference.
Knight has held the United States Championship in WWE but has not held a world title with the company.
