Though it took a little while for them to find their footing over the years since their debut in 2014, The New Day established themselves as one of the most impressive and decorated tag teams in WWE history. With incredible chemistry, charisma and in-ring versatility, the three New Day members — Kofi Kingston, Big E, and Xavier Woods (who were able to wrestle in any two-man combination of the three under the Freebird rule) held the WWE Tag Team championships several times (their 483 day reign with the titles was the first in the modern era to surpass previous title holders, Demolition) and exhibited a bond that seemed unbreakable.
Unbreakable that is, until the December 2nd episode of RAW, when Kofi and Xavier banished their longtime partner Big E from the group in a shocking heel turn (change from fan favorite to a villain or “heel” in pro wrestling terminology). What made the act even more sour was that Big E had been sidelined since 2022 with a real-life broken neck (an injury suffered from a botched move in a match), which the former two somehow distorted into Big E “abandoning them.” While the betrayal was a surprise for many, former wrestler Tommy Dreamer thinks the storyline beat deserves nothing but praise.
“New Day has had the most interesting turn I’ve seen in 20, 30 years, and have heat without doing physical body harm on somebody. They’ve literally hurt you with their words and the truth, what their version of the truth is. But, New Day has done it right,” Dreamer said on a recent episode of the “Busted Open After Dark” podcast.
“If you think about it, how much you hated the New Day, one of the top babyfaces asks for you guys to be quiet for a second and you don’t even pay him that respect. That’s how much hatred you guys have [for him],” Dreamer added, noting how effective the New Day’s heel turn has flipped fans’ emotions.
While The New Day’s heel turn was executed well, Dreamer still thinks the best is yet to come.
“New Day has really changed their career and done their turn different,” he continued. “They did it new, and what have they really done? They just hurt you with their words; wait till they start taking out your WWE Superstars. If done right, these two guys could have the most amount of heat in a long, long time,” he said.
What did you think of The New Day’s heel turn? Do you think Kofi and Xavier injected new life into their characters by betraying Big E? Will Big E ever make a return to in-ring action or would you rather not see him risk his neck or endanger himself if he’s not medically cleared to do so? Let us know in the comments.
