LA Knight is ready to begin building his legacy

Having solidified his base in 2023, Knight now sets his sights on scaling greater heights.

LA Knight had a meteoric rise in 2023, going from being on the edge of being unemployed to becoming the fastest-rising star in the industry. After headlining Crown Jewel with Roman Reigns for the Undisputed Universal title last November, many assumed Knight would be right back in the title picture, or a title picture, for WrestleMania, possibly against Logan Paul for the United States Championship.

Instead, it seems Knight will face AJ Styles at WWE’s blockbuster affair this year in Philadelphia. Speaking on the Gorilla Position podcast, Knight expressed his frustration with his current position and acknowledged that he needs to start winning titles to validate his character.

“I created one hell of a foundation in 2023,” said Knight. “Now it’s time to go and start creating the legacy and start making those things to hang my hat on, start building the resume to where people can say, ‘All right, this guy legitimately can make a claim to being one of the best of this era if not one of the best in the whole thing.’”

While it’s not a championship match, a victory at WrestleMania over an established star and respected performer like Styles, a former WWE Champion, would be an impressive resume builder. Despite his decreased television time, WWE continues to keep his feud with Styles in the minds of many fans.

While it may not be what Knight and his supporters envisioned going into the Showcase of the Immortals, his role at this year’s event is a massive upgrade to where Knight was last year at this time.

With last year’s WrestleMania in his old stomping grounds of Los Angeles (Knight said he lives in Orlando, FL, now), the hope was that the fast-rising star would have a role at the event. Except he didn’t, despite stealing the show months earlier during a program with Bray Wyatt, something Knight claims caught everyone in WWE off guard.

“I was trusted to be good enough to hang with Bray and make him look good, and I think I did that. But in the process — my God — did a light shine. But for whatever reason, then there were no plans for me after that.”

Things began slowly changing for Knight after Paul “Triple H” Levesque took control of the company’s creative direction. When asked what he thought about the Triple H-led WWE, Knight stayed mum on the topic, only offering that it looked good to him. However, Knight did point out where he sees the most significant change in the brand since Levesque assumed the wheel.

“I’m not saying this to disparage anyone, the former who was running whatever. But I noticed a drastic difference — I think everybody noticed a drastic difference — just alone, in the attendance. Every arena now has been full. House shows generally don’t always sell out, but the house shows have even been close.”

Indeed, business is booming for WWE. According to Levesque, 2023 saw WWE reach its highest-grossing ticket sales ever, a trend that seems to be continuing in 2024. And with business up, that’s presumably good news for the talent, especially for someone like Knight, who outlined his version of what finishing his story would look like.

“I’ll be a multi-millionaire, we’ll never have to work again, and I can just leave, and I’ll have a farm full of puppies. And it’ll probably be some form of a dog rescue, and, ‘Goodbye, everybody,’ and never see me again.”