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Killings shining in new role

Ron Killings, aka R-Truth, finally gets his chance to shine with his world title shot against John Cena at tonight’s WWE Capitol Punishment pay-per-view.

And it’s about time.

Killings is one of the most underrated talents on the WWE roster and, until recently, had been mired in that midcard level that separates the stars from the superstars.

Somebody on the WWE creative team, however, had the vision to tweak Killing’s character and turn him heel. Killings has done the rest.

Or, as they’re wont to say in the front office, he’s taken the ball and run with it.

Killings, who has demonstrated a natural affinity for portraying a bad guy, deserves a lot of the credit.

Until now he has been saddled with a gimmick that, while entertaining, offered little chance of advancement.

Working as a heel has allowed Killings to show another side of his entertaining character. His “Little Jimmy” gimmick is the funniest thing on Monday Night Raw. The transformation from a “What’s Up,” rap-singing babyface to an arrogant, unpredictable psycho has been nothing short of a work of art.

Killings is no newcomer to the business. The 39-year-old Atlanta native broke into the pro ranks 14 years ago under the tutelage of “Raging Bull” Manny Fernandez.

His first foray into the big time came nearly 11 years ago when he was paired with Road Dogg (Brian James) in WWE. Billed as K-Kwik, Killings showed flashes of brilliance then, but the team was disbanded when James was suspended and eventually released from the company several months later. Despite a pair of runs as WWE’s hardcore champion, Killings also was released in 2001.

Between then and now, Killings has enjoyed success everywhere he’s gone, including winning the NWA world title on two separate occasions in TNA, holding the NWA world tag-team belts with B.G. James and Konnan, and the TNA tag-team title with NFL player Adam “Pacman” Jones.

Tonight’s bout with Cena will be, by far, the highest-profile match of his career.

“R-Truth upsetting WWE champion John Cena would be interesting going forward,” WWE Hall of Fame announcer Jim Ross noted Friday on his blog at jrsbarbq.com. “This is without question Truth’s biggest professional opportunity to date.”

“It’s a long road of paying your dues,” Killings told the Busted Open satellite radio show last week. “Each and every person that’s in this business has to go down that road. Some people may not have to. Some people may be given that road instantly because of who they are.

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