We talked to the WWE Hall of Famer -- who was promoting his "Busted Open" show where he's ranking the greatest black wrestlers EVER (hint: The Rock ain't #1) -- about Kingston's impact on wrestling, and what the belt actually means ... aside from looking really cool.

Remember, Kingston beat Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 35 ... becoming only the 2nd black WWE champion (and the 1st African-born champ.)

"15 years from now there might be another 2 or 3 black wrestlers that come into the industry, and they were inspired by Kofi Kingston," Henry says.

"It's a powerful thing to have representation, and it's also a powerful thing to be able to see somebody that looks like you, and have them tell you first hand the struggle and what it took for them to get there."

We also asked Mark about diversity in the WWE ... and whether black wrestlers are fairly represented across the roster of Superstars.

Mark says there's NO problem ... in fact, he's seen a massive improvement over his decades in the WWE.

"When I came into wrestling there were 3 people, 3 black people in the company. There is growth. There is a future for the African-American in pro wrestling, and ya know, I want to be a part of that as much as I can."