Why WWE Chose To Roll the Dice With Kevin Owens

With Kevin Owens as their new champ, the WWE did something they typically hate doing. They took a risk.

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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Kevin Owens is the new WWE Universal Champion, which means that WWE did something that they typically hate doing. They took a risk. 

And not just any risk; the company put the top belt on the unlikeliest of Superstars. Finn Balor, the prior Universal Champion, was not a most typical WWE champion, but his demon persona was a primetime-ready gimmick; it provided a small measure of familiarity. Owens provides no such comfort. WWE is all-in on this one, and they’re redefining long-held perceptions of their company values in the process.

For years, WWE was the land of giants and weirdoes. This was the old time, carny mentality; you needed a freak attraction to draw an audience. Andre the Giant. Yokozuna. The Undertaker. A top WWE Superstar was an exceptional individual—either exceedingly tall, exceedingly wide, or exceedingly muscular, like Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, Triple H, Brock Lesnar, and Batista. Even "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and The Rock were impossibly built. And yes, there were smaller, leaner guys, like Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels, who pushed themselves into the upper ranks through sheer force of will. But they were the exception, not the rule.

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By contrast to the Ultimate Warrior, Kevin Owens does not look exceptional. His beard is uneven and untrimmed. His hair is a little mussed. His clothes are baggy and nondescript. And he has (let’s be real) a big, round, beer belly. He’s a heavyset guy, and not in a way that is large and imposing, like Bam Bam Bigelow or even Rikishi. Owens has the look of an everyman, a nine-to-fiver who wrestles on weekends to make spare cash for his kids. That makes him relatable. But it doesn’t make him stand out.

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But holy damn, this everyman can throw down with the best of them. He’s got an exciting variety of throws and holds, and he can brawl with tables, ladders, chairs, and anything he can find under the ring. 

Oh, and he can also perform forward flips and back flips off the top rope like a guy half his size. Take a look at the highlight reel below. That level of agility is impressive.


Owens is quick-witted; he trolls WWE fans on social media with cutting tweets.

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He knows how to antagonize his co-workers. 


And every promo that he delivers has the sting of truth to it, which makes him a perfect villain. People hate when the bad guy has a good point. 


Owens is a wrestler of prodigious talent with an average, unassuming exterior. In the old days, a guy like Owens would have never gotten a WWE title shot, based off his look alone.The camera isn’t drawn to him in the way it’s drawn to a physical specimen like Roman Reigns. But none of that has mattered during Owens’s WWE tenure. First, he was the NXT Champion. Then, he was the WWE Intercontinental Champion. And now, he is the WWE Universal Champion. He can advance no higher.


It’s both fitting and appropriate that Triple H Pedigreed Rollins and Reigns and gave Owens the title on Monday night. In real life, Triple H is the driving force behind NXT, the WWE’s developmental show. In real life, it was Triple H who cast the deciding vote that signed Owens to NXT. In real life, it was Triple H who pushed Owens into the spotlight at key moments. And now, it’s Triple H who, both in storyline and in reality, is advocating for his top student.

For years, rumors have circulated about a power struggle at the highest levels of WWE Corporate. On one side is CBO Stephanie McMahon and Executive Vice President of Talent Relations Triple H. On the other side is Executive Vice President of Television Production Kevin Dunn, who is Vince McMahon’s long-time, most trusted advisor. 

Both Dunn and Vince tend towards the more predictable, scripted, photogenic image of WWE, of which Owens is the brash opposite. Since Owens is now holding the top prize in the company, is this a sign that the power struggle is over? If it’s true that Stephanie and Triple H are now in firm control of the company, it’s going to make a lot of hardcore wrestling fans very happy. 

A “changing of the guard” is happening on SmackDown too. Last night’s SmackDown episode furthered the feud between WWE Champion Dean Ambrose and #1 Contender AJ Styles—two wrestlers who made their bones in the indies and Japan before coming to WWE. Meanwhile, John Cena is off filming another season of American Grit; this is the perfect time for the new guys to make their mark and seize the moment. Hopefully, Owens is the mere beginning of something revolutionary great. But at the very least, his proximity to Triple H will keep him in the main event picture for the long, foreseeable future.

This is a gamble, for sure. It places WWE in uncharted territory, where there’s no blueprint and no readymade model for success. But it’s a productive, well-calculated change. And in the long run, it will prove to be what’s #bestforbusiness.

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