Kevin Owens has had several high-profile rivalries in WWE over the years. From John Cena to Roman Reigns, Owens has worked against, and teamed up with, the best. KO is now opening up on one partnership he refused to go along with.
The Prizefighter and The Head of The Table had a lengthy main roster rivalry over the years. In late 2020, Reigns retained the Universal Championship over Owens at TLC, in a Tables, Ladders & Chairs match. Two days later, the champ retained again in a SmackDown Steel Cage match.
WWE then booked Reigns to retain over Owens once again, in a Last Man Standing match at the 2021 Royal Rumble. Speaking to Cody Rhodes on his “What Do You Wanna Talk About?” podcast, Owens was introduced as one of Cody’s true friends in the wrestling business. Rhodes then mentioned how his introduction for recent guest Damian Priest was rough. Owens responded and revealed how WWE officials, or “they,” tried to make he and Priest friends in the storylines.
“So, since he got an introduction, meaning you’re not friends with him? Because what you just said is… you didn’t think of an introduction for a friend. … That’s OK, I’m not friends with him. They tried to make me friends with him,” Owens said.
Owens was then asked if he’s heard Cody use the “Workplace Proximity Associates” term. Owens used interesting words to recall the feud with Reigns, and mentioned how out of his encounters with Reigns, everyone was high-up on the Last Man Standing match.
“Well, I’ve never heard you say that. I’ve heard you say several things but that sounds like something that would come out of your mouth, for sure. [Cody: the good ‘ol WPAs] Yeah, they tried to make me be friends with Damian Priest on television. [Cody: how’d it go?] I refused. [Cody: can you tell me why?] Yeah, sure. [laughs] Well, so it’s 2020, the pandemic era. I was embroiled in a feud with Roman Reigns,” Owens said.
Kevin Owens continued:
“It was the beginning of a four year nightmare that just would not stop for me, but when it started, you know, we were wrestling in front of empty buildings. Well, we had the weird screens there. [Cody: yeah, ThunderDome] Yeah, you missed that… you missed that time, and right at the… right when we were gonna have the blow-off match, it was going to be the Last Man Standing match at the Royal Rumble, which turned out to be everyone’s favorite match that we had,” Owens said.
WWE Wanted To Put Damian Priest With Kevin Owens
Kevin Owens and Roman Reigns were on the road to The Royal Rumble, with the Universal Championship on the line in a Last Man Standing match. On the latest episode of Cody Rhodes’ podcast, KO continued talking about how WWE tried to book he and Damian Priest to take on The Bloodline.
The Prizefighter recalled the conversation he had with officials about Priest, and why he thought the alliance would never work with the WWE Universe.
“About three weeks before [the match], I’m thinking, ‘OK, we’re firing on all cylinders. We’re going to the Royal Rumble, it’s a big match, it’s gonna be a lot of fun.’ And then I’m at television, and they come tell me, ‘Well, things are kind of changing now. You’re going to be introducing your new best friend to help you take on The Bloodline, because it’s the numbers game.’ Like, who is this guy? They go, ‘You know Damian Priest from NXT?’ I’m like, ‘The archer… the guy who does the fake arrows?’ [Owens shoots invisible arrows] Yes. I go, ‘Well, I have nothing against him but no one would believe that we’re best friends. We cannot be more opposite, and why? It’s so random,”” Owens said.
Owens, who is currently out with an injury, continued feuding with The Bloodline after The Rumble 2021, and failed to dethrone Reigns of the Undisputed Championship at The Rumble in 2023. Priest and Owens first did battle in singles action In January 2022, with Owens winning twice, but later failing to capture the United States Championship from Priest at live events.