What an exciting 2015 it was for the former ROH, PWG & NXT Champion. After debuting at the NXT TakeOver special in December 2014, he quickly ascended the NXT ladder, in February he captured the NXT title by defeating Sami Zayn at TakeOver Rival. The match was praised by fans and critics alike, the feud that lit up the indies had arrived in WWE. In keeping with the storyline, Owens Powerbombed Zayn multiple times until he could no longer defend himself. With Sami written out of action Kevin went about his reign, he successfully defended the title against Finn Balor on an episode of NXT and then started a mini feud with Alex Riley.
In May, Sami Zayn returned to action and requested a rematch with Owens. The match was scheduled for NXT TakeOver Unstoppable, the personal feud between the two real life best friends was riveting stuff. With the crowd firmly behind Zayn he started fast and furious, we had a myriad of reversals and counters. With Owens unable to get started he reverted to what he knows best, “Destruction”, several minutes into the match he managed to gain the upper hand by Powerbombing Sami onto the ring apron. With Zayn selling the storyline injury, Kevin Owens proceeded to once more attack his injured opponent, that was until William Regal and then the debuting Samoa Joe came to the aid of the challenger.
With WWE deciding to debut Joe against the NXT champion many speculated at the potential of this feud. After weeks of tension the two finally met on an episode of NXT in June. Many were expecting fireworks for Kevin & Joe’s first match in WWE, however what we did get was a titanic bore. The two never seemed to click at it was evident during the bout, the match finally went to a non-contest, both men continued to brawl afterwards. They were separated by officials and the two went their own ways after the match. Unfortunately this match and feud never lived up to the hype.
Kevin Owens then entered his next programme against former challenger Finn Balor. The title match was set to take place on a WWE Network special in Tokyo, it was a homecoming of sorts for Balor who made a name for himself in Japan for the last decade. The event held in July was overshadowed heavily by the returning Brock Lesnar, however that night Owens & Balor stole the show in a near 25 minute classic. Kevin played his role perfectly that night and he did the job for Finn. The following month a rematch was set for NXT TakeOver Brooklyn for the night before Summerslam, the event was sold out. Balor was once more victorious this time in defence of his title, the Ladder match between the two was again applauded by critics and fans alike. This appearance by Owens would also be his last for NXT.
Kevin has performed admirably since signing for WWE, his early NXT performances both in the ring and on the mike were very well received. Therefore in May 2015, when still recognised as the NXT champion he made his official debut for WWE on Monday night Raw. His first physical and verbal duel was against company man John Cena, it what was a blistering debut Owens laid out his intentions and ended the segment by Pop-up Powerbombing the US champion. With the battle lines drawn the two men met three times in the coming months, Surprising to most Owens defeated Cena clean in his first WWE appearance on PPV, it was obvious then WWE thought highly of the former Kevin Steen. Their second encounter which Owens lost, ended in controversy after he once more resorted to drastic measures, upon losing the match he Powerbombed Cena onto the ring apron. The feud ended with Cena getting revenge and defeating Owens clean for a second time.
Owens losses to Cena I feel dented the credibility he earned while in NXT, his first night in WWE and PPV over Cena was perfect booking. However the consecutive losses hurt his character, he was for a while in limbo. Due to him interfering and costing Cesaro the US title, the two clashed at Summerslam in an awesome encounter. The match placed second from top was a classic, mixing brawling and technical skill it was arguably the match of the night. In September at the Night of Champions PPV he successfully dethroned Ryback for the IC title. In a very good effort from both, the title change was good for Owens. Many were hopeful of a long, glorious reign. He was then granted an opportunity to wrestle Chris Jericho at the Madison Square Garden, WWE Network special in October, which he won.
After defeating Ryback once more in their rematch at the Hell in a Cell PPV, he moved on to take part in the WWE title tournament at the Survivor Series. He was defeated by Roman Reigns in the evenings semi-final in a thrilling encounter, easily the best match on the card. Even though he was the reigning IC champion Owens still lacked the momentum from his NXT days, he needed fresh opponents and intriguing plotlines. With Survivor Series over and done with Dean Ambrose also found himself without direction, that was until defeated Ziggler & Breeze on Smackdown to become No1 contender to Owens title. Following another lacklustre build, Owens & Ambrose tore the house down at Tables, Ladder and Chairs. In a back and forth contest Dean rolled up Kevin for the victory, the reaction to the win was awesome. Unfortunately for Kevin, the title and his momentum was gone.
WWE did an excellent job of promoting Kevin Owens for his NXT debut, with aggressive vignettes and promos WWE got him over as an unstoppable force. He then debut at NXT TakeOver in December 2014, in a one-sided dominating performance Owens again got himself over. Due to the marketing of the character and Owens own skills inside the ring, WWE had a legit star ready for the big time. For the next six months Owens outgrew NXT, he was just too good a star, he needed the bigger playground that Raw & Smackdown offered. #FightOwensFight became his motto and with that he debut on Raw against John Cena, in a verbal duel Kevin proved he belonged.
Kevin’s win over John in their inaugural match at the Elimination Chamber was pure brilliance from WWE creative. To make a star, you defeat a star, WWE & John did the right thing that night. However WWE soon forgot where their head was at, over the course of the next two PPV’s they managed to destroy all the momentum built in the last year. Although still featured prominently on Raw & Smackdown, Kevin was directionless. Even wins over Cesaro and an IC title win couldn’t get him back to where he was.
Thankfully WWE’s 2015 Slammy Awards gave Owens a platform to perform, having lost out on the ‘Superstar of the Year’ Award he blasted Neville and the universe for not voting for him. Then on this week’s Raw after a fluke loss to Neville he savagely beat the Newcastle native. Later in the show he attacked a prone Dean Ambrose, in a way only Kevin Owens can he dominated Dean just like he had Sami a year prior. He finished of the segment by Powerbombing Ambrose through the announce table. Finally WWE had gone back to basics, the real Kevin Owens had returned.
Kevin Owens & Dean Ambrose have the potential to steal every show they are on. Pairing them together will only bring amazing results, their rematch which I’m guessing will take place at the Rumble should be special. If Owens can get back to where he was when he debut in WWE then 2016 looks a very promising year for him.
@ciaran_1986
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