Pro-wrestling legend Kevin Owens candidly spoke to Cody Rhodes about how he “refused” to work a storyline with Damian Priest. Owens, who has missed almost four months of action due to a neck injury, recently appeared on Rhodes’ “What Do You Wanna Talk About?” podcast.
The former Universal Champion revealed that three weeks prior to the 2021 Royal Rumble, a friendship between him and Priest was pitched by WWE writers. Owens stated, “They tried to make me friends with him on television. I refused.”
Owens added, “I have nothing against him, but no one would believe that we’re best friends. We could not be more opposite. And why? It’s so random.”
The timeline of Kevin Owens’ claim appears to align with the nonsensical finish of the January 8, 2021, episode of SmackDown. SmackDown General Manager Adam Pearce would involuntarily win a gauntlet match to become the number one contender for the Universal Championship. Owens would replace Pearce the following week.
Priest would wrestle his last match in NXT against Karrion Kross on January 6 at the New Year’s Evil event. This would explain the finish to the January 8 SmackDown show, as a Priest callup was nixed.
In January 2021, Owens was embroiled in a heated rivalry with Roman Reigns. A Last Man Standing match between the pair would ensue, where the Tribal Chief would survive. The match between the pair is considered their greatest encounter.
The planned friendship was designed to push Priest to a main event position. The Archer of Infamy was intended to replace Owens in his Royal Rumble encounter with Reigns. This further explained why Owens declined.
Owens explained, “He was gonna take my match. It was going to be him versus Roman Reigns at the Royal Rumble. I was incensed. I said f*** no.”
It has become clear that KO’s refusal to pair himself with the future El Campeon has not hindered the latter’s success. Priest instead debuted as the 14th entrant in the 2021 Men’s Royal Rumble match.
He would then form a friendship with Latin Grammy Award-winning artist Bad Bunny rather than Owens. This led to a marquee tag team match with Bunny at WrestleMania 37.
Priest would accumulate accolades such as the United States Championship, a Money in the Bank win, and a World Heavyweight Championship to his impressive resume.
One thing that is missing, however, is that elusive singles match against the Tribal Chief. The former Judgement Day leader has only shared the ring with Reigns on two separate occasions. A 15-man inter-brand triple threat tag match at Survivor Series 2019, as well as the 2025 Royal Rumble match.
Whilst there is still time, both men are older and currently babyfaces. Reigns is also a part-time performer and plans to retire by 2028, as revealed in an interview with Vanity Fair.
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