On Saturday night at Bash in Berlin, Kevin Owens will take on his good friend Cody Rhodes for the WWE title. Also on that night, Randy Orton will face Gunther for the world heavyweight championship.
The two matches are somewhat rewards for what has been an extremely successful few months for Owens and Orton. They formed a team of sorts in the build-up to WrestleMania back in April, where they both took part in a triple threat for the United States title with Logan Paul.
Paul won the match, but Owens and Orton have stayed close since, on and off screen. They are good friends, while they have both had the back of Cody Rhodes in his ongoing feud with the Bloodline.
It’s a partnership that not too many saw coming, but few are surprised it has been a success. Playing the roles of good guys, they have bonded with the fans and will now both perform in major matches on Saturday.
Owens, speaking exclusively to Mail Sport, outlines how the partnership has been from his point of view, and he’s not short of praise for the veteran.
Kevin Owens (right) has opened up on what it has been like teaming with Randy Orton (left)
The duo have been working together since the build-up to WrestleMania, where they both faced Logan Paul
Owens described the run as ‘one of the best times of my career’ while speaking exclusively to Mail Sport
‘Honestly, it’s one of the best times of my career,’ he begins. ‘I have a unlimited amount of respect for Randy and what he is to our locker room, and what he means to our locker room and to WWE.
‘In my opinion, he’s the biggest star in WWE. There’s really something unmatched when you’re in the ring getting ready for a match, whether it’s against him or as his partner, and his music hits. The whole arena goes insane.
‘A lot of superstars that have been the biggest names in WWE over the last several years, such as Roman [Reigns] or [John] Cena, they were polarising figures. You’d have some people that hated them, some people that loved them. Randy, I would say 98 per cent of the audience loves him. And I think that’s a testament to what he’s meant for so long in WWE so getting the chance to team with him has been such a thrill for me.’
Someone Owens isn’t so close with, however, is CM Punk. Punk, after several controversial years away from the company, returned late last year and that return has been extremely well-received by the fans since.
Much has been made of the fact that Owens and Punk aren’t friends. It feels like there’s more to it – they briefly spoke on screen soon after Punk returned – but Owens is reluctant to open up on that, even when pushed.
‘We never talk,’ he says, to the point. ‘We have no reason to talk. We’re not friends. We’re not, we don’t, you know, we’re just not, I don’t know.
‘We have no reason to talk. If we work together, we will talk, but just not a thing we do.’
Few expect Owens to take his second world title in WWE this weekend, but a number of fans have celebrated the fact he’s getting a world title match and it’s been suggested that his current programme could lead to a character change.
Owens isn’t too bothered about having only one world title to his name despite being one of the biggest stars of the last decade. But he is, however, keen to mention how one thing in particular is a little better nowadays, which perhaps offers an explanation for his lack of opportunities.
Owens also gave his view on CM Punk, revealing that the two are not on talking terms
They have been involved in one segment on TV, thought Owens told Mail Sport that the pair ‘have no reason to talk’
Owens also spoke about one change in WWE, which has allowed him to have more opportunities in recent times
‘I do what’s needed of me,’ Owens says. Everybody’s got an opinion, and everybody wants more, and I’d love to be champion again. I’d love the chance to show that I should be champion again. But everybody does.
‘I think the last few years, things have got better in terms of who gets the opportunities. Because I think for a long time, there was maybe three guys that would get opportunities at the top.
‘It worked that way for a bunch of reasons, I guess. But that’s not the case anymore, which I think is definitely positive.’
WWE Bash in Berlin takes place on Saturday night and can be watched live via the WWE Network
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