Real reason Kevin Owens and Xavier Woods were kept off WWE recently - Reports

Xavier Woods was not part of RAW last week. The storyline reason for Woods' absence was him being assaulted by WWE champion Bobby Lashley after their Hell in a Cell match on RAW. However, the real reason behind Xavier Woods taking time off was different.

Another name that has missed a few weeks in action is former Universal Champion Kevin Owens. The Prizefighter had been missing from SmackDown after he lost his match against Sami Zayn at Hell in a Cell. It was rumored that Owens will be out of action in the coming weeks but his return has already been announced for this week's Smackdown.

Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that the real reason for both Xavier Woods and Kevin Owens being absent for the past week was that they had asked for time off from WWE. Both were written off for storyline purposes but they wanted some time off which they were granted. As per Meltzer's report:

The situation with Owens was this. When he tweeted that he was going to take time off and we were told he asked for time off, it was always just a two week vacation and never to be a long-term thing. So he’s back on the 7/2 show doing a last man standing match with Zayn as a MITB qualifier. Woods had also asked for a week off so they did the angle Lashley injured him, but he’s also back this coming week.

What's next for Xavier Woods and Kevin Owens?

Former tag team champion Xavier Woods will be taking on Bobby Lashley again next week on RAW. Woods' tag team partner Kofi Kingston is challenging Bobby Lashley for his WWE Championship at MITB in July, which makes the match between the two even more interesting.

Bobby Lashley vs. Xavier Woods set for next week's WWE Raw https://t.co/2r7e9K1Typ pic.twitter.com/GZsEzS35qG

— Wrestling Observer (@WONF4W) June 29, 2021

Kevin Owens will face Sami Zayn in a Last Man Standing match on SmackDown this week. The winner will qualify for the MITB ladder match.