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What's the story?
This week's SmackDown Live saw Kevin Owens deliver a pipebomb on Shane McMahon, and end the night with a Stunner on him. As per a recent report from Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE is trying to portray Owens as a character similar to Stone Cold Steve Austin.
In case you didn't know...
After a short-lived heel run, Kevin Owens turned face again last week when he hit his partner Dolph Ziggler with a Stunner to end the show. Another layer was added to Owens' new character this week on SmackDown Live when he delivered a rant on Shane McMahon hogging the spotlight and holding back talented athletes in the process.
Owens also talked about the McMahon family promising the fans that things would change, but the change ended up being Shane getting shoved down fans' throats on a weekly basis.
The main event of the night saw Roman Reigns defeat Dolph Ziggler, after which Owens came into the ring out of nowhere and hit a Stunner on McMahon.
Also read: When Stone Cold blasted a fan who wanted him to go PG
The heart of the matter
Owens' character change and his mannerisms led to fan speculation on WWE possibly trying to turn him into the new generation's Stone Cold Steve Austin. Now, Dave Meltzer has confirmed the rumors and said that WWE is indeed trying to push Owens as a babyface, similar to Stone Cold.
Owens himself wanted this babyface turn and wasn't originally scheduled to turn heel after WrestleMania 35. Daniel Bryan's injury led to WWE turning Owens heel when he attacked The New Day during a SmackDown Live main event.
What's next?
It seems like we will be seeing more of Owens taking on the role of a crowd-favorite anti-hero babyface in the coming weeks, and a match between him and Shane McMahon can be expected in the near future.
Are you enjoying Owens' babyface run so far?
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