On Friday's WWE SmackDown, Kevin Owens announced that he had a neck injury that would require surgery. Owens was scheduled to face Randy Orton at WrestleMania 41.
News of a potential injury to Owens was reported on Friday morning by PWN, though exact details weren't given.
Speaking to Robbie Fox on My Mom's Basement on Friday before SmackDown, Owens opened up regarding his injury.
"25 years in, with the stuff I've done, I feel like it was bound to happen. It sucks. The timing sucks, for sure. I hoped it would never happen, obviously, nobody hopes for it, but I felt like doing this for 25 years, I felt really great. Even now, I feel great, I do. It's not like a constant problem, but over the last few months, I've had an issue in my matches that made me go, 'I think something is not right.' We looked into it and found out there was something wrong with my neck," said Owens.
Asked if this was something that had built up over time or if there was a specific moment that caused it, Owens replied, "I know for a fact there was a specific moment because in December, I did a full body MRI just on my own for curiosity, just like to make sure and see if there is anything I need to be aware of. It's a thing where you can see if you have issues with your bone structure or organs or anything like that. At the time, the report came back that my knees were shit, but I've been well aware of that for a long time. There is no concern there. There was something about my spine and mild to moderate stenosis, which, for what we do, and I showed it to WWE doctors and they're like, 'For what you guys do, everyone has a level of stenosis. Everyone on Earth has a level of stenosis. Your spine and neck, everything looks good. For what you've been doing, you're fine.' Great, and I felt great. In January, I had a match. In the match, two things happened that really jarred my neck. That's when the issues started. I knew there was something. We ended up doing an MRI this week and found out it's serious. I think that match in January is what did it because I had an MRI a month before that and everything looked fine."
Owens wrestled two matches in January, bouts against Jimmy Uso and Rey Mysterio on WWE SmackDown.
Asked if his neck injury was comparable to others, Owens replied, "I've talked to a few people. When the WWE doctor called me to tell me about it, I was so shocked because I knew there was something wrong, but I didn't expect it to be so wrong that I couldn't do WrestleMania. I thought we'll take care of it after WrestleMania. When he told me I couldn't do it, I was so shocked that I stopped listening to him almost. He was explaining to me everything that is happening, what we're going to do, and honestly, right now, I can't even sit here and tell you I know...I know what the next step is, but I almost don't know what the exact injury is. I know something is wrong with my neck and and it is affecting my mobility. I was so zoned out. I don't know if it's similar or not to other people. I know the solution is very similar to what a lot of other people have done."
He continued, "It sucks. Not getting to wrestle Randy Orton at WrestleMania really sucks. That's the part that bugs me the most. I know I'll come back. At the very least, I hope I come back. I never take anything for granted in what we do. Who knows, but pretty likely to come back. Maybe we can do it eventually, but this year was going to be me vs. Randy Orton at WrestleMania, which is huge to me. I take comfort in knowing that I did it last year. I was in the ring with him at WrestleMania last year. This year we wouldn't have had the other annoying guy in it. That would have been nice, but it's okay."
Owens, Orton, and Logan Paul battled in a triple threat match at WrestleMania XL.
Asked if there is a timetable for his return, Owens replied, "I don't know. I haven't talked to the surgeon or anything like that yet. I'm going to do all that on Monday. I know that most of the people who have gone through similar things (were out) six months to eight months to a year. I would assume it's in that range, but I don't really know. It's all really new right now."
Owens has wrestled two matches since January, a ladder match against Cody Rhodes at WWE Royal Rumble and an unsanctioned match against Sami Zayn at WWE Elimination Chamber.
"This is the funny part. I know that some of my detractors, and there are plenty out there, will say, 'See, this is why you shouldn't do this stuff.' I am telling you, it happened in a regular match. No hardcore things. Nothing. There were two very simple things that I've done a million times. Ultimately, probably shouldn't have had [two PLE] matches considering what was happening, but we didn't know. In those matches, as crazy as they were, at no time did I feel like my neck...I didn't land on my head and get hurt. I don't remember anything from those matches of, 'Ah, my neck,'" recalled Owens.
Fox noted that many people would point to certain spots, believing that's when Owens got injured.
"That's what a lot of people do, they make assumptions based on what they think they've seen. Our entire job, our entire craft, is making people believe something that is not actually happening, and I'm very good at that. I saw people claim the barbed wire we used wasn't real because I wasn't bleeding, but that's not how barbed wire works. If you land in it and get caught up in it, it'll tear you up and you'll bleed, but if you just land on it and it's wrapped tight around the chair, which it was, it's just going to poke, which is what happened to me. I have pokes, but I didn't bleed all over the place. That's what people do. They assume. Nothing I say will convince them otherwise, either. Those people will go, 'Oh, he's lying,' which is fine, whatever. I do think, ultimately, to a degree, it would have to be wear and tear from 25 years because that's a thing too. This injury has happened to guys who have done far less dangerous things than me throughout their career and happened way sooner. Sometimes, it's just bad luck and I think in that match, those two things that happened, were just off by this much [holds fingers close together]. It just changed everything," said Owens.
In the interview, Owens expressed his disappointment and frustration that the news came out online before he got a chance to inform the fans himself.
Fightful wishes Owens all the best in his recovery.
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