Kevin Owens became the second-ever WWE Universal Champion on August 22, 2016 when he defeated Big Cass, Seth Rollins, and Roman Reigns in a fatal four-way match. Owens picked up the victory thanks to the help of Triple H, who turned against his former protege Seth Rollins to "hand" Owens the title.
Owens held the Universal Championship for 188 days, which remains the second-longest reign in the history of the title. But as explained by Owens on WWE Break It Down, he felt they could have done more with himself and Triple H.
"The moment with Triple H and the 'turn' with him pedigreeing Seth, all the way to him handing me the title was so surreal. He's the reason I'm here. He sought me out on the Independent scene. He signed me to a contract with NXT. He's been in my corner for so long, from the start, when a lot of people weren't. To have him hand me the title, the significance of it in storyline was lost. That moment is something people still talk about and we did nothing with it. When so much could have been done. But on a personal level, and real life level, I couldn't imagine a better way to do it. I remember at the time people were like, 'I wish Kevin Owens won the title on his own.' But it's part of a story we're telling, right? Even in my life, it's an accomplishment of someone I looked up to for so long. If he didn't think I deserved that kind of accolade, we wouldn't have done it. He has the power to say no," he said.
Owens lost the title to Goldberg at WWE Fastlane 2017. He has never received a rematch for the title.
Elsewhere on the show, Owens discussed CJ Parker breaking his nose in his NXT debut and why he's glad it happened. You can find his full comments by clicking here.
