AJ Styles knew Kevin Owens was coming back at SummerSlam before anybody announced it, because he walked past him sweating at the Performance Center.
Owens returned on night two, unadvertised, and pinned Sami Zayn in a four-way to become number one contender to CM Punk. It was his first match in 17 months, following neck fusion surgery in July last year.
Styles has been in and out of the Performance Center recently, covering for a coach recovering from knee surgery. That is where he found out.
“I knew something was going to happen because I seen a sweaty Kevin Owens at the Performance Center. I didn’t say anything. I was like, oh, when I saw him. I was like, something must be going on.”
He kept it to himself.
“I’m super happy for him that he had the opportunity to get back in the ring and do what he does best. The neck issue is still, I’m sure, always going to be an issue, but he’s got it under control and is ready to freaking kill it.”
Owens went hard from the opening seconds of the match, something Styles said he recognises in people.
“I love guys like that. They go, listen, if I’m gonna break it or I’m gonna have a problem with it, we’re gonna find out.”
“One gear, dude. Those are my kind of people.”
Owens has since described a difficult recovery, including damage to his spinal cord and being told there was a chance of lasting effects. He was cleared in early July and returned to a ring on July 18, exactly a year after the operation.
He is next in line for Punk’s Undisputed WWE Championship. Nothing has been announced.
