Kevin Owens' initial mystery partner on SmackDown set for a big match against top AEW stars

It has recently been revealed Kevin Owens' "surprise partner" is set for a major match against a top AEW tag team following his appearance earlier tonight on SmackDown. This would be Ricky Gibson who will face FTR.

Gibson is one-half of the tag team Midnight Heat. They have been frequently on the independent circuit. During SmackDown, he appeared only as Ricky and was KO's long-awaited surprise partner as he faced A-Town Down Under. However, Kevin received news that Randy Orton was available, and he was quick to ditch his current tag team partner.

Sean Ross Sapp on Fightful mentioned on X/Twitter that Ricky Gibson, along with his tag team partner Eddie Pearl, will face FTR as part of the Roseland 9 show. This event is set to feature a collaboration between Prestige Wrestling, DPW, and West Coast Pro Wrestling.

See the match's poster below.

How did Kevin Owens' match tonight turn out?

After coming out with Ricky for his match, it seemed things were for this tag team contest, but a WWE production member interrupted them.

She revealed that the partner Kevin Owens was waiting for had finally arrived. Once he caught wind of this, he turned to Ricky and hit him with a Stunner. His real tag team partner, Randy Orton, came out.

This was The Apex Predator's first appearance since Bash in Berlin when he lost against Gunther in a match for the World Heavyweight Championship. Tonight was also his first match on SmackDown since June, as he stayed on RAW during his feud with The Ring General. The team of R-KO eventually defeated A-Town Down Under.

A lot has gone down on the Friday show since Orton left for the time being, but the last time he was around, he helped Cody Rhodes and Kevin Owens fend off The Bloodline. Now, it remains to be seen what his next action will be.