Report: Kevin Owens went off-script following a major botch during Royal Rumble match against Roman Reigns
Roman Reigns put his Universal Championship on the line against Kevin Owens at Royal Rumble. The two men squared off in a Last Man Standing match which was won by The Tribal Chief. However, the match did not go as planned as a major botch led to some awkward moments towards the end of the bout.
Kevin Owens had to go off-script and sell the low-blow he received from Roman Reigns longer than he was supposed to. Roman Reigns was handcuffed to a light stand by Kevin Owens. Unfortunately, Reigns could not free himself in time so he had to injure the referee who had counted till nine to save his Championship. It is unknown if that spot was planned or not. Even Paul Heyman could not open Reigns' handcuffs after bringing in a key.
As per Dave Meltzer of WON, Kevin Owens sold the low-blow he received from Roman Reigns while he was struggling with the handcuffs longer than he was supposed to. The reason could simply be that The Prizefighter was giving more time to The Tribal Chief and Paul Heyman to try and release him from the handcuffs as per the original plan.
"Heyman was unable to unlock Reigns. The ref counted to five, and it appeared he got the message to just stop counting. So he did. At 2:18, Reigns was freed of the handcuffs although he did manage to maneuver to where his feet were underneath him, but he wasn’t up, at 2:12. Owens, who wasn’t supposed to sell the low blow anywhere near that long, was then put in a guillotine and put out for the ten count."
What's next for Roman Reigns and Kevin Owens?
The two men gave it all that they could in the brutal Last Man Standing match at Royal Rumble. However, likely, the feud between the two is now over and both will be moving on to fresh programs in the coming time.
There are rumors that Roman Reigns may be the one that Edge chooses to face at WrestleMania after he won the Royal Rumble match.