After the chaos and destruction that unfolded at Hell in a Cell 2021, one prominent WWE Superstar has apparently decided to step away from the company. After an absolutely exhausting battle with Sami Zayn, it looks like WWE fans won't be seeing Kevin Owens making a quick return to SmackDown or any other WWE events for the foreseeable future.
The news came straight from the big man himself, who took to Twitter following his heartbreaking loss to Sami Zayn. With a short tweet, Owens signaled to the WWE universe that he'll be away from the brand for a while, likely to prevent fans from panicking over not seeing him around in the coming weeks. Here's how he explained his impromptu hiatus:
I fought like hell. Now, I need a little break. I’ll be back soon. Thank you, guys.
The good news is that Kevin Owens' temporary hiatus break was prefaced by a message directly from the wrestler himself. Given that info and its source, WWE fans can breathe a bit easier knowing that this time away is of his own volition, and not part of some unexpected announcement that Owens has been fired by the WWE as it has gone for other talent in recent months. Given the volatile state of the company as of late, it's probably a good thing that Owens decided to give a heads up, or else rumors of him jumping ship to AEW probably wouldn't be far behind.
With that being said, it's hard to know whether Kevin Owens' sabbatical from the WWE was something that was always planned as a post-Hell in a Cell breather, or if it was truly a spur-of-the-moment decision. Owens made the announcement Monday morning, hours after his grueling PPV match with Sami Zayn. It's definitely possible he sustained an injury during the match that wasn't highlighted, and only learned later after consulting with the WWE's medical staff that he could be sidelined for a little while. Nothing like that has been announced by the WWE to this point, but if that is the case, surely more news will arrive in the coming days.
It may just be that Kevin Owens needs a break from the WWE even without a serious injury, which is not at all uncommon. Few WWE superstars can consistently turn up week to week without getting banged up, and sooner or later just about every WWE superstar takes a few weeks or months off to rest, recuperate, and catch up on family life following a big match. As for Owens, he has a wife and two kids at home, and would probably like to have some time with them before returning to the rampant touring schedule of the WWE.
Kevin Owens didn't give an exact timetable for when audiences should expect to see him back on SmackDown, but one can imagine this short break will at least make it so that he's not around for this Friday's episode on Fox at 8:00 p.m. ET. As Owens steps away from the WWE, there's a popular rumor swirling that someone who's been away for a long time may be on their way back in.
