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Sami Zayn Surprised By Kevin Owens Backstage After WWE Title Win (VIDEO)

By John Canton • Published Jul 03, 2026 12:50 EDT
Kevin Owens Sami Zayn
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens - Image via WWE.com

Sami Zayn finally became the WWE Champion, and he got a big hug from Kevin Owens in a video shared by WWE. 

The careers of Undisputed WWE Champion Sami Zayn and former Universal Champion Kevin Owens will forever be linked. They started wrestling together about 20 years ago, they joined WWE around the same time over a decade ago, and made the main roster around the same time.

There are also many memorable Kevin Owens-Sami Zayn matches where Owens is usually the heel, and Zayn is the face, but not always. Don’t forget the duo also headlined WrestleMania 39 Saturday by winning the WWE Tag Team Titles from The Usos in an incredible match.

Who was Kevin Owens’ last match against? Sami Zayn, of course. That Owens-Zayn Unsanctioned Match was at Elimination Chamber 2025 when Owens beat Zayn in a brutal, yet outstanding match that may have been the best one they had against eachother.

Sadly, a few months later, in July 2025, Kevin Owens underwent neck surgery and has been out of action for over a year as a result. While Owens is back on WWE TV as a coach on WWE LFG on A&E, it hasn’t led to a return to the ring. Hopefully, that return to the ring will happen soon, but there’s no confirmation on when a return will happen.

For the past decade, many people have tried to get under Sami Zayn’s skin by saying he was never a WWE or World Champion, yet his best friend Kevin Owens won the Universal Championship in 2016. At Night of Champions last Saturday, Sami Zayn did the unthinkable by pinning Cody Rhodes to become WWE Champion for the first time.

After Zayn’s title win, Kevin Owens went on X/Twitter to share this thoughtful message celebrating his best friend, Sami Zayn, and making the point that Zayn has long deserved it.

I’ve missed a lot of things I wish I hadn’t in the last 15 months because of this injury but today is, by far, the one I wish I had been there for the most.

He has brought out the best in me as both an ally and a foe. That’s because he is THE best.

When you’re consistently that good for that long, you become undeniable.

Sami becoming WWE Champion was inevitable. He has deserved that moment for a very long time and I am so happy to see him finally get it.

Now enjoy these pictures of me annoying him at various stages of our careers. The last one is him putting on my sock in a hotel room in the middle of nowhere in Texas because I thought I had broken my back the night before and could not move. He had to help me put on my boxers too.

Look how happy he is…

Now tell me he doesn’t deserve to be champion!
@SamiZayn

Becky Lynch Surprises Sami Zayn With Kevin Owens

Two days after Night of Champions, the June 29th edition of WWE Monday Night Raw took place in Atlantic City, and it also featured a SmackDown taping right after. That was done to give WWE talent and staff the rest of the week off for the Fourth of July holiday.

In a video posted by WWE, legendary former Women’s Champion Becky Lynch surprised her good friend Sami Zayn by opening a door and revealing that Kevin Owens was there.

Kevin Owens, who had a bow on his shirt as if he was a present, hugged his best friend Sami Zayn. When Zayn asked if Owens had come in just for him, Owens said “yeah,” meaning he was there to see Zayn as the WWE Champion.

When Sami Zayn was handed a new t-shirt about being “The Last Real Good Guy” and the Undisputed WWE Champion, Kevin Owens said he’d take one, and then said maybe he’ll take ten. After Lynch said, “We are so back,” Zayn remarked that it turned out that everybody loves him.

The trio of Owens, Zayn, and Lynch posed for a photo together with Zayn holding the WWE Title. After the shot, Owens punched Zayn in the groin, and Zayn reacted in a funny way: “I knew it.” Somebody remarked off camera, “Some things never change.” Nope.

Check out Sami Zayn’s WWE Championship celebration on the July 3rd edition of SmackDown from Atlantic City.