All The Times Kevin Owens And Sami Zayn Fell Out 

WWE has seen its fair share of rivals —I’m talking rivals dating as far back as in the 80s and 90s. Like the rivalry between Randy Savage and Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair and Dragon Steamboat, not to mention WWE’s “Greatest Rivalry” between Bret “Hit Man” Hart and Shawn Michaels.

In the early 00s we witnessed the rivalry between Trish Stratus and Lita, Edge and Christian vs The Hardy Boys, John Cena and Randy Orton, to mention but a few. One notable thing about these rivalries is that the majority of the time the rivals end up becoming great friends. Recently, there’s this rivalry that’s been ongoing in the WWE for years now and from the looks of it, it ain’t gonna end anytime soon.

I’m talking about the rivalry between Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. These two have arguably fallen out and made up more than any superstar in the WWE has. Funnily enough, these two have been friends way before joining WWE. They started their careers as El Generico (Zayn) and Kevin Steen (Owens) in 2007 in Ring of Honor (ROH) and the following year the two who were a Tag-Team won the ROH World Tag Team Championship in 2008.

While Zayn was the first to sign with the WWE in 2013, Owens followed suit in 2014. Their on and off toxic relationship started in WWE and just like most rivalries, they’ve always found a way to reconcile their differences. I’ll be talking about the times these two have had to fall out and reconcile.

First Feud — NXT TakeOver: R Evolution, 2014

Remember how I said that Zayn signed with WWE in 2013 and the next year Owens joined him? Will you believe me when I say that these two had their first fallout on the very day Owens had his debut match in the WWE? The reason for their fallout is actually a cliché one —Jealousy. We all know that one of the biggest reasons why good friends and great tag teams fall out in the world of pro wrestling is jealousy. When Zayn joined the company he was on a roll. Owens’ debut match took place on August 15, 2014 at NXT TakeOver: R Evolution.

Here’s the thing, Owens won his debut match which happened to be the opening match of the Pay-per-view against CJ Parker fair and square. At the Pay-per-view Main-Event Zayn also won his match which was for the NXT championship against Adrian Neville. Amongst the people who came down the ring to congratulate Zayn for his victory over Neville was his day-one best friend Owens. Amid the celebration, Owens turned on Zayn, delivering a powerbomb on the apron on Zayn.

The following year February 11, 2015 at NXT TakeOver: Rival, Zayn lost the title to Owens after the referee was forced to stop the match due to how Owens kept powerbombing Zayn. You would think that that would be the end of their friendship right? Wrong. Few months later, Owens was drafted to the main roster and a year later Zayn followed suit. That same year 2016, the two teamed up in a tag team match against The Miz and Antonio Cesaro but right after the match Owens attacked Zayn again.

Reunion — Hell In A Cell, 2017

This is a funny one, believe me. Around the month of September 2017, Owens began a feud with the then SmackDown Commissioner Shane McMahon. The feud led to them having a match at Hell In A Cell. To the surprise of everyone present at the arena and those watching at home, Zayn came out of nowhere and helped Owens defeat Shane.

You’re probably wondering why or how this is funny right? Well, during an episode of SmackDown Live, Zayn explained that he helped Owens because he discovered that Owens had been right all along and further backed up his claim by calling Owens his “brother” and “best friend.”

That move turned Zayn from being a Babyface to a Heel for the first time in his entire wrestling career. Zayn stuck with Owens throughout 2017, 2018, and the first part of 2019. The two wrecked the SmackDown roster with their incessant chaos and shenanigans. They only drifted apart in the second part of 2019 after Owens turned Babyface.

Second Feud — WrestleMania 37, 2021

Zayn continued being the Heel even after separating from Owens. In 2021, Zayn began this gimmick as a deranged conspiracy theorist that believed the WWE was holding him down. He tried to get Owens to back him up but when Owens declined, Zayn reignited his feud with Owens. The feud led them into fighting each other at WrestleMania 37. Zayn lost to Owens in that match.

In early 2022, Zayn joined “The Bloodline” (one of the strongest group in WWE) consisting of “The Tribal Chief” Roman Reigns (The then Undisputed Universal World Heavyweight Champion), Jimmy and Jay “The Usos,” (The Then Longest Reigning Tag-Team Champions), and Solo Sikoa, and was made the “Honorary Uce.” However, while still in The Bloodline, Zayn began the New Year 2023 by reigniting his feud with Owens.

When The Bloodline turned against Zayn in that same 2023, Zayn offered an olive branch to Owens after Owens saved him from the beat down Reigns and Jimmy were giving him. Owens kept refusing to reconcile with Zayn but finally accepted after Zayn was assaulted once again by The Usos. Following their reunion, Zayn and Owens challenged the Usos to a match for the Undisputed WWE Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania 39, which they went on to win thereby ending The Usos’ historic Undisputed Tag Team Championship reign.

Third Feud — Elimination Chamber, 2025

Late last year around October 2024, Owens began a feud with the current Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes. In all their matches, Owens has never beaten Rhodes and Owens found it difficult to stomach because he wanted Cody’s championship badly. The final time Owens was to challenge Rhodes for the title was the Royal Rumble 2025 but prior to the Pay-per-view, Owens indirectly asked Zayn to help him as his “Best Friend” to defeat Rhodes.

Surprisingly, Zayn didn’t interfere with Owens’ and Rhodes’ match at the Rumble and Rhodes defeated Owens in that match fair and square. For that reason, Owens turned on Zayn again. He Piledrived Zayn the same way he Piledrived Randy Orton during his feud with Rhodes. Zayn later challenged Owens to a match at the Elimination Chamber 2025. The match which was tagged “Unsanctioned Match” by both Raw and SmackDown General Managers Adam Pearce and Nick Aldis ended with Owens defeating Zayn after delivering a powerbomb on the apron to Zayn.

This last feud between Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn looks like the very end between them. Do you think there’s a chance that these two will rekindle their relationship in the future? Share your thoughts in the comments on our social media platform on X @ReelMovieJunkie. Keep following the Reel Movi

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