Kevin Owens came up short in his Undisputed WWE Championship challenge on Friday’s SmackDown, falling to CM Punk after Sami Zayn’s interference proved decisive.
Punk and Owens closed the show in a main event built on a personal rivalry stretching back nearly twenty years.
In the closing stretch, Punk connected with the GTS, but no referee was in position to count. That’s when Zayn hit the ring and sent Punk into the ring post.
Owens pounced with a Stunner, but Punk barely kicked out. Zayn then slid the Undisputed WWE Championship belt into the ring and urged Owens to use it. Owens refused, making clear he wasn’t going to win that way.
That set Zayn off. He grabbed the title and cracked Owens across the face with it. Punk capitalized, delivered another GTS, and retained the Undisputed WWE Championship.
Zayn wasn’t finished after the bell. Following Punk’s victory, he attacked the Best in the World with the title belt and closed SmackDown standing tall with the championship, leaving no doubt about his intention to reclaim it.
Zayn lost the Undisputed WWE Championship to Punk in July. Owens had made his in-ring return at SummerSlam after 17 months on the shelf with a serious neck injury.