Kevin Owens’ SummerSlam return wasn’t just emotional for wrestling fans. It was emotional for the person who lived every step of the journey with him.
Less than a day after Owens made his shocking WWE comeback and punched his ticket to an Undisputed WWE Championship match, his wife, Karina, took to Instagram to celebrate the moment with a heartfelt tribute. Sharing a series of photos of herself with Owens, along with videos from his SummerSlam victory, she kept the caption simple.
“What a return ❤️👏🏻💪🏻”
Behind those four words is a comeback that very nearly never happened. Owens spent the last 17 months recovering from neck surgery, enduring setback after setback as scan after scan failed to show the healing doctors were hoping for. At one point, the former Universal Champion admitted he genuinely believed his in-ring career might be over.
Instead, SummerSlam gave him one of the biggest moments of his career. After Nick Aldis turned the No. 1 Contender’s Match into a Fatal 4-Way by adding both GUNTHER and a mystery fourth participant, Owens’ music hit and the U.S. Bank Stadium crowd erupted. Moments later, he stunned Sami Zayn and earned himself a future Undisputed WWE Championship shot.
Owens later admitted he has no intention of changing the way he wrestles despite undergoing major neck surgery, saying he would rather give fans everything he has than return as a watered-down version of himself.
For Karina, though, none of that mattered in the moment. After watching her husband fight his way back from one of the toughest stretches of his career, she simply got to celebrate seeing him do what he loves again. And judging by her reaction, that victory meant just as much outside the ring as it did inside it.
What did you think of Kevin Owens’ SummerSlam return? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
