According to a report, Kevin Owens has re-signed with WWE. His current deal runs up in January.
According to a report from Fightful Select (h/t WrestlingNews.co), Owens has signed a new deal with WWE. As previously noted, his current deal will expire in January.
Back in 2018, Owens announced that he had signed a new five-year deal with the company. The contract was reworked, and it thus pushed up the expiration date to Jan. 2022. But that’s all a moot point now, because the 37-year-old and longtime fan favorite is here to stay for the long run.
It’s worth noting that the contract of Owens’ close friend, Sami Zayn, is reportedly slated to expire soon as well. With Owens now signed long-term, WWE can now focus on working toward a new deal with Zayn. Keeping Owens, simply put, can only help WWE’s chances of convincing Zayn to stick around.
WWE has been giving both Owens and Zayn more television time in recent weeks. The Prized Fighter is now working in the WWE Championship scene on Raw with Big E, Bobby Lashley and Seth Rollins. Those four will face off for the title at the upcoming Day 1 pay-per-view.
Despite signing a three-year deal, Kevin Owens could be released at a moment’s notice.
According to Dave Meltzer, the deal is three years long and could be worth as much as $3 million to the former Universal Champion. Owens will also be working a lighter schedule moving forward. That’ll be more like live events every other week, not four matches a year like Brock Lesnar.
The other interesting note made on Wrestling Observer Radio is KO’s contract does not include a clause granting him immunity from being released. One of the main reasons The Prizefighter likely opted to re-sign is for job security. He has a wife and two young children at home, so the guaranteed money that comes with signing on with WWE will have likely been a big factor behind his decision to stay.
Owens said the decision to re-sign with WWE was easy because it was the best thing for his family.
“I’ll just say that my contract still ends on January 31, but not 2022,” Owens said. “I will still be in WWE for several years, The decision was pretty easy because it was the best thing for my family, really. When it comes to that, it’s always a pretty easy decision to take. WWE has been my home for seven years now, so I have a sense of belonging.
“Basically, I spent the majority of my career here. When you look at all the wrestling companies I’ve wrestled for, in WWE, that’s where I’ve been the longest. That’s where I need to be for the next few years. That’s how I felt and that’s the decision I made.”
While a three-year contract might sound like job security as well as a hefty wage, WWE has proved more than ever this year that anyone can be let go at a moment’s notice. There have even been cases in 2021 where it has felt as if WWE has signed wrestlers to new deals just so they can release them soon after. That forces those wrestlers to sit and do nothing for 90 days as opposed to moving on right away had their deal been allowed to run out. Hopefully, Owens won’t suffer the same fate and will be with WWE for at least three more years.
As for Zayn, he challenged Universal Champion Roman Reigns for the title on the Dec. 3 episode of SmackDown. Zayn lost quickly, however, as Brock Lesnar attacked him before the match started.
Source: TheSportster
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