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Backstage news regarding the awkward finish of Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens from WWE SmackDown

Aaron Rift

As seen during the September 18th 2026 edition of SmackDown, Sami Zayn defended the WWE Championship against Kevin Owens. After CM Punk struck Owens with the title, Zayn made the cover. The referee counted to three, but the match continued. Zayn then hit Owens with a Helluva Kick and pinned him again, this time officially ending the match.

Fightful.com noted the following about the situation…

“In speaking to WWE sources about the Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn match, they claimed to Fightful that Owens was never supposed to kick out after the belt shot. The match was to end after that, but after the ref didn’t call for the bell, the finish had to be changed.”

Referee Brian Hebner gave his thoughts on what happened via Twitter/X…

“First of all it’s not a botch and it’s not the referees fault in this situation. He actually did exactly what he was suppose to do! Don’t kick, keep counting #123”

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