Kevin Owens reveals when he was cleared for WWE in-ring return
Out for over a year with an almost career-ending injury, Kevin Owens has now finally revealed when he was cleared for his return.
At WWE SummerSlam 2026 Night Two, Owens returned as a surprise addition to the Finn Balor vs. Sami Zayn match alongside Gunther. Owens won the match upon his return and earned himself a title shot against CM Punk.
Speaking at the SummerSlam 2026 Night Two post-show, Owens opened up in detail about his in-ring clearance. The former Universal Champion noted that he kept undergoing scans but remained uncertain about it. However, just a few weeks before the PLE, Owens was allowed to return.
“There was a moment I thought it wasn’t gonna happen, and I definitely did not make peace with it. I was not ready. Getting this taken away from you when you’re not ready is hard. But I had such a great group of people around me to support me through it through it: my wife, my kids, my friends, the WWE medical staff, even you (Big E),” Owens said.
“I would talk to you a lot, but I was never okay with it. Up to a month ago, I was like, ‘This may be it’. We kept doing scans; it kept not showing what we were hoping for as far as the healing process from the surgery. Then I was like, ‘Well maybe it’s not gonna happen.’ Then a couple of weeks ago, they said, ‘We finally saw what we needed to see; you can get back in the ring.’ From there, here I am.”
In the same post-show interview, Owens also addressed AEW wrestler Rebel’s current battle with ALS and called her fight “inspirational.”
Shounak Chakrabarti is an experienced sports journalist with a lifelong passion for athletics and storytelling. He holds a Master’s Degree in International Journalism from the University of Leeds and joined F4WOnline in 2025.
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