WWE Fastlane 2017: 5 Potential Finishes for Kevin Owens vs. Goldberg
By Adam O'Brien
WWE.com
1. Goldberg Squashes Kevin Owens in Less Than 1:26
As much as we’d love to see Kevin Owens give Goldberg hell, you should probably consider this the most likely outcome so you don’t end up disappointed.
Sure, a squash match loss for the WWE Universal Champion would be detrimental to his future as a main eventer, but if they can find a way to justify it, they absolutely will. Unfortunately, there are – in fact – plenty of ways to justify Kevin Owens getting the same whitewash treatment that rocked Brock Lesnar at Survivor Series.
First, and most simply, if Goldberg can absolutely destroy one of the most physically dominant athletes in recent memory, in less than two minutes to boot, who’s to say he can’t do the same to anybody else? As talented as Kevin Owens may be, his consistent booking as someone who relies on Chris Jericho’s help to retain the championship hasn’t exactly given him Brock Lesnar-tier invincibility.
“The Beast” had laid waste to everyone who’s stood in his path since returning in 2012, and Kevin Owens as a character just isn’t on that same level – so the chances of Goldberg running through the man are extremely high from a kayfabe perspective.
Secondly, WWE has never shied away from the opportunity to add extra buzz to a big-time WrestleMania contest by giving it the top title of the brand.
The Rock ended a record-making CM Punk WWE Championship run in 2013 because they wanted to expand on their huge WrestleMania 29 main event by giving Rock and John Cena something to fight over in comparison to the previous year’s spectacle.
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We have seen Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar one-on-one twice now, not including the Royal Rumble, and one of those came in a lacklustre encounter at WrestleMania.
Admittedly, it would make a little sense to throw the WWE Universal Championship into this one to sweeten the pot, and maybe increase the hype for those that may be skeptical going in – considering the last time Lesnar and Goldberg worked a match that lasted longer than 90 seconds, they completely sucked the life out of the arena.
Finally, and to provide an alternative to our previous scenario of Owens actually holding his own against Goldberg to prove himself as a solo athlete, this could be an interesting way to kick-start Owens’ WrestleMania rivalry with Chris Jericho.
Owens has consistently been looked down upon as a champion because of his over-reliance on Y2J and other underhanded tactics to ensure his successful title retention.
Jericho said “you’re going to beat Goldberg at Fastlane because I’ve got your back”, and although that may rub Owens the wrong way, he might have been right.
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Owens could be in for a rude awakening when he finds himself up a proverbial creek without a paddle at Fastlane, and it’ll really ignite his desire to defeat Chris Jericho in April if he finds out his former best friend was right all along.