5 Reasons Kevin Owens Will Win at WWE WrestleMania 33
By Bryan Heaton
3. A Stronger Hatred
The biggest part of the story between Kevin Owens and Chris Jericho is each man’s desire for revenge. What each of them wants revenge for and how they’re going about it are two very different things. And that difference is what tilts the contest into the favor of Owens.
Depending on how you look at it, both Jericho and Owens are guilty of betraying the other. It’s because of Jericho that Owens had to defend the Universal Title against Goldberg, and Jericho directly caused Owens to get distracted enough to lose the match. The distraction came as a result of the aforementioned assault by Owens. So neither competitor is totally in the clear.
Jericho’s seeking revenge for the assault and betrayal, plain and simple. He’s out to prove that he is the bigger man by defeating the guy who tried to basically end his career. While passionate about it, he lacks the same intensity that Owens has going into the match.
Owens is absolutely livid. And, because he is a very bad man, he can’t control that hatred coursing through his veins. In his mind, Owens would still be Universal Champion if it wasn’t for Jericho. He even betrayed Jericho – a “tool” rather than a friend – because he felt that Y2J would do the same to him. Ironically, Owens attacking Jericho led to the same result a betrayal would have. And that makes him furious.
In this case, anger trumps redemption. Owens doesn’t care about anything except hurting Jericho. In fact, he only demanded the WrestleMania match be for the US Title so he can hurt Jericho even more when he takes it away from him. That pure anger and unadulterated hatred is what will put KO over the edge and emerge victorious in Orlando.