WWE SmackDown Live: Highlights, Analysis, and Grades for Sept. 26

WWE.com

Kevin Owens Addresses Shane McMahon, Sami Zayn Responds

We start off SmackDown Live with KO making his way to the ring. He calls out Commissioner Shane McMahon, but says he knows that Shane is too smart to confront him. Especially not after what he did to his father, Vince McMahon, two weeks ago. Owens tells the entire WWE Universe that he has a huge amount of respect for Vince. And then warns Shane, that if he was willing to cross the line with someone that he respects, imagine how far he’ll go with someone he despises.

It’s at that point, Sami Zayn’s music hits. KO’s former best friend makes his way down the ramp without his trademark enthusiasm. He tells Owens that he’s making a big mistake; that he’s already snapped and has gone further than he’s ever gone before.

KO responds by listing off his accolades (2x Inertcontinetal Champion, Universal Champion, and 3x United States Champion). He then asks Sami, if anything he’s ever done had made the same impact “when my skull crushed  Vince McMahon’s skull.” Zayn admits that he has fallen on hard luck, and he doesn’t have any accomplishments to his name, but when he wakes up and looks in the mirror, he doesn’t see a bag of trash staring at him.

These two have been fighting for years in the WWE, NXT, ROH, and all over the world. Yet, their matches and their interactions never get old. It’s a feud that WWE can easily fall back on whenever they want.

Sami Zayn’s passionate promo, was maybe the best he’s ever delivered on the main roster.It’s the struggle of an altruistic friend struggling to reconnect with someone who had gone down a horrible path.

Eventually, Daniel Bryan would come out to announce the main event for tonight. Sami Zayn vs Kevin Owens would set the tone for the rest of SmackDown Live.