Kevin Owens has addressed recent comments made by Matt Riddle, who claimed during an interview that Owens and Sami Zayn were among the most difficult wrestlers he’s ever worked with—citing communication issues.
Speaking with WrestleBinge, Riddle was asked about his hardest opponents, both physically and creatively. While he praised Sheamus as a tough but easy-to-work-with in-ring opponent, he singled out Owens and Zayn when it came to backstage planning.
“Hardest opponent in the ring? I would have to say Sheamus. Sheamus—easy to work with, hits really hard. So hardest in the ring. But then when I think about who’s harder to maybe work with, I would have to say Sami Zayn or Kevin Owens… It’s hard to put a complete sentence together with those guys, if you know what I’m saying. Very difficult. Sheamus hits ya hard, but it’s easy to put together.”
Riddle, Owens, and Zayn were briefly aligned on WWE television following WrestleMania 39 in 2023. In a new interview on My Mom’s Basement with Robbie Fox, Owens was asked whether Riddle’s comments came as a surprise.
“No, it didn’t take me by surprise. Well, I did see it. It’s funny, you know, because coming from him… I have nothing against him at all, but to me, he’s a guy who had really amazing opportunities handed to him—like being Randy’s tag team partner for so long and basically getting to ride the coattails of a legend.”
Owens didn’t hold back, referencing Riddle’s personal and professional setbacks during his WWE run.
“He managed to screw it all up—not because of his abilities, because he’s very talented and fairly athletic—but because of his own attitude and poor choices. So for him to say that we’re hard to work with, or whatever it is, and he couldn’t get a word in, there is a pretty good reason for that. You look at his track record, you look at our track record—I think that speaks for itself.”
Owens admitted that Riddle may have felt pushed out during planning sessions, but explained it was reflective of their working style.
“That’s how he felt, you know, it’s fine. I can’t even say he’s wrong. When he said it was hard to get a word in—it probably was, because we probably didn’t let him get a word in too much. We’ve been around, and we work a certain way, and it works.”
The candid remarks from both men have reignited discussion online about locker room dynamics and chemistry behind the scenes—adding another layer to their real-life history.
