"KEVIN STEEN IS ALL ELITE!" "He left us" - Fans hilariously react after Kevin Owens' segment on WWE SmackDown

Moments ago, Kevin Owens made an appearance on WWE SmackDown ahead of his clash with Sami Zayn tomorrow night at the Elimination Chamber Premium Live Event. Fans reacted almost instantly to the segment, with many being reminded of AEW, and they had a bunch of jokes to bring out.

The Tony Khan-led promotion has not fared well when directly compared with WWE. In terms of ratings, ticket sales, attendance, and viewership, they fall short. Even NXT has gotten the upper hand over them. Despite the love of the fans for the company, unfortunately, the numbers have remained lackluster.

Kevin Owens was not around in person for tonight's show; rather, he was at the Rogers Centre ahead of time, as he wanted to soak in the atmosphere before his bout with Sami at the PLE.

Seeing how Owens was in an empty arena while he addressed Sami, fans brought out the AEW-related jokes. Many claimed that The Prizefighter had jumped ship already. Others brought up how despite an empty arena, it was a better turnout than any AEW show.

One fan hilariously commented how it couldn't be a show from the Jacksonville-based promotion as the arena and ring were bigger than the shows they have run.

Fans brought out AEW jokes during the Kevin Owens segment [Credit: Fan reactions on X]

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Sami Zayn says Kevin Owens' Package Piledriver made him feel things in his spine he'd never felt before

Earlier this month, Kevin Owens hit a Piledriver on Sami Zayn, the same move he did to the likes of Randy Orton and Cody Rhodes. This changed everything between them, as this was seemingly a sign that the former best friends were once again at each other's throats, with Owens going too far.

During an interview with FN Barn Burner, Sami talked about how it felt taking the move at his age now. He mentioned how it was completely different, as he felt it more in his body as compared to when he had suffered it previously many years ago.

He revealed that this was not the first time he was hit with the move, as he had done so many times when he was younger. For him, it was a different story now that he took the move at this juncture of his life.

"Yeah, different ball game. I felt things in my spine that I'd never felt taking that move. And, you know, I used to take that move a lot in my early 20s. My entire 20s actually was just me taking that move pretty much. Felt very different at 40, no question," he said. [From 41:29 to 41:49]

The two Canadians have fought side by side and against one another multiple times in their careers. Tomorrow night will be no different, and fans can expect another war between these two men.