CM Punk Vs. Kevin Owens WWE Championship Match Finish

WWE

Tonight’s episode of WWE SmackDown takes place in Toronto, Canada, and will be headlined by a major first time encounter.

Back at SummerSlam, Kevin Owens would make his return to the ring for the first time in over a year, winning a number one contender’s four-way match to earn the next shot at CM Punk’s Undisputed WWE Championship.

After two weeks of back and forth segments, the two men are finally set for their first ever match against each other tonight, with the WWE Championship on the line.

There are a lot of potential avenues WWE could go with the match, with several finishes in play for tonight’s SmackDown.

Sami Zayn Screws Kevin Owens

What seems like the safest bet right now is that Sami Zayn will get involved in the match and either intentionally or unintentionally screw over Kevin Owens.

Ever since he won the WWE Championship back at Night of Champions, Sami has continued to be screwed over by the company, as stars have been added to his contender’s matches on a whim, his most recent chance to earn a title shot didn’t even get underway, and of course him having to defend against Punk unannounced in Chicago.

Sami will try and weasel his way into tonight’s match, and he will almost certainly play a role in the finish.

Setting up another Sami and Kevin clash is a simple pivot for Owens should WWE not want to crown him.

Double Countout/Disqualification

In recent years, WWE seemingly has an obsession with stretching every WWE Title feud out to be a series of matches all while avoiding actually changing the title to logically set up the series.

Kevin himself was a victim of this with Cody Rhodes back in 2024/2025, as well as Drew McIntyre last year and Gunther earlier this year being clear examples.

It would be a shame if Punk and Owens was a one and done deal, but realistically we have to be prepared for what that would likely mean in regards to tonight’s match.

Ending the match with a flat non-finish would be incredibly anticlimactic and yet incredibly on brand for 2026 WWE.

CM Punk Wins Clean

When CM Punk captured the Undisputed WWE Championship, it was reported that he was slated for a ‘lengthy’ run with the gold.

Now obviously plans can always change in wrestling, as it was unlikely WWE even knew Owens would be back at the time that report emerged, but it does indicate WWE is in no rush to take the title off Punk.

Punk has called out a number of different names since becoming champion, including Finn Balor, Gunther and even Oba Femi, seemingly teasing future matches for the title.

If Punk vs. Owens doesn’t result in a title change tonight, it would honestly be for the best to just have Punk win clean than to overthink things like they have with Gunther and McIntyre in the past.

Sami Zayn Helps Kevin Owens Win Undisputed WWE Championship

As I said previously, we are almost certainly set to see Sami Zayn tonight in some capacity.

Zayn’s desire to get back his Undisputed WWE Championship will lead to him making the decision on what to do, and out of the two options, one is by far the most intriguing.

Sami’s continued screwjobs at the hands of WWE management and Nick Aldis can only be countered by one thing: fighting back against the system.

While Sami could always end up being bitter towards Kevin, he and Kevin coming together to hold the title hostage from the company’s ‘Golden Children’ would make for the better story.

Kevin Owens Wins WWE Championship With Package Piledriver

As said previously, it would be a real shame if after all this time the story between CM Punk and Kevin Owens ended up being a two week one and done deal entirely based off their history with no new angles to approach between the two.

WWE could easily extend the feud to the end of the year and add new heat between the two men on top of their already documented history, but they’ll need to start hot out of the gate to do so effectively.

If this turns into a series of matches, then the easiest way to get there is simple: Kevin Owens becomes WWE Champion tonight.

To add even more to the moment, he should do it with the Package Piledriver now WWE is allowing him to sporadically bring it out on WWE television.

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• cm punk
• Smackdown
• wwe
• KEVIN OWENS

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