Report: SmackDown Main Event Changed After Referee Botch

Friday Night SmackDown in Corpus Christi, Texas this week featured a main event between long-time rivals Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens, battling over the WWE Championship in singles action. Unfortunately, the finish of the match was very awkward, with the referee not calling for the bell despite Owens not kicking out after being hit with the WWE Title belt, only for the match to continue for another minute as Zayn hit a Helluva Kick to secure the victory. News has emerged on what actually happened.

According to a report from Fightful Select, the ending of SmackDown’s main event was in fact botched. It is stated that the match was supposed to end after Owens got hit with the title belt and he was not planned to kick out. Despite this, the referee awkwardly halted his count and acted as though Owens had kicked out, prompting him to halfway kick out after the count to try and save the spot. On the fly, those in the ring changed up the finish with Zayn hitting his finisher to end the match moments later. 

Reports over the last week revealed internal opposition to Zayn’s recent win of the WWE Championship, though it was noted that WWE opted with Zayn ahead of plans to avoid a Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk Crown Jewel Championship match in November.