Former Universal Champion advises “rotten” fans after exposing them for harassing wrestlers at airports for autographs

Former WWE Universal Champion made it clear that he doesn't like it when hundreds of fans wait for him for his autograph at the airport.

Former Universal Champion advises “rotten” fans after exposing them for harassing wrestlers at airports for autographs

Kevin Owens [via WWE]

Being a WWE Superstar isn’t easy. Fans often wait months to meet them, but sometimes they don’t respect the wrestlers’ boundaries and disturb them in places where they want to be left alone. Recently, it was Kevin Owens who made it clear he doesn’t like giving autographs at the airport.

While speaking to Chris Van Vliet on The Insight, The Prizefighter said he often sees people waiting just to get an autograph. Kevin Owens added that he’s usually fine with taking pictures with fans. However, when he refuses to sign autographs, many walk away disappointed—but he believes that’s because they weren’t true fans in the first place.

One of the most concerning situations Owens mentioned was how crowded airports can get because of fans. He revealed that sometimes it gets so bad he can’t even move. Owens admitted that while the situation is overwhelming for him, it’s even worse for the female wrestlers, many of whom have said they feel scared.

What I do now in airports is that when they’re all waiting for their autographs, I just go, ‘I don’t sign at the airport, but I’ll gladly take a picture with you.’ When I say that, 20 of them turn around and go, ‘Ugh.’ ‘Cause they’re not there to be fans, which I don’t have a problem with, but I just got to the airport, I’m tired, and I gotta go to work. Sometimes, man, when we get to an airport and it’s 5 or 6 people, okay.

Kevin Owens on The Insight

On the latest episode of SmackDown, Owens came out and delivered an emotional promo. The 40-year-old revealed he had suffered a serious neck injury and would miss WrestleMania 41, cancelling his match with Randy Orton. Despite being a heel, fans were upset by the news and wished him a speedy recovery.

Former WWE Champion Karl Anderson takes a subtle dig at WWE while addressing Kevin Owens’ injury

After Owens announced his injury, many superstars and fans from around the world sent him well wishes. However, Karl Anderson had a different take on the situation. The former WWE Raw Tag Team Champion took a subtle dig at the Stamford-based company while commenting on Owens’ injury.

Kevin Owens and Karl Anderson
Kevin Owens and Karl Anderson [via WWE]

In a recent conversation on Talk ‘N Shop, one half of The Good Brothers admitted he had no idea about the situation and barely follows the product. He hoped Owens’ injury wouldn’t turn out to be something serious. Anderson added that if the injury was real, he hoped WWE wouldn’t release him shortly after, as it had happened to him in the past.

I don’t know his injury status. I don’t want to comment on that. Here’s what I’m going to go with. If Kevin is really hurt, which I’m not saying he is or isn’t, I don’t have any idea. I haven’t followed. I’m barely involved. I’m just going to say this; I hope, if he’s really hurt and he has surgery, I hope he is not released two and a half months after the major surgery. That’s all I’m going to say.

Karl Anderson on Kevin Owens’ injury via Talk N Shop

Anderson was referring to a similar situation he experienced during his last run in WWE. In 2024, he and Luke Gallows wrestled in NXT and had rivalries with top teams like Nathan Frazer & Axiom and Chase University. However, both were released from WWE in February this year. Many fans disagreed with Anderson’s comments, saying Owens is too big of a star and will be just fine.

Kevin Owens talks about his match against WrestleMania 38 against Stone Cold Steve Austin

WrestleMania 38 was a special moment for Owens, as he got the chance to face his idol and one of WWE’s all-time greats, Stone Cold Steve Austin. Austin defeated The Prizefighter in the Night One main event three years ago. Owens later shared how the match with Steve Austin came to be.

Stone Cold Steve Austin and Kevin Owen
Stone Cold Steve Austin and Kevin Owens [via WWE]

In the same interview, Mr. Wrestling revealed that Vince McMahon wanted Austin to be part of WrestleMania in Dallas. Although McMahon wasn’t sure in what capacity Austin would be involved, it was decided on the day of the show that it would be a match. Owens said that facing The Rattlesnake in the main event of WrestleMania was the craziest experience of his career.

I think Vince wanted him to be on WrestleMania in Dallas and he wasn’t sure in what capacity. Then somehow, was it going to be a talking segment? Was it going to be a match? Was it going to be a stunner? Literally up until the day of the show we had no idea. I’m very lucky to have been a part of it. To this day the craziest thing that I’ll ever have done in my career, and I don’t think anything will top it.

Kevin Owens on The Insight

Owens also shared that winning the Tag Team Titles with his best friend Sami Zayn was one of the biggest accomplishments of his career. The duo defeated The Usos in the main event of Night One at WrestleMania 39. The next year, Owens competed in a Triple Threat match against Orton and Logan Paul for the United States Championship.

Related: “I was not sure,” Kevin Owens reveals mastermind behind his heel turn on Cody Rhodes at Bad Blood