Report: Kevin Owens Slotted to Be Daniel Bryan’s WrestleMania 35 Opponent

WrestleMania 35 is on the horizon, and with the exception of two matches the card still appears to be in flux.

One of the big questions heading into the final month of build-up is who WWE Champion Daniel Bryan will face at the biggest show of the year, provided he retains the title against Kofi Kingston at Fastlane.

One name that has been floated around is Kevin Owens. The former Universal Champion has been out of action since October after getting surgery on both knees, but has been posting video updates on a weekly basis telling fans he’ll be back in the near future. According to Bleacher Report‘s Kevin Botter, Owens will step up to challenge Bryan using his new babyface persona.

“Yeah, Bryan vs. Kingston is scheduled for Fastlane, while a company source told me Tuesday evening that The Beard’s opponent for WrestleMania will be Kevin Owens; those videos of KO hanging out with his family and eating bad food make a lot more sense now,” Botter wrote.

Twitter account WrestleVotes, which has broken numerous backstage stories in the past, confirmed Botter’s report.

The idea of a babyface Owens being put in a world championship match right off the bat does line up with a few other reports. Dave Meltzer said on a recent episode of Wrestling Observer Radio that Owens was in line for a character change, hence the comedic video updates.

“The idea is he’s the anti-Mr. Perfect. I guess the idea is that Kevin Owens is your everyday guy, you know like your next door neighbor who is a complete athletic clod,” Meltzer said.

Meltzer then said on Tuesday that WWE was looking to bring back a big star to help give Bryan’s match a boost at Mania, listing Owens alongside the likes of Bray Wyatt, Kurt Angle, Sami Zayn, Batista, John Cena and The Undertaker.

Thus far the only two matches scheduled for WrestleMania 35 are Raw Women’s Championship Ronda Rousey vs. Charlotte Flair (with Becky Lynch expected to be added in) and Universal Champion Brock Lesnar vs. Royal Rumble winner Seth Rollins.