7 WWE Hell In A Cell 2021 Impulse Reactions
3. Kevin Owens Vs. Sami Zayn
The second of two WrestleMania matches on this show that didn't happen at WrestleMania Backlash for f*cks f*cking sake, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn had the uphill battle of making their latest match matter without the prestige of an unlikely spot on 'The Grandest Stage'.
'KO's selling of a Nigerian Nail attack from Friday night was at the heart of it all. He'd asked for this match specifically, but in a cute subversion of an NXT TakeOver classic many years ago, he should have thought about his wellbeing.
With a malfunctioning midsection and a bad arm, Owens was a sitting duck for a conspiracy-spouting Sami and his cynical smile, and the perennial opponents played wonderfully with the flipped formula.
Owens came close to grabbing a remarkably courageous win by count-out, but Zayn claimed his "karma" by booting his former friend's head off with the Helluva Kick. All of this was genuinely effective in keeping his insanity high up the agenda, and will surely feed into yet more aggro between Owens and Commander Azeez.
In the face of so much systemic failure, this felt like an even greater success story.