Kevin Owens Names Big Reason He Re-Signed With WWE

Kevin Owens will be a staple of the WWE roster for the foreseeable future.

The former WWE Universal Champion inked a multi-year contract extension this past December. Owens noted his feeling of value within the company is what ultimately led to his decision to stay.

"A big part of it, honestly, was that Vince McMahon made it pretty clear to me that he wanted me to stay," Owens told ESPN. "And, you know, I've been in WWE for seven years at this point. You know, I have a lot of friends everywhere else in wrestling, but there is a whole side of WWE that people don't get to see, whether it's the production crew, you know, the camera people, the stage manager, the creative team, all these people.

"They're all very special people and you know, they're a part of my family. My extended family now. My professional family, if you want to call it that. So that, those were all factors that, that, that led to me, you know, staying put, because Vince made it clear he wanted me to stay. It feels like my home and all those other people there that, you know, if I wasn't there, I wouldn't get to see anymore and that was just like, you know, it just seemed like the right move. That's really all there is to it."

The Prizefighter is coming up on a decade in Vince McMahon's promotion. Throughout his WWE tenure, Owens has collected world championships, main-evened pay-per-views, and taken victories at the Grandest Stage of Them All.

Despite all of the gold and the stadium-sized crowds, Kevin Owens said his favorite WWE moment is his first day.

"The one that always comes back to me is my first match in NXT. And it's funny when I say that because people would expect, 'oh, it's got to be one of the WrestleManias or when you won the, you know, the Universal Title,'" Owens said. "All those moments are incredible but my first match at NXT was my first match in WWE as far as I'm concerned and that was a culmination of, at that point, 15 years of dreaming and working toward that.

"So that moment, you know, is etched in my memory forever and it's probably always going to be at the top. Like when people ask me, 'what's your one memory in WWE that you'll cherish the most?' That first night in NXT was just so incredibly special."

Owens and 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin are reportedly set to main event Night 1 of WrestleMania 38, airing this Saturday on Peacock.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit ESPN with an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.