Payback is going to be a strange pay per view. Even though the show is Raw branded, there are some Smackdown Live superstars involved, and the results of some of these matches are going to have an impact on the blue brand as well. One of those duels is this one between the US champion Kevin Owens and the challenger Chris Jericho.
KO has done more with the US title in a couple of weeks that he has been champion than for seven months as the Universal title holder. The company is again booking him as a vicious heel, a true prizefighter that he is. Now, he is calling himself the Face of America, and it is great to see. The delivery in his promos is right on point and Owens is again his old self.
Chris Jericho will likely leave the company after this show or maybe after the Monday Night Raw after the PPV. He is getting ready for a tour with his band and is going to be out for an extended period of time. This guy is not going to win this match, but he and Owens are going to bring the house down.
The winner of this duel goes to Smackdown Live as the champion, while the other one stays on Raw. The only logical move here is for Owens to retain the title and maybe then even assault Jericho after the match as a way for the company to write him off TV. If it doesn’t happen at Payback, it will happen on Raw. KO will retain the title and will go into the feud with AJ on the blue brand.
