WWE SummerSlam 2019 Results: Kevin Owens vs Shane McMahon 

Kevin Owens Is WWE's New Top Babyface After Defeating Shane McMahon

Kevin Owens is the antihero WWE needs, and at SummerSlam, he cemented himself as the biggest babyface in all of WWE with his victory over Shane McMahon.

When WWE surprisingly pulled the trigger on a full-fledged babyface turn for Owens and put him at odds with McMahon, it was met with some groans and some optimism. 

The groans resulted from the thought of McMahon getting yet another major feud after he's spent the better part of three years being involved in far too many of them.

 Yet, that optimism came when WrestlingNews.co (h/t PWMania) reported the reasoning behind Owens' infamous promo on SmackDown, in which he ripped McMahon for taking up valuable TV time from WWE's full-time performers:

"Kevin Owens’ worked shoot promo on Smackdown Live was done because WWE is aware that the Shane McMahon push hasn’t gone over well with fans. The Owens promo is reportedly the start of a storyline that will phase Shane out as a regular TV character."

Owens' promo echoed the thoughts of many fans, who have grown tired of McMahon's massive push as one of the most featured stars on TV and perhaps the biggest heel in all of WWE. 

Once considered to be a major attraction who was responsible for the top drawing match at WrestleMania 32, McMahon saw his drawing power diminished when he became overexposed and his huge push became a burden on fans rather than an enjoyable part of WWE's programming. 

SmackDown's ratings decreased by a whopping 13% between WrestleMania 34 and 35, and it certainly stands to reason that Shane-O-Mac played a huge role in that decline, especially considering that he was one of the most pushed stars on the show in that span.

WWE's implementation of the Wild Card rule, a misguided move meant to increase its TV viewership, only overexposed McMahon more and made his push even more unbearable in the process.

 It appears that WWE, which is in the midst of a dramatic creative overhaul that includes the additions of Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff in backstage creative roles, remains committed to finally listening to fans and changing what needs to be changed. 

WWE has already instituted a number of changes that have been widely met with favorable fan reaction, including new pushes for stars like Ricochet, a focus on better storytelling and renewed pushes for stars like Braun Strowman.

The next step? Pulling the plug on the push of McMahon for good and moving forward with larger TV roles for deserving stars like Owens.

As frustrating as McMahon's push has been, perhaps it will all be worth it if Owens' popularity continues to soar the way it has in recent weeks, when he's become arguably the biggest babyface in WWE. 

The company's goal with Owens is a simple but lofty one.

 It wants to establish the wildly popular Owens as a "Stone Cold" Steve Austin-like babyface, which is easier said than done but certainly seems to be working. 

Seemingly in the blink of an eye, Owens went from misused heel to fantastic babyface, and he's knocking it out of the park night in and night out as someone who expresses the views of the majority of WWE fans, who are sick and tired of the push of McMahon that has been a major turnoff to WWE viewers and has relegated seemingly countless WWE stars to reduced roles because of it.

There is plenty of legitimacy to what Owens has been saying about McMahon, which is why his victory over the boss's son at SummerSlam will only further cement him as one of the biggest fan favorites in the entire company. 

Fans, after all, have been begging and pleading for the push of McMahon to come to an end, and at least in storyline, it appears that Owens will ultimately be the one who is responsible for doing just that. 

That's only going to further endear him to WWE's passionate fan base, which could very well result in him becoming the top babyface WWE desperately needs.

Indeed, WWE could really use a red hot act in the men's singles division, one who can make fans want to watch the product again. Why not Owens?

The crowd reaction he received in Toronto says he's the right man for the job.