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"IT'S THE BIGGEST THING I'LL EVER DO IN MY CAREER.' - KEVIN OWENS TALKS WRESTLEMANIA, STEVE AUSTIN, SAMI ZAYN & MORE: COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT

This evening, Kevin Owens will face down WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin at Wrestlemania 38 in Dallas, Texas.  Yesterday, Owens spoke with PWInsider.com at Wrestlemania's Media Day.

Mike Johnson: Mike Johnson here with Kevin Owens. It is WrestleMania weekend. And you got a lot of big moments in WW and beyond. What's going through your mind as we head ever closer to AT&T Stadium and the Kevin Owens show with Stone Cold Steve Austin.

Kevin Owens: Well, it's the biggest thing I'll ever do in my career, I think, because of obviously who it's with. I think I have plenty of left in my career afterwards, but as far as the magnitude of the moment, I'm in there with Stone Cold, Steve Austen at WrestleMania. It's going to be hard to top that one. I'm really trying to take as much time as I can to enjoy it because that's something I haven't been great at before, because I was always worried about what's next, trying to get bigger, trying to get further. A lot of moments in my WWE career that I've accomplished are lost on me because I wasn't able to enjoy them in the moment. I'm really trying to make sure I don't make that mistake this weekend.

Mike Johnson: With that said, how do you compare the pressure of the company trusting you at such a big milestone moment compared to last year against Sami at WrestleMania, or any other big moment where they've basically knighted you and entrusted you with, "Hey, we're going to create this moment for the audience and you're the person to do it."

Kevin Owens: Yeah, that's really incredible. But you know, there's a reason it's me and that makes me feel great. There's a lot of people in that decision process, right from the top to the people directly involved. And from what I understand, it was me from the start, because everybody was in agreement that's that's who it should be. Knowing that, there's really no bigger badge of honor. So that makes me feel incredible. And that's part of me trying to enjoy it, because I worked very hard to get here, And look, everybody can stand here and tell you they worked very hard to get here. They have. Everyone. I'm not special in that sense, but it's, it really is a culmination of working very hard for a very long time, and now it's time for me to enjoy it. So Saturday I'm going to savor every second I have out there. And you know, on another level, I have been a giant Stone Cold fan for my whole life. And I know that in 2003, he didn't feel like he went out the way he should have. And now hopefully he feels differently after Saturday. But to be a part... Have the chance to be a part of that as well, on that level, it's just... It's just a very, very, very special experience.

Mike Johnson: So you've talked about in the past, your real memory of WWE was seeing that VHS tape of a WrestleMania. Yep. There's going to be someone who comes across this on Peacock or the network or a DVD, and this is going to be a major milestone moment and it's going to inspire and it's going to enrapture people the same way you were inspired, enraptured by Shawn Michaels and Diesel back in the day. Obviously we're not even at the moment yet, but it's going to be emblazoned in the time capsule forever. It's going to be part of the WWE legacy. What does that mean to you as the kid who wanted it so bad, working IWS in Montreal and all these other places, scratching and clawing and being told, "Kevin is this, but he's not that", and now you're at this incredible zenith moment. What does it mean to you for that? And what does it mean when you think about the legacy of, forever, someone else is going to come across this and fall in love with WWE because of this moment?

Kevin Owens: Yeah. You know, I was talking to my buddy Pat [Laprade]. He works for WWE on the French side in Quebec. He's a commentator there and he does a lot of articles for websites. I was talking to Pat and we were talking, because he's been a friend of mine since the beginning of my career. And he's seen me in the bars in Montreal where, nobody there and it was awful, and smallest places and just depressing nights in a way. But at the time we weren't depressed because we were like, "No, this is part of the journey. To what it is now, it's really, it's unimaginable, where we came from. And I say, "we," because I see Sami over there, over your shoulder and he's... He was right along for the ride. You know? So just that part of it is crazy, but what you just touched on, where knowing that... And you know, it's not just this weekend, but anytime somebody comes up to me and says, "What you do really inspires me. I one day hope to be a wrestler or I one day hope to be anything. But the fact that your message and what you do really helps me" and you know, social media allows people to have a lot of access to us now, so I hear that a lot. And it's really... I can't help but go back to the 11, 12, 13-year-old kid I was. I've told this story before, but I remember, for example, at the inception of the internet or whatever, or maybe not the inception, but you know, by the time the internet was in people's houses, getting on my computer and going on Storm Wrestling.com and emailing Lance Storm about his matches or advice and this and that. And he would get... He would email me back. And I'll never forget what that did for me. So to this day, when I know that I'm maybe inspiring people in a similar way, I try to be open and available as I am to people like that, because that really is. It's an incredible feeling, but it's also feels like I'm trying to pay back, because I had people do that for me and it really left a mark on me.

Mike Johnson: You mentioned Sami, and you guys have been intertwined... To some fans, it seems like since birth. What do you think is the secret to the brotherhood and the fraternity that you guys have had? And not just as performers, but as friends, that throughout this incredible journey you've each had in life, you've had each other's backs and you've maintained that level of friendship. Because as you know, in this world, especially in this business, it takes very little for people to start to get mad at each other and locker rooms break off into cliques and things like that. But you guys have always kind of been the Jekyll and Hyde, for lack of a better term. You know, Frick and Frack.

Kevin Owens: Well, what's funny is we've been in locker rooms that have broken down into cliques, but we've just always been in the same one. And it was the click of two. Trust me, yeah. You know, I think when it comes down to it is, we're... Man. So we met in 2003 and then started wrestling each other everywhere, traveling together everywhere. It wasn't by choice. We were just getting booked everywhere together. So through that, I always say, when you're born into a family, you don't choose your siblings. You're just stuck with whoever came before or after you.

Mike Johnson: Trust me, I know.

Kevin Owens: [Laughs] Right. So I don't consider him a friend. I always say I consider him more of a brother because we were just... You guys are going to be attached to the hip for 15 years and beyond. And that's that. So we travel all over together.  We weren't always... I mean, there were times where we wanted to kill each other, no doubt. But that creates a bond. The experiences we've had throughout the world, the experiences we've had in the ring together. And you know, we both grew up. He saw me meet my wife, have my kids. I saw him do this same. That just creates a bond. And then it's funny because we got to Ring of Honor. We were looked at as the two idiots from Canada who shouldn't be here. We proved everybody wrong. We got to... He was in NXT before me, but when I got to NXT, everybody was kind of like, "Oh those two." And then WWE. There was a while where it was like, "Those two." We got kicked off a Europe tour together. You know what I mean? And, if you ask us, we didn't do anything wrong. But whatever, that's a moot point now. But yeah, we've just been through so much together. There's just no other way to put it. And it's weird. It's almost like we've always been outcasts, but we weren't. We'd show up. People were like, "Who are these guys? Why?" I don't know what it is about us honestly, but eventually people accept us and we become just part of the group. I think that's what it is. Is we, wherever we go, we're just... At first, we're always like, "There's the two Canadians" and you know, we have to make our way through and we always do, but that creates a strong bond between us. And now, for some reason, also somehow for the last 10 years, we've lived five minutes from each other. And I don't know how. Montreal, we lived five minutes... And it's not by choice, we just happen to. And then same thing in Orlando, we just constantly were right by each other. Just how it is.

Mike Johnson: Well, you're not going to get a bigger vote of confidence than Sami wrestling Johnny Knoxville. And you, and the Kevin Owens show with Steve Austin. I know you got to run. You got a lot of people to talk to, but how big do you think the goosebumps are going to be when that glass breaks and you stand in the middle of the ring?

Kevin Owens: I can't imagine it. Just being in the ring in Chicago when I was doing the Stone Cold impersonation, I knew he wasn't coming out. I'm the one who set it up. I'm well aware that his music's going to hit, he's not coming. But just his music hitting and the people reaction there. I was like, "Oh man, this is something." It's going to be five times the amount of people, if not more, come Saturday. And people know he's actually coming this time. So... Whew. Can't imagine it, man.

Mike Johnson: Well, enjoy the moment. I hope it's everything you conceptualize it to be in your head and we wish you nothing but the best in your continued journey.

Kevin Owens: Thanks Mike.

Mike Johnson: Thank you.

Kevin Owens: Thank you.

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