Kevin Owens has no plans on pushing his son into the world of WWE just in case he ends up turning into company oik Dominik Mysterio.
Owens has his hands full right now as the challenger for WWE’s Undisputed Championship, ten years into his tenure with the company.
Come Saturday night he’s charged with the task of dethroning popular incumbent Cody Rhodes at Saturday Night’s Main event, which airs free in the UK on YouTube.
Having also feuded bitterly with The Bloodline over the last couple of years, he’s very much been working at the top of the company.
Owens is, to fans, a much-cherished member of the WWE roster, with many eager for him to commit his long-term future amid rumours about his contract status.
Alongside love for Owens, however, has been a fascination with whether or not his son, Owen, will follow in his footsteps and make a go of it in the world of pro wrestling.
Owen, at 16, boasts a hugely impressive stature, standing 6ft 7in and 280lb, towering above the rest of the Owens clan.
The father-son precedent in the sporting environment has been set; NBA icon LeBron James paired with son, Bronny, earlier this year and made history by playing together in the LA Lakers’ season opener against Minnesota Timberwolves – the first time in the league’s history such a feat has been achieved.
Closer to home in WWE, the obvious example is Mysterio, who performed alongside and against father, Rey Mysterio Sr – firmly establishing himself as one of the company’s top heel (villain) performers in the process.
Owens doesn’t care much for basketball, though – nor the younger Mysterio, giving talkSPORT a firm response on both when asked whether he would be the latest to follow the trend by tangling with his on in the wrestling ring.
“I don’t watch basketball, for one thing,” he said in our exclusive interview. “So, you’re just now [telling me]; it’s news to me that LeBron James plays with his kid, I have no idea.
“As far as Rey Mysterio goes, I’m pretty sure he really regrets bringing Dominik around wrestling because now he can get rid of him!
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“He’s turned out terrible. What a horrible human being. So, if anything, that’s kind of maybe for me to do the opposite and push him away from wrestling, but I will leave it up to him.”
Away from the jest of Mysterio, Owens did reinforce an existing position that his son does take an interest in wrestling, but not intensively.
“He does have interest,” he added. He’s not a diehard fan like I was, he doesn’t live and breathe it like I did… we’ll see. Right now, he’s not on the radar. I’m not in a rush.”
How would Owens feel, as a father, watching his son tackle the punishment that comes with being a professional wrestler?
He gave an intriguing perspective, adding that he doesn’t fear injury in wrestling – as he’d never be himself in the ring, and so wouldn’t put his energies into fretting over the wears and tears a grappling career might put on his son.
He explained: “My parents were never professional wrestlers but if there’s one thing they weren’t afraid of, it was me getting hurt.
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“I’d have matches and come back from them, and my mom would be like: ‘oh, you should have done more stuff! How come you didn’t do this move or that?’
“Obviously, I wouldn’t want him to suffer a severe injury or anything like that and you hope for the best. I kind of don’t live my life thinking the worst, If I did, I probably wouldn’t do half the stuff I do in the ring.”
If the day does come that Owen – named after Canadian WWE icon Owen Hart – does become a wrestler, his father is very clear about what would weigh heavy on his mind.
He admitted: “I’d probably just focus on him hoping that he has a good match and that he’s proud of himself when he comes out of it, if he he were to ever get in the ring.
“I think I’d be more concerned with him not feeling good about his matches or anything like that, that would be more where my concern would lay.”
WWE’s Road to WrestleMania Tour hits the UK this March, bringing RAW and SmackDown live to The O2 Arena. Tickets available this Friday from Ticketmaster.co.uk