Kevin Owens vs. Sami Zayn: Recap and Reaction from NXT Takeover Unstoppable

Three months after decimating Sami Zayn to win the NXT Championship at NXT TakeOver: Rival, Kevin Owens repeated the feat Wednesday night at NXT Takeover: Unstoppable as he got the best of Zayn—although he didn't officially get a win—in a match that ended in no-contest to retain the title.

The biggest moment came when Samoa Joe made his debut with the company, confronting Owens after he was attacking an injured Zayn. 

The two got in each other's faces, as WWE showed us: 

As for Owens and Zayn, the action had the crowd in a frenzy for the majority of the match. The WWE Universe captured two of the high points:

WrestlingInc.com noted the vibe throughout the match: 

Ringside Xcess singled out Owens for his impressive performance: 

Owens and Zayn have an extremely long history together dating back to their rivalry in Ring of Honor as Kevin Steen and El Generico respectively. That feud was reprised in WWE's developmental system when Owens attacked Zayn at the conclusion of NXT Takeover: R Evolution.

Since it is known that Owens and Zayn are friends outside the ring, WWE played that up by having Owens embrace Zayn after he defeated Neville to win the NXT Championship for the first time. The congratulatory gesture was short-lived, though, as Owens proceeded to Powerbomb Zayn onto the ring apron.

That sparked a heated program between the two Superstars, and it led to a title match at Rival. Owens so thoroughly dominated the bout that it forced the referee to stop it and declare the Marieville, Quebec, native the new NXT champ.

NXT used Zayn sparingly in the ring in subsequent weeks presumably due to injuries he suffered against Owens. Zayn made a big-time statement in his hometown of Montreal on an episode of Raw, however, as he answered United States champion John Cena's U.S. Open Challenge.

Although Zayn fell short, he pushed Cena to the limit and gained a great deal of respect. He also picked up a shoulder injury, though, and Owens made it clear that he intended to use that to his advantage at Unstoppable. In fact, he entered the ring on Wednesday sporting a Cena shirt. 

In fact, the destructive champion set out to eradicate Zayn from NXT once and for all:

"

Tonight isn’t about me and Cena. Tonight is all about me ending Sami Zayn. Unstoppable? We’ll see…#NXTTakeOver @WWENetwork @WWENXT @WWE

— Kevin Owens (@FightOwensFight) May 20, 2015"

Zayn was well-aware of that, and he seemingly realized that he was laying everything on the line by stepping back into the ring with such a dangerous competitor:

Owens also fired a warning shot of sorts in Zayn's direction on the episode of Raw prior to Unstoppable. He answered Cena's U.S. Open Challenge much like Zayn previously, but rather than competing in a match, Owens talked trash to Cena and laid him out with a Pop-Up Powerbomb.

After that it was announced that Owens would go on to face Cena at Elimination Chamber May 31, which made the Unstoppable main event even more intriguing.

Not only does that create an interesting dynamic with Owens competing both in NXT and WWE, but it also complicates things with regard to Zayn.

There isn't much left for him to accomplish in NXT after he fell short of winning the title for a second time, but there also may not be a spot for him on the main roster currently. 

Whatever the case, Owens and Zayn are two of the top talents in WWE right now, and they proved it once again at Unstoppable. No matter when they ultimately receive the call to ascend to the main roster for good, both of them are poised for long and successful careers.

Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter.