Sami Zayn has revealed the one loss that shook his faith.
The Ultimate Underdog had been chasing a world title in WWE for over a decade. He came close to the achievement many times during his career, but the title seemed to elude him despite his best efforts. He finally won the Undisputed Championship at the Night of Champions PPV in Saudi Arabia this past weekend.
The new champion talked about his journey and what the title means to him in detail during an appearance on Raw Recap. Sami Zayn discussed the different times he failed after coming very close to winning the championship including the 2023 Elimination Chamber PPV from his hometown of Montreal:
“I’ll be honest, I didn’t lose the faith. I certainly didn’t lose the faith after the match in Montreal. It was a heartbreaker, no doubt, okay. But I thought, ‘This is the closest I’ve come, so I’ll just get closer and closer until I get there.’”
My Faith Was Shook: Sami Zayn
The loss at the 2026 Royal Rumble PPV, however, was when the 41-year-old started feeling like he had missed his window. While Sami Zayn knew in his heart that he was as good as any of his peers, the loss to Drew McIntyre did make him question if he would ever get the chance to hold the biggest prize in the sports entertainment world:
“The one that really did my head in a little bit was coming up short against Drew this past January at the Royal Rumble because after that one, that’s when I was already starting to feel like maybe I had missed my window. And I couldn’t give up faith, but it was the first time my faith was shook, if I’m being totally honest.
I knew I had the talent. I knew I had everything, I knew I was just as good as any of these guys. Drew, Roman, Cody, Seth. And the proof is you’ve seen me mix it up in the ring with all of them. You’ve seen my body of work. There’s no question in my mind. These are my peers and that’s almost what made it more maddening. ‘Why them and why not me? Why is it so close and I just can’t get my hands on it?’”
The wrestling veteran thankfully continued fighting and the realization of his dream is going to inspire people around the world to continue chasing their goals. WWE has already picked the challenger for Zayn’s first title defence as well. You can check out the spoilers on the same here.