Sami Zayn was close to defeating Roman Reigns for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at Elimination Chamber, and the fans absolutely wanted it to happen. The story was there, the setting was correct and it the moment seemed right. Sadly, Zayn could not defeat Reigns and will be rolling into WrestleMania 39 alongside Kevin Owens in an attempt to defeat Reigns’ cousins, The Usos, for the WWE Tag Team Championships instead.
Some fans looked at Zayn’s loss to Reigns as a sign that WWE internally did not view the redheaded star as a main event-worthy talent, especially on a stage as big as WrestleMania. A new report from Fightful is looking to tamp down any fears that WWE does not view Zayn as a big draw for the promotion.
“He’s headlined a PPV, he is the focal point of our biggest shows,” An anonymous WWE higher-up told Fightful. “He’s main eventing WWE Raw, and is ‘1B’ for the biggest storyline in the company. Elimination Chamber didn’t happen in his hometown by accident. For anyone to say that we don’t view him as a top guy just hasn’t been watching the program or are fabricating things. We had a solid set of plans in order both for him and the championship. Just because he isn’t competing for the championship, doesn’t mean he isn’t viewed at that level. He’s been the MVP since last Summer, and I couldn’t see many disagreeing with that point.”
It was also noted in the report that internal WWE documents had Zayn and Owens penciled in to compete at WrestleMania 39 for the tag titles back in November, a sign that a bold decision to have Zayn win big was not overturned at Elimination Chamber and this has always been the plan. The anonymous higher-up also praised Zayn’s professionalism during his big run and noted that he had been easy to work with. They also praised his work on the microphone as he apparently improvised his pre-Elimination Chamber match promo on the spot.
Stay with Haus of Wrestling for all the latest on Sami Zayn’s WWE push.