We’ll soon be hearing “and new” again as Sami Zayn is no longer the Intercontinental Champion.
On tonight’s edition of WWE Backstage on FS1, host Renee Young announced that superstar Sami Zayn is no longer the WWE Intercontinental Champion as he is “unable to compete” and will therefore vacate the title. A tournament will begin this week on Smackdown to crown a new champion for the prestigious title.
Zayn has not competed in WWE since WrestleMania last month when with the help of his collective cohorts Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro, he was able to retain the IC strap against a very game Daniel Bryan. This was Zayn’s first singles championship since leaving WWE NXT a few years ago.
Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer reported on May 1st, that Zayn opted not to attend Smackdown on that date citing that WWE has allowed talent to opt out of participating due to current pandemic. Zayn’s status with the company remains unclear at this time.
BREAKING NEWS:@SamiZayn is unable to compete and defend the Intercontinental Championship, therefore @WWE has declared the title vacant. A tournament to crown a new Champion will begin on Friday Night Smackdown on FOX. pic.twitter.com/5qZgUyL9rC
— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) May 13, 2020
