Sami Zayn has admitted he thought his chance to become WWE Champion had passed him by after losing to Drew McIntyre at Royal Rumble 2026. Speaking to Chris Van Vliet on Insight, the two-time champion revealed he had quietly accepted that the ship may have sailed — only for his moment to arrive months later at Night of Champions.
Sami Zayn (Credits: WWE)
Sami Zayn Thought His WWE Title Window Had Closed After Royal Rumble 2026
Zayn has had multiple shots at the WWE Championship over the years, and Royal Rumble 2026 looked like it could finally be his time. The story wrote itself: Sami had never beaten Drew McIntyre, so beating him for the title would have been the perfect payoff. But it did not happen, and Zayn said the loss hit him harder than fans may have realized.
“I had kind of just battled with it and went, you know what, maybe the ship sailed,” Zayn said. He explained that he had been close a couple of years earlier during the Bloodline saga and its fallout, but after losing to Drew, he felt the underdog story could not be told again. “The Cinderella story, underdog who finally wins the big one — we burnt that card; that card was done after losing to Drew because you can only tell that story so many times.”
From Accepting Defeat to Winning the Undisputed WWE Title
Zayn admitted he did not have the same momentum he had a year or two earlier, and he struggled to accept that he may simply have missed his window. “I had to kind of struggle to accept that maybe I just missed the window, slipped through the cracks, and it just won’t happen,” he said.
But he also kept perspective. Zayn told friends and family that he had already had a tremendous career, and that winning the world title would be the cherry on top rather than something he lived or died by. “You kind of just got to look at the big picture,” he said.
That big picture changed at WWE Night of Champions, where Zayn finally got his moment — winning the Undisputed WWE Title in a triple threat match against Gunther and Cody Rhodes. Now a two-time champion, Zayn is set to face Roman Reigns for the Crown Jewel Championship at WWE Crown Jewel. Elsewhere in the interview, he also looked back on his memorable match against Johnny Knoxville at WrestleMania 38.
Also Read: Sami Zayn Explains How He Picked His NXT Name and Why He Refused an Arab Stereotype | WWE Crown Jewel Remains Planned for Saudi Arabia on November 7 Despite Security Concerns
Source: Fightful — read the full story there.
