Sami Zayn isn’t disputing that he doesn’t fit the traditional physical mold of a top WWE champion, but he’s just not convinced that mold is the only path to the top.
Appearing on Busted Open Radio, Zayn addressed the criticism directly, arguing that things like muscles, big moves, and a certain look are ultimately just different tools aimed at the same goal, which is getting an audience to genuinely care.
’Oh, you don’t look like a typical champion.’ All these things that we talk about—moves or even looks, like looking like a champion—those are all just tools. The reason you get jacked is part of that appeal. At the end of the day, it’s getting people to care. How you do it, it doesn’t matter. Everyone has a different way to get there. If you get people to care, that’s the game.
He pointed to his own career as proof there’s more than one way to do that. He built a connection with fans through his in-ring work early in NXT, then years later became part of one of wrestling’s biggest storylines through his role in The Bloodline, without ever needing to bulk up to match a “champion” archetype.
I’m doing it at the highest level now as champion. I’ve gotten a lot of people to care about a lot of stories in my day. That’s some of the stuff I’m more proud of instead of the great matches I’ve had. Like people telling me, ‘Man, my brother never watched it, then he saw your stuff,’ or I get people going, ‘The Bloodline stuff got me back into wrestling after years.’ ‘Your match with Cesaro in NXT…’ That’s the biggest badge of honor I can wear.
For Zayn, the specific tool doesn’t matter as much as the outcome; he said getting fans invested enough to talk about his stories for years afterward is something he’s more proud of than any individual great match.
The comments come after Zayn defeated CM Punk for the Undisputed WWE Championship on the September 11 episode of SmackDown, a decision that immediately drew debate over whether WWE picked the right person to hold its top title.
