Sami Zayn is one of the most popular superstars on WWE SmackDown Live, but is he being booked appropriately?
Once a masked wrestler known as El Generico, Sami Zayn was one of the best wrestlers on the planet during his time on the indies. Despite not having the body or “look” of your average WWE Superstar, Zayn defied odds and got signed to the WWE.
Zayn’s momentum did not stop there, as he quickly became a staple in arguably WWE’s hottest product at the time, NXT. Zayn was beloved by an almost cult following there, and when he finally won the NXT Championship, the place erupted and Zayn’s climb to the top was well received by all.
However, that same kind of success has yet to be replicated on the main roster. Despite being one of WWE SmackDown Live’s most popular wrestlers, Zayn has yet to win a single title since his main roster debut in early 2016.
After winning his heated rivalry to Kevin Owens, things began to go downhill for the Underdog from the Underground. Meanwhile, Kevin Owens went on to be WWE’s Universal Champion and has had multiple runs with the US Championship.
We have seen Zayn job out to the likes of Braun Strowman, Samoa Joe, Jinder Mahal, and most recently, Aiden English. While everyone loses every once in a while, the amount of losses that Sami has taken recently has gotten people talking about his poor booking in the WWE.
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Well, despite popular belief, WWE is doing a great job with the booking of Sami Zayn’s character. They are able to use Sami Zayn to elevate other WWE Superstars while building more support for the Underdog from the Underground.
Zayn is actually benefitting from his “poor” booking in the same way Daniel Bryan had benefitted. If it were not for Bryan’s constant near misses and downfalls, he would not garner the support of a crowd that desperately wanted him to succeed.
Similarly, Sami Zayn would just be another plain and stale babyface if he were not losing all of the time. Now, Zayn has the fans invested in him, and fans desperately want to see him succeed. T
his will make his slow climb to the top seem much sweeter and will be well received by the crowd unlike when babyfaces (like Roman Reigns) are just shoved to the top.
Also, because everyone wants to see Zayn do well in the WWE, his losses make a heel’s win that much more important. Now people have a reason to hate someone like Aiden English, which raises his stock and credibility as a heel on the roster.
WWE currently has a stocked main event scene on each brand. Raw has superstars like Lesnar, Cena, Reigns, Strowman, Samoa Joe, Rollins, and Ambrose, while SmackDown Live has superstars like Mahal, Nakamura, Orton, Styles, Owens, and Corbin. There is no reason to shove Zayn up the card right away.
Instead, we can let Zayn become an even bigger underdog by racking up some more losses and some more support from the uneasy fans. Then, once the time is right, Zayn can make his slow climb to the top and even possibly win the big one at some point.
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This kind of long term booking could help to establish Sami Zayn as a long term main eventer down the line rather than a flash in the pan with a quick push up the card. Sami Zayn’s WWE career is not in jeopardy, and it may be on a better path than most may think.