WWE: The hypocrisy of stripping the IC Title from Sami Zayn

Well, WWE did what we thought they would: strip Sami Zayn of his Intercontinental Championship. Here’s why the move is hypocritical regardless of who made the decision.

Last night on WWE Backstage, it was announced that Sami Zayn is “unable to compete” and would be stripped of the title (or the title will be vacated, take your pick).

Zayn was stripped after it was reported he is voluntarily staying away from WWE’s live and taped shows at the Performance Center (PC) due to concerns over the coronavirus. Zayn hasn’t been on WWE programming since his victory over Daniel Bryan on night one of WrestleMania 36.

His status was further muddied when Zayn tweeted he missed time because he had his wisdom teeth taken out in mid-April.

Just like Roman Reigns, who was removed from various videos and hasn’t even been mentioned on television since his decision to stay home before WrestleMania, Zayn is being punished for putting his health first…

…or are there other reasons beyond staying home during the pandemic?

In Zayn, we have the rare wrestler in WWE who’s unafraid to speak out on issues in the United States, Canada, and worldwide.

As Alfred Konuwa of Forbes writes, Zayn has long criticized President Trump, including this tweet in response to the President wanting to “LIBERATE!” certain states.

(There’s also this infamous tweet from after the election in 2016, this one after Senator Bernie Sanders dropped out of the Presidential primary, and this one in response to people protesting stay-at-home orders. Suffice it to say his ideologies are completely disparate from that of his employer.)

The McMahons, of course, are long-time allies of the President, including Linda McMahon being the former head of the Small Business Administration under Trump.

Beyond his criticism of the President and his policies, Zayn also is barred from competing on the Saudi Arabia shows because of two reasons: his speaking out against the Saudi government and his Syrian identity (Saudi Arabia has had strained relations with Syria since the start of the Syrian Civil War). After working the first Saudi show, his “Sami for Syria” charitable efforts coupled with his assertion for Syrian rights and against human rights violations (like those that take place in Saudi Arabia) rendered him persona non grata for these shows.

Further, Rami Sebei (the actual person behind the Zayn character) has repeatedly discussed how he wants to bring more positive and accurate portrayals of Arabs and Muslims considering the amount of xeno- and Islamophobia that pervades our society and world.

It’s not just about the Zayn character. As Ryan Dilbert of Bleacher Report noted, fans absolutely love Zayn, considering him to be one of the nicest, most genuine wrestlers they’ve met. One fan said Sebei/Zayn “never gave me a leave-me-alone vibe.” Another discussed how he waited until every fan that wanted a photo with him after a show received one, leaving everyone happy.

Still, as rumors started trickling in that there would be an announcement on the Intercontinental Championship, I immediately thought he was going to be stripped because of everything I just wrote (except the previous paragraph). When the news hit Backstage, I wasn’t surprised.

Zayn posted a tweet this morning in response, saying:

I mean, hard to argue with his assertion.

However, the decision to strip/vacate the championship not only is questionable, but appears to be a hypocritical move by WWE considering they’re holding an Interim Cruiserweight Championship tournament on NXT.

Yes, I know you’re probably saying the circumstances are different. The interim tournament is because the champion is prevented from traveling from the UK due to most travel being restricted around the world. You’re probably also saying Triple H oversees the NXT and NXT UK rosters while Vince McMahon oversees the rest.

Also, Jordan Devlin, the NXT Cruiserweight Champion, seems raring to wrestle and defend his championship. Zayn, as we’ve discussed, is voluntarily staying home.

To the first point, so? As someone who grew up watching wrestling in the 90s, there seemed to be more stripping of titles (usually for not defending within 30 days). Further, it just seemed like a ploy to add yet another tournament in this last half-decade of what has been an overdose of tournaments in WWE.

I say that as someone who loves tournaments and brackets!

(An aside, they should have just pulled a Shawn Michaels-Razor Ramon situation!)

To the second point, even if the “boss” is someone different, they operate under the same umbrella. Since the move to USA for NXT and the build to Survivor Series, WWE has done everything to send the message to fans that NXT should be taken seriously. Not only does this decision make NXT seem like a separate, lesser entity, by setting a precedent only to break it a month later is, as they say, bad optics.

To the third point, during a freaking pandemic, does it really matter if someone wants to wrestle as opposed to keeping their health so they can continue to wrestle once coronavirus becomes more manageable?

I’ve wanted to go to beautiful Alki Beach and Lincoln Park here in West Seattle for months, but have been avoiding those areas because I don’t want to contract coronavirus and have the possibility that I transmit it to other people. There were so many people at these parks even during stay-at-home orders that Gov. Jay Inslee actually had to shut down all large parks and beaches in Washington.

Lastly, based off what we know of Vince McMahon, I am willing to bet he views Reigns and Zayn voulntarily staying home as a sign of weakness. Did The Miz ever face repercussions (that we know of) for showing up to tapings sick, causing Reigns to withdraw from WWE (until further notice, really), and forcing a change in the Universal Championship match at WrestleMania mere days before the event?

No. McMahon probably respected the guile and “work-ethic” of The Miz (work-ethic doesn’t mean working through sickness; it means knowing how and when to work diligently and efficiently).

The Miz put many people at risk, including an immunocompromised Reigns. Reigns and Zayn are doing the opposite specifically to mitigate any risk; who are the ones being punished?

Having a champion retain his title while holding an interim championship tournament while stripping another champion of the title while holding a different championship tournament is blatantly hypocritical. However, it’s also right in line with WWE that they would do this to a talent like Zayn who believes there is more to life than just professional wrestling (*gasp*).

I really feel for Zayn. His pairing with Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro as The Artist Collective and his run as a arrogant yet cowardly heel champion was entertaining. His work on the mic, in particular, should be commended.

Still, here we are with an ignominious end to a championship reign probably due to the word “voluntarily” rather than “forced.” It’s as if WWE revels in negative publicity.

I commend Zayn (and Reigns) for their decisions, and wish them nothing but the best. Should they ever return, I’m sure they will have even more fan support because of their prudent actions.