Earlier this week on Monday Night RAW, Sami Zayn “exposed” former ECW World Heavyweight Champion Bobby Lashely by interviewing his three sisters. Instead, Zayn brought out three indy wrestlers dressed as females, who mimicked Lashley’s sisters based on his stories about them.
Lashley later came out to interrupt things and wound up beating down Zayn and the three men dressed up as his sisters. The segment was received very poorly and fans were booing during the whole thing. It also faced some controversy as many interpreted it as Lashely beating up transgenders.
During a recent episode of Wrestling Observer Live, Bryan Alvarez discussed this segment and all the heat it received. Alvarez said the segment was designed to be bad and WWE hoped for all the heat it’s currently receiving. WWE was apparently hoping the “train wreck television” would boost viewership a bit.
Alvarez also noted that Lashely beating down the three men dressed as women was not designed to be a transgender thing. WWE simply wanted Lashely to beat down a few indy guys, as the company doesn’t allow man on woman violence.
Discussion: What were your thoughts on the Lashley-Zayn segment on RAW?
Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn have the kind of on-screen relationship that will have them involved in each other’s careers for the foreseeable future.
The pair were good friends on WWE NXT, until Zayn won the Championship and was betrayed by Owens. Once both men found themselves on the main roster they had some classic battles inside the ring and continued their rivalry.
Now, Zayn and Owens are friends again and are currently on Monday Night RAW together. There have been hints recently that the duo could turn on each other again very soon. Per a report from Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio, that will indeed happen.
WWE seems to be taking a slow-burn approach with these two, but they will inevitably feud with one another down the road again. If it’s dragged out long enough, perhaps this could lead to a singles match between Owens and Zayn at WrestleMania 35 next year in New Jersey.
Discussion: How do you feel about WWE having Owens and Zayn feud over a long period of time? Would you like to see them have a singles match at WrestleMania?
As seen on last Friday, WWE superstar Sami Zayn was not present at the Greatest Royal Rumble mega event in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The reason most likely being his Syrian ethnicity.
According to reports from The Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the whole Sami Zayn situation was kept a secret in the WWE, and Zayn himself wasn’t informed until a week before the Greatest Royal Rumble that he would be in an injury angle on the April 23rd episode of RAW. This was done to provide a reason behind Zayn’s absence from the Greatest Royal Rumble.
Reportedly Zayn is still not given a reason by the WWE as to why he was not bought to Jeddah for the event. A directive was even issued around the company to not mention Zayn’s absence in fear that it could cause controversy that a wrestler was not present due to his ethnicity.
WWE talents were issued a list of rules and customs that they had to adhere to during their time in Saudi Arabia. These included not avoiding a handshake, no mention of Sami Zayn’s absence, and no mention of women.
Last night’s crowd in Montreal, Canada showed a ton of love for their fellow Canadians – but Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens received some major pops. Roman Reigns’ promo opened up the night but was soon interrupted by Jinder Mahal, Zayn, and Owens – all of whom wanted a piece of The Big Dog.
Ultimately all three men jumped Reigns and Bobby Lashley and Braun Strowman came out for the save. This led to a Six Man Tag Team match being made later on in the night between the teams of Reigns, Strowman, and Lashley vs. Owens, Zayn, and Mahal.
The match actually proved to be a very entertaining one, and during a physical exchange outside by Owens and Reigns, Owen’s father (Terry) and The Big Dog playfully exchanged words.
Reigns was working on Owens agains the fan barrier when the pair began jawing off at one another. You can check out the video here below:
A lot was at stake for WWE to upset Saudi Officials for anything at the Greatest Royal Rumble event and it appears to be the reason why Sami Zayn missed the show.
WWE flew in every possible superstar for last night’s mega Live Event so the revelation that Sami Zayn will not be a part of the show was very surprising for the fans.
The statement company released on the matter saying that they are “committed to embracing individuals from all backgrounds while respecting local customs” didn’t clear things either.
Now after a new report from Pro Wrestling Sheet has come out, it appears that the sole reason behind it was that the company officials didn’t want to upset Saudi Government for anything.
According to the site, Sami wasn’t a part of the event due to the same reasons why there were no Women’s matches on the card for the Greatest Royal Rumble -to respect the local culture in Saudi Arabia
Wrestling Observer further reports that the backstage interview of Zayn following this week’s Raw as seen below, was supposed to be the storyline explanation for his absence but the company decided to release the above-mentioned statement after the story picked up.
For those who don’t know, Sami is a superstar of Syrian descent. It’s believed that the company kept him away from the event due to Syria’s strained diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia, which could have upset Government Officials if Zayn had competed at the Live Event.
– As seen on this week’s episode of WWE SmackDown Live in Pittsburgh, PA at the PPG Paints Arena on the USA Network, Daniel Bryan announced that he would team up with Shane McMahon to take on Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn in a Tag Team Match at WrestleMania 34.
The WWE added an interesting twist to the match as there is a stipulation to go along with it.
If Bryan and McMahon win, then Zayn and Owens remain fired, but if Zayn and Owens win, they will be reinstated to SmackDown Live.
Keep in mind that this match may change as McMahon was just released from the hospital. For more on that, click here. You can see Zayn’s reaction to the announcement below:
Daniel Bryan wants payback??
WE GLADLY ACCEPT.
He just made the biggest mistake of his life.
If he thought what we did to him last week was bad, just wait & see what we will do to him after publicly firing us.#Wrestlemania will be the worst night of Shane & Daniel’s lives.
– As we noted on the site, Road Dogg will induct Jeff Jarrett into the WWE Hall of Fame this year. WWE’s YouTube channel has released this video of Renee Young speaking with the Road Dogg about the honors:
SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn is now official for WrestleMania 34. Bryan announced the match on Tuesday’s SmackDown. If Shane and Bryan win, Sami and Owens will remain fired from SmackDown. Sami and Owens will be reinstated to the blue brand if they can get the win.
Below is the updated confirmed WrestleMania card and what the final line-up might look like.
Confirmed Matches:
WWE Universal Title Match
Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar
WWE Title Match
Shinsuke Nakamura vs. AJ Styles
Triple Threat for the WWE Intercontinental Title
Seth Rollins vs. Finn Balor vs. The Miz
Triple Threat for the WWE United States Title
Bobby Roode vs. Jinder Mahal vs. Randy Orton
RAW Women’s Title Match
Nia Jax vs. Alexa Bliss
SmackDown Women’s Title Match
Asuka vs. Charlotte Flair
RAW Tag Team Title Match
Braun Strowman and a partner vs. Cesaro and Sheamus
Finals of the WWE Cruiserweight Title Tournament
Cedric Alexander vs. Mustafa Ali
Ronda Rousey and Kurt Angle vs. Triple H and Stephanie McMahon
Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon vs. Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn Zayn and Owens will get their jobs back if they win, they will remain fired if they lose.
First-Ever WrestleMania Women’s Battle Royal
Sasha Banks, Ruby Riott, Liv Morgan, Sarah Logan, Naomi, Becky Lynch, Bayley, Natalya, TBA
Fifth Annual Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal
Scott Dawson, Dash Wilder, Baron Corbin, Tye Dillinger, Mojo Rawley, Matt Hardy, Dolph Ziggler, Tyler Breeze, Fandango, TBA
Rumored Matches & Matches Expected To Change
SmackDown Tag Team Title Match
The New Day vs. The Bludgeon Brothers vs. The Usos
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens continue to work their current program on social media.
As seen on last week’s episode of SmackDown Live in Dallas, Texas at the American Airlines Center on the USA Network, SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan announced that Owens and Zayn have been “fired” from WWE due to their attack on Shane McMahon last week on SmackDown.
This led to Owens and Zayn beating down Bryan in the ring to close the show. Obviously, this is a storyline, and they are still under contract with the WWE.
Zayn signed with WWE back in 2013 after finding success on the independent scene under the name El Generico.
Since the firing angle on SmackDown Live, Owens has changed his Twitter account handle to Kevin Steen, and Zayn tweeted for the first time in five years on his El Generico Twitter account. You can see his tweet here:
WWE announced today that Paul Heyman will induct Goldberg into the WWE Hall of Fame during WrestleMania weekend. Goldberg captured the Universal Championship last year at WWE Fastlane and then lost it to Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania 33. Goldberg got the better of Lesnar at Survivor Series 2016 and eliminated him in the 2017 Royal Rumble match.
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens were fired by SmackDown GM Daniel Bryan on Tuesday’s episode of SmackDown. Bryan announced that he was medically cleared to return to the ring earlier in the night. Throughout the show, Bryan asked people backstage if Owens and Zayn had arrived at the arena yet. They finally arrived with about 15 minutes left in the show and Bryan stated that he would meet them in the ring.
Daniel then fired Owens and Zayn for their brutal attack on Shane McMahon the previous week. Owens and Zayn responded by brutally attacking Daniel Bryan and Powerbombing him on the ring apron.
WWE SmackDown held a Live Event last night in Trenton, New Jersey. During the event, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens rushed the ring and grabbed a microphone. Sami Zayn said in reference to Daniel Bryan, “we loved you man, we admired you just like all of these idiots. But now we see you for what you are, a corporate sellout!”. Shinsuke Nakamura’s music then hit and Owens & Zayn escaped as the lights in the arena went out.
SmackDown Live General Manager Daniel Bryan recently did an interview with The National to talk about several professional wrestling topics. Bryan first discussed what its been like working alongside SmackDown Commissioner Shane McMahon:
“I have really liked working with Shane. One of the things that is really nice about Shane is that he is a positive person. When we first started working together it was really interesting because we were shooting a shot back stage and it didn’t go as planned because the camera guy was new. But he didn’t chew him out or anything like that.
“‘Hey man, welcome here. This is how we do things here so next time do it like this’. And that is a great way for a leader to talk to people who work for him rather than being ‘Argh, you idiot, what are you doing’. So yeah, I really enjoy working with him.””
He then discussed his ongoing storyline with McMahon, Kevin Owens, and Sami Zayn on SmackDown. It’s expected Bryan will team with Shane against Owens and Zayn in a Tag Team match at WrestleMania 34 next month:
“I think there is so much that is similar between me, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens. In terms of where we come from and also kind of the perception of some of the people in the office about Sami and Kevin and the way that people perceived me as far as thinking ‘Sami Zayn does not have the look to be a top level WWE superstar’.
“But he has the ability. Like people connect with him and I think the same thing with Kevin Owens and I think that makes it a very natural storyline to tell.”
You can read Bryan’s full interview with The National by clicking this link here.
This Tuesday on Smackdown, Daniel Bryan fired Kevin Owens & Sami Zayn. Last week, Shane McMahon had booked Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn to face each other at WrestleMania.
There are just 17 days and two episodes of Smackdown left until WrestleMania. Both Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon will need to recover from their storyline injuries quickly in order to book another WrestleMania match or segment involving this storyline.
– On last night’s episode of SmackDown Live, General Manager Daniel Bryan fired both Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn for their assault on Commissioner Shane McMahon last week. After Bryan fired them Owens and Zayn brutally beat down Bryan as well, causing the former WWE World Heavyweight Champ to be carted out on a stretcher. To sell Bryan firing Owens and Zayn, WWE has removed their profiles from WWE.com
– Speaking of Owens and Zayn, Sami recently took to Twitter to comment on he and Owens beating down Bryan on SmackDown. Zayn sarcastically welcomed Bryan back (referring to Bryan recently being cleared to compete inside the ring again) and said he hopes he can live with his decision to fire the two best wrestlers alive:
Welcome back @WWEDanielBryan. Hope you can live with yourself after firing two of the best wrestlers alive (and two guys you've known for 14 years).
That is, once you're discharged from the hospital.
– NXT Champion Andrade “Cien” Almas recently made an appearance on the Mexican morning show Sale El Sol. The interview is in Spanish but if you’d like to give it a view you can check it out here:
As we’ve noted, SmackDown Live Commissioner Shane McMahon announced that Kevin Owens would be taking on Sami Zayn at WrestleMania 34. This was announced shortly before Shane took an indefinite leave of absence from his duties as SmackDown Live Commissioner. Shortly thereafter, Owens and Zayn viciously attacked McMahon which caused a storyline injury.
Bryan Alvarez speculated on Wrestling Observer Live that he can’t imagine another scenario other than a Triple Threat match between Owens, Zayn, and McMahon at WrestleMania 34. He also expects General Manager Daniel Bryan to serve as the Special Guest Referee for the bout.
Alvarez said WWE has put too much effort into this storyline for it to simply conclude with Owens vs. Zayn in a singles match:
“There are four weeks left until WrestleMania, I presume it will be Shane McMahon, Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens in a three-way with Daniel Bryan as the guest referee. I don’t know that for sure but I can not fathom the idea that they spent this much time building up something and then at the end of the day he’s just off the show because he got beaten up.
“I mean they played it up like it was near death but he’s a McMahon and I presume he will be back in a few weeks and build up that match with those two guys. So, I think that match will be added to Mania.”
Last night on Monday Night Raw, Shane McMahon was shown on camera sitting next to his father backstage. This was during the 1st segment of the show where Roman Reigns walked to the back to confront Vince.
On Smackdown, Shane McMahon just cost both Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens chances to win the WWE Championship at Fastlane. Shane broke up pin attempts by each competitor to prevent them from winning.
Kevin Owens took to Twitter last night to comment on Shane McMahon’s appearance on Raw:
After losing out on a WWE Championship opportunity on Sunday, Zayn and Owens, like Cena, have no clear path to WrestleMania.
Shane McMahon is advertised as having a special announcement for tonight’s Smackdown. His announcement may have something to do with Owens’ and Zayn’s role at this year’s WrestleMania.
AJ Styles defended his WWE Championship tonight at WWE Fastlane in a Six-Pack Challenge against Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, Dolph Ziggler, Baron Corbin and John Cena. SmackDown Commissioner Shane McMahon was ringside for the match and wound up playing a pivotal role in the decision. Both Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens had the match won, but Shane decided to intervene during both pinfalls. After WWE Fastlane 2018 went off the air, the SmackDown Commissioner joined Renee Young and Sam Roberts on Talking Smack.
Shane claimed that he was totally provoked tonight. Renee Young stated that Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan seem to constantly let their emotions get in the way of their job. Shane admitted that his emotions got the best of him tonight due to Kevin Owens accidentally Superkicking him in the face.
Renee asked where Shane draws the line on letting his emotions control his decisions. Shane McMahon stated that Daniel Bryan was correct in his assessment that he has let his emotions get in the way. Sam Roberts asked if Shane regretted his actions tonight and Shane quickly said he doesn’t know. Shane added that his adrenaline is still pumping and that he is not pleased with what happened tonight and once again brought up being kicked in the face.
Sam Roberts brought up that Kevin Owens was trying to kick Sami Zayn in the face tonight and Sami ducked, which led to Shane getting kicked in the face. Shane simply said “okay”. Roberts asked why Shane was even ringside for the match tonight but was quickly cut off by Renee Young. Renee brought up Owens attacking Vince McMahon last year and added that must have left a mark on Shane McMahon. Shane agreed that is where it all started and noted that he and Owens never liked each other. Shane said that he respected Owens’ talent but doesn’t care for him at all as a person.
Shane noted that he will never forget what Owens did to his father and that he has had this coming to him for a very long time. Shane complained about Sami Zayn interfering in the Hell in a Cell match against Kevin Owens last year, just as he was about to get his revenge on Owens. Sam Roberts asked Shane if it was time to let Daniel Bryan have more control as Shane works through these issues and Shane said that they have already tried that. Shane added that he and Daniel have a great relationship, but they don’t always see eye-to-eye. Shane once again claimed that Daniel Bryan is living vicariously through Owens and Zayn.
Shane admitted that he was happy to see neither Owens and Zayn walk away with the WWE Championship tonight. Shane claimed that he stayed out of the way tonight until he got booted in the face. Renee Young disagreed and pointed out that Shane McMahon deliberately cost both Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn the chance to become WWE Champion on back to back occasions tonight. Shane once again admitted that his emotions got the better of him but claimed that he didn’t regret it at the moment. He continued to say that he might regret it later after he gets a chance to chill out and calm down.
John Cena defeated WWE Champion AJ Styles in a non-title match on this week’s SmackDown and per the stipulation, Cena has earned a spot in the main event of the WWE Fastlane pay-per-view to make it a Six-Pack Challenge.
Fastlane takes place on March 11th from the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, OH and will be the final WWE pay-per-view before WrestleMania 34.
Below is the updated confirmed Fastlane card:
Six-Pack Challenge for the WWE Title
John Cena vs. Sami Zayn vs. Dolph Ziggler vs. Kevin Owens vs. Baron Corbin vs. AJ Styles
WWE United States Title Match
Randy Orton vs. Bobby Roode
SmackDown Tag Team Title Match
The New Day vs. The Usos
SmackDown Women’s Title Match
Ruby Riott vs. Charlotte Flair
The main event of the WWE Fastlane pay-per-view will see WWE Champion AJ Styles defend his title against Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn in a Triple Threat.
SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan made the Triple Threat after tonight’s #1 contenders match between Sami and Owens ended with no winner and interference from the WWE Champion, who was on commentary.
Fastlane will be the final WWE pay-per-view before WrestleMania 34, where Styles is currently scheduled to defend against Shinsuke Nakamura. No other Fastlane matches have been announced as of this writing but we will keep you updated.
Fastlane takes place on March 11th from the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.
Below are a few photos and videos from tonight’s SmackDown main event:
– Adam Cole put on an extraordinary Extreme Rules match with Aleister Black at NXT Takeover: Philadelphia over the weekend. He followed that up with making an appearance in the Men’s Royal Rumble match the following night. It turns out WWE originally had other plans for Cole at the Royal Rumble instead of being in the over-the-top-rope bout. Wrestling Observer Radio reports that the original pitch for Cole had him answering Bobby Roode’s United States Title Open Challenge.
That plan was cancelled, however, as WWE officials realized it wasn’t a good idea to have Cole lose an eight-minute match on the kickoff show. The United States Title Open Challenge saw a ton of last-second changes, as Dolph Ziggler was also planned to answer the call.
Instead Ziggler appeared in the Royal Rumble match at number 30 and Mojo Rawley wound up taking on Roode on the pre-show for the strap. Cole entered the Rumble at number 23 and was eliminated by Rey Mysterio.
– WWE posted the following video of Sami Zayn and Becky Lynch after their Mixed Match Challenge loss to the team of Alexa Bliss and Braun Strowman. Sami blamed the WWE Universe for the loss and also contemplated if their loss was a result of having too much of Lynch’s birthday cake prior to the bout:
Next week’s WWE SmackDown in Kansas City will feature Sami Zayn vs. Kevin Owens to crown a new #1 contender to the WWE Title. The winner will go on to face WWE Champion AJ Styles in the main event of the March 11th WWE Fastlane pay-per-view from Columbus, Ohio, which will be the final pay-per-view before WrestleMania 34.
Sami vs. Owens was made after SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan acknowledged the referee made a bad call in AJ’s 2-on-1 Handicap Match win over Sami and Owens at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view on Sunday.
Next Tuesday’s SmackDown will also feature WWE United States Champion Bobby Roode defending his title against Rusev. Rusev earned the title shot by winning a Fatal 4 Way over Kofi Kingston, Jinder Mahal and Zack Ryder on tonight’s SmackDown.
– Shane McMahon celebrates his birthday on Monday as the Commissioner of SmackDown Live turns 48 years old.
– Sami Zayn and Becky Lynch will compete for children across the globe with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), their charity in WWE Mixed Match Challenge. In the video below, Zayn and Lynch explain their support for UNICEF.
– On last night’s episode of SmackDown Live it was announced that WWE Champion AJ Styles will defend his title in a 2-on-1 handicap match against Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view (PPV) later this month. “KO” took to Twitter to react to the WWE Title opportunity:
– Last night’s episode of 205 Live continued the feud of Hideo Itami and Jack Gallagher as Gallagher beat Itami down with a pipe. You can check out the video of the segment here below:
As we’ve noted, the dark main event of last night’s SmackDown Live and 205 Live tapings was a Six-Man Tag Team match between the teams of Bobby Roode, AJ Styles, and Shinsuke Nakamura against Jinder Mahal, Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens. During the match Zayn tried to haul a water bottle and AJ Styles at ringside, however, “The Phenomenal One” caught it and fired it right back at him:
– Early tomorrow morning Chris Jericho will be returning to New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) for his highly-anticipated match-up against Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 12. Jericho took to Instagram to post some fan art that showed himself, Chris Benoit, and Eddie Guerrero. “Y2J” said that he is dedicating his match tomorrow to his “fallen brothers”:
https://www.instagram.com/p/BdfXpUjlQnS/
– In the dark main event after SmackDown Live and 205 Live tapings; a Six-Man Tag Team match between the teams of AJ Styles, Bobby Roode, and Shinsuke Nakamura took on the team of Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, and Jinder Mahal. “The Phenomenal One” and his team were able to emerge victorious to send the crowd home happy.
SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan announced on tonight’s show that WWE Champion AJ Styles will defend his title against Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens in a Handicap Match at the Royal Rumble pay-per-view, which takes place on January 28th from the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.
SmackDown also saw new Superstars confirmed for the men’s and women’s Royal Rumble matches – Baron Corbin, Liv Morgan and Sarah Logan.
Below is the updated Rumble card coming out of SmackDown:
30-Man Royal Rumble Match
John Cena, Elias, Finn Balor, Randy Orton, Shinsuke Nakamura, Baron Corbin, TBA
30-Woman Royal Rumble Match
Asuka, Naomi, Ruby Riott, Natalya, Sasha Banks, Bayley, Paige, Mandy Rose, Sonya Deville, Carmella, Tamina Snuka, Lana, Natalya, Liv Morgan, Sarah Logan, TBA
Triple Threat for the WWE Universal Title
Kane vs. Braun Strowman vs. Brock Lesnar
2-on-1 Handicap Match for the WWE Title
Sami Zayn and Kevin Owens vs. AJ Styles
WWE United States Title Tournament Finals
Bobby Roode or Zack Ryder or Mojo Rawley vs. Jinder Mahal or Xavier Woods
Shortly after last night’s SmackDown Live from Chicago went off air, a dark match main event took place in the form of a Six-Man Tag Team match between the teams of Jinder Mahal, Sami Zayn & Kevin Owens vs Randy Orton, Shinsuke Nakamura & AJ Styles. SmackDown Live General Manager Daniel Bryan served as the Special Guest Referee.
The team of Orton, Nakamura & Styles won the match to send the Chicago crowd home happy. At one point in the match, Bryan helped “The Viper” hit the RKO on Zayn to set up a Kinshasa from Nakamura for the win. Check it out here:
