Superstar Highlight: Sami Zayn

**Character summary:** The Underdog from the Underground was signed early on by now defunct Rampage. After defeating Christopher Daniels in a qualifying match, Zayn went on to be part of the main event of first and last Rampage as he competed in a scramble match to crown the first ever Pure Champion. Zayn was the interim champion at one paint but in the end, Johnny Mundo and Seth Rollins were declared co winners. He also went on to compete in the Royal Rumble, entering at #22, lasting a bit under 12 minutes, eliminating Alberto Del Rio and Bray Wyatt before being eliminated by Finn Balor.

After Rampage ended, Zayn was released and surprisingly stayed a free agent until late march when he debuted on Survival defeating Viktor in two minutes. A week after, Zayn made his intentions clear. He reignited his long-standing rivalry with Cesaro, this time determined to win the Intercontinental Championship. However, Apollo Crews thought he was more deserving of a title shot, so the two competed next week, alongside Dolph Ziggler in a #1 contenders match which Zayn won.

Zayn competed in a MITB match at LTG, also including Crews and Cesaro but in the end, Ziggler walked away with the briefcase.

During the road to CW, Zayn cashed in on his #1 contenders status but Cesaro got himself intentionally DQ'd. To try to compensate for the title match loss, Zayn announced his entry into Pure Championship match at CW but again came up short. At Survival: Fallout, Zayn again won a #1 contenders match, this time against Apollo Crews. As ROTC approached, Zayn was on the losing side of two tag team matches. The lack of momentum played a role in his match at ROTC as he again failed to capture the IC title.

After forcing Cesaro into a title match at SS, Zayn proved that third time's the charm as he defeated Cesaro in a grueling 30 minute ironman match which earned five stars.

After beating Cesaro, tensions grew between Crews and Zayn which lead to a title match at LS. Zayn won via roll-up but the friendship turned into a personal feud after Crews snapped and attacked Zayn.

Zayn willingly gave Crews another shot at the title at IG. Apollo went on to brutally attack Zayn on an edition of Survival. At IG, Crews won the title in a dominant fashion after powerbombing Zayn onto the ladder. Zayn announced that he'd be using his rematch clause at Primal Warfare and was scheduled to face Crews in a ladder match but Crews again brutally attacked Zayn. Later on in the show, Zayn passed out in KOTR match against Samoa Joe. After the match, Zayn was being stretchered to the back but Joe pushed him off the stage taking him out of action indefinitely. At this point, there is no precise return date set for Sami Zayn.

**Accomplishments: 1x Intercontinental Champion, 1x \*\*\*\*\* match (vs Cesaro at SS)**

**Predictions:** Sami Zayn will not return by year's end. However, it is very possible that he'll be back in time for Royal Rumble. If Apollo ends up in the rumble, Zayn could definitely come back in order just to ruin his night. Furthermore, Zayn might reclaim the IC title either at february Survival PPV or DOW. Afterwards, he will get drafted away, with or without the IC title.