Ever since Sami Zayn began battling for the affections of Roman Reigns and The Bloodline his popularity has continued to rise. As Zayn tried harder and harder to earn himself a spot in the faction, fans got behind SmackDown’s proverbial lost puppy and his hilarious antics.
After missing Crown Jewel 2022 in Saudi Arabia as usual, Zayn was also absent from the following November 11th edition of Friday Night SmackDown, this is despite The Bloodline being a heavy presence on the show.
Sami Zayn Misses SmackDown
Although he wasn’t on the show, that doesn’t mean that his absence went unnoticed. During the opening match of the night The Usos put their Undisputed Tag Team Titles on the line against the New Day, and the crowd loudly chanted for the star, much to disgust of Jey Uso. This led Michael Cole to mention that Zayn was missing the show for “personal reasons.” At time of writing it’s unclear as to exactly what this means.
Despite Zayn missing the action The Usos still pulled out the win in devastating fashion, hitting Kofi Kingston with a huge 1-D as he jumped from the top rope. The victory ensures that The Usos will become the longest-reigning Tag Team Champions in WWE history in a few short days. Their current run stands at 481 days, while the record, which is held by The New Day stands at 483 days.
Jimmy and Jey won the SmackDown Tag Team Titles back at Money in the Bank 2021, before adding the Raw Titles in May 2022.
In the main event of the show The Bloodline appeared in celebratory mood, but that feeling was brought crashing down by a returning Sheamus who arrived with the Brawling Brutes, and was quickly joined in battle by Drew McIntyre. The two groups brawled as the show went off the air, seemingly setting the scene for a huge Wargames clash at Survivor Series.