Sami Zayn returns months after being stripped of Intercontinental Title - WWE SmackDown
 |
| Zayn has returned to continue to build on his impressive WWE resume, which has seen him deliver Match of the Year candidates with opponents like Kevin Owens and Cesaro |
Less than a week after Roman Reigns appeared at SummerSlam, WWE fans have been treated to another sensational return.
On SmackDown, Sami Zayn himself who was stripped of the Intercontinental Championship back in May made a comeback after months away from the action.
The former leader of the Artist Collective made a shocking appearance as he danced onto the stage while Jeff Hardy was on the stage after retaining his IC Title over Shinsuke Nakamura.
Zayn was carrying his own gold, claiming he never lost the belt which he was stripped of when the Canadian star was unable to appear on shows during the coronavirus pandemic.
He laid out Jeff with a stiff kick, and during a backstage interview staked his claim for being the one true champ – even if a later skit suggested the Artist Collective with Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro could be a thing of the past.
Zayn won the title at Elimination Chamber in a three-on-one handicap match as he teamed with Nakamura and Cesaro against Braun Strowman – before successfully defending the gold against Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania 36 in April.
He hadn’t been seen since, which led to WWE stripping him in mid-May.
In a statement on WWE.com, the company said: With Sami Zayn currently unable to defend the Intercontinental Championship, it was revealed on WWE Backstage on FS1 that the title has been declared vacant.
"A tournament will begin this Friday night on SmackDown to crown a new champion."
The tournament was a good in-ring spell for the blue brand, which AJ Styles emerging victorious in the end with the likes of Bryan, Nakamura, Drew Gulak and Sheamus also taking part.
Zayn has returned to continue to build on his impressive WWE resume, which has seen him deliver Match of the Year candidates with opponents like Kevin Owens and Cesaro.
Although the IC Title run earlier this year was his first reign on either Raw or SmackDown, he did find himself at the top of the black and gold brand as NXT Champion.