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Sami Zayn defeated Shinsuke Nakamura on Friday night’s episode of SmackDown to become a three-time intercontinental champion.
The closing moments of the match began when Zayn kicked Nakamura in the back of his injured left knee, which sent the champion tumbling to the ground. He then rolled up Nakamura for the pin and win.
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He’s never, EVER going to shut up about this.<a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/ANDNEWWWWWW?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#ANDNEWWWWWW</a> Intercontinental Champion: <a href=”https://twitter.com/SamiZayn?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@SamiZayn</a>! <a href=”https://twitter.com/hashtag/SmackDown?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#SmackDown</a> <a href=”https://t.co/QSVkfmSYUj”>pic.twitter.com/QSVkfmSYUj</a>
Earlier in the match, Zayn threw Nakamura into the steel steps outside the ring. Nakamura favored his left knee from that point forward, and Zayn took advantage.
Zayn got a near fall after the Blue Thunder Bomb:
However, Nakamura kicked out. It didn’t take much longer for Zayn to emerge victorious, though, and he soon won the IC belt back.
Zayn earned a shot at the IC title on the Christmas Eve edition of SmackDown when he took part in a 12 Days of Christmas gauntlet match against 11 other competitors.
He managed to outlast a stacked field that also included Ricochet, Sheamus, Cesaro, Erik, Ivar, Mansoor, Drew Gulak, Jinder Mahal, Shanky, Angel and Humberto, last eliminating Ricochet by hitting him with the Helluva Kick.
Zayn’s participation in the gauntlet match was a consolation prize of sorts after Brock Lesnar ruined his Universal Championship opportunity.
Several weeks ago, Zayn won a Battle Royal by last eliminating Jeff Hardy, which made him the No. 1 contender to Roman Reigns and the Universal title, but he ultimately didn’t receive a fair title match.
Lesnar essentially bullied Zayn into accepting the title bout on short notice on an episode of SmackDown, and The Beast Incarnate then decimated Zayn before the match, allowing Reigns to win in short order.
Zayn subsequently complained to WWE officials Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville, arguing that he should be given another shot at the Universal title.
Instead, Pearce and Deville said he could challenge for the Intercontinental Championship, as long as he could beat 11 other Superstars in the gauntlet.
Zayn beat the odds to win the gauntlet match and set up a clash with a wrestler he has plenty of history with.
When Nakamura first arrived in WWE in 2016, his first opponent was Zayn at NXT TakeOver: Dallas. Nakamura won the bout, and it is still considered one of the greatest matches in NXT history.
In later years, Zayn and Nakamura teamed up as part of The Artist Collective along with Cesaro. During their time together as a group, Zayn held the intercontinental title by virtue of he, Nakamura and Cesaro beating Braun Strowman in a three-on-one handicap match at Elimination Chamber 2020.
On Friday, Zayn had a chance to win the IC title on his own, and he made it happen, thus further cementing himself as one of the top heels on the blue brand.
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