Sami Zayn pulled off a major upset at Night of Champions 2026, defeating both Gunther and Cody Rhodes in a surprise finish that immediately shifted the landscape of WWE’s main event scene.
The victory came after Zayn capitalized on a sudden opening in the closing moments of the match, securing a shock pinfall that left fans and competitors alike stunned.
The win marked one of the most unexpected outcomes of the event, given the star power and championship pedigree of both Gunther and Cody Rhodes.
In the aftermath, attention has turned to the presentation leading into the match, with some suggesting WWE may have unintentionally signaled Zayn’s breakthrough beforehand. A pre-match graphic highlighting Zayn’s history of 10 failed championship opportunities has been widely discussed as a potential hint that his long-awaited triumph was finally approaching.
During a recent episode of his podcast, Stevie Richards weighed in on the discussion, arguing that the statistic shifted audience expectations and may have spoiled the outcome for some viewers.
“A question because I didn’t see the entrance. You said on the entrance they actually put up he had 10 title opportunities and lost all of them. Correct.” Richards said that once he learned about the graphic, he felt it almost guaranteed Zayn would finally win the championship.”
“What I’m saying is, when I saw, I would think Sami was not going to go over. I didn’t see that graphic, by the way, but when you look at it, Sami seems like the dark horse in this. But when you put that up, you’re almost kind of predicting he is going to win it because you literally just said he’s lost to everyone.”
“So, creatively, if you didn’t have him win it, you literally have just said he’s never going to win this. So, creatively, I guess they kind of played their hand by showing that for a second, but it’s good they set that up because nobody, including myself, and I don’t know about you, expected a title change in general, much less Sami going over since Cody’s had the title now three times.”
