Sami Zayn Slammed Over ‘Not WWE Champion’ Appearance

A former WWE talent believes Sami Zayn doesn’t have the look of a WWE Champion.

Sami Zayn made his return on WWE SmackDown in Buffalo after taking some time off in the last month or so, after a busy 2025 that saw him win the US Title and restart the US Title Open Challenge.

During his promo on SmackDown, Sami Zayn spoke about how his young son has seen him holding multiple titles in WWE, such as the Tag Team Titles, Intercontinental Title, and US Title, but never a World Title. Zayn got emotional about it while making it clear that he was done talking about being a World Champion, and that he would make it happen in 2026.

As Zayn was about to say more about his WWE Title aspirations, former 2-time NXT Champion Trick Williams made his SmackDown debut wearing a white fur coat and proclaiming that GM Nick Aldis brought him to SmackDown to add some pizzazz to the blue brand.

Trick and Sami exchanged words after Trick’s interruption, with Zayn making it clear that he plans to humble the rising star.

Sami Zayn Criticized For Not Looking Like A WWE Champion

On social media, former WWE announcer and on-screen performer Jonathan Coachman, who spent over a decade working in the company, blasted Zayn for not looking the part of a champion. While Williams wore a flashy outfit, Zayn wore a hoodie.

We talk about details all the time. We talk about if you want to be a world champion you need to LOOK THE PART. This is what @DMcIntyreWWE was talking about. Being a WWE superstar is a standard. Which one of these two looks like a world champion.

At least Sami give an effort on what you can control so it’s actually believable that you could be a world champion. When I look at Trick I see a brand. A star. A world champion. The look is ALL part of it.

We talk about details all the time. We talk about if you want to be a world champion you need to LOOK THE PART. This is what @DMcIntyreWWE was talking about. Being a WWE superstar is a standard. Which one of these two looks like a world champion. At least Sami give an effort on… https://t.co/PSbOZSWBVt

— The Coach (@Thecoachrules) January 3, 2026

Later in the show, it was announced that Trick Williams will face Rey Fenix on January 9th in Berlin, Germany, on SmackDown in what will be Trick’s SmackDown debut.

A match between Zayn and Williams wasn’t officially announced yet, but it’s likely coming soon.