Sami Zayn Says Case Could Be Made For Him Beating Roman Reigns At Elimination Chamber

Sami Zayn challenged Roman Reigns for the WWE Championship at Elimination Chamber 2023 in Montreal. The match followed Zayn's time in the Bloodline and his chair attack on Reigns at the Royal Rumble. Reigns retained the title that night on his path toward a 1,316-day championship reign.

Zayn discussed the bout during an interview with Chris Van Vliet on Insight. When asked if he believed he should have won in Montreal, Zayn replied "At the time, I thought there was a case to be made for it, but going back to the domino effect thing, I don’t know." He added that it was not ludicrous to argue he should have won and that anyone watching at the time could have made that case.

Zayn pointed to timing as a key factor in the decision. He noted that Cody was also extremely popular then and that officials were building toward a larger story. This sequence eventually led to Cody's payoff the following year, which Zayn described as more gratifying.

Zayn expressed uncertainty about the potential outcome. He stated "Could, should, would- would it have worked? I think so. But who’s to say?" The crowd support for him in Montreal had reached its peak during that period. Following the Elimination Chamber event, Zayn headlined night one of WrestleMania 39. He teamed with Kevin Owens to defeat The Usos, consisting of Jimmy Uso and Jey Uso, to capture the WWE Tag Team Championships.