Why a Four-Time Intercontinental Champion Should Win the 2026 Royal Rumble
During the Friday, January 23rd episode of Friday Night SmackDown, Sami Zayn declared that he was determined to win the Fatal Four-Way match taking place at the January 24th edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event against Randy Orton, Damian Priest, and Trick Williams. There’s certainly a good possibility Zayn wins this match and faces WWE Champion Drew McIntyre at the Royal Rumble next Saturday. However, what if he doesn’t win the Fatal Four-Way? Does this put the four-time Intercontinental Champion at good odds to win the Men’s Rumble? A few weeks ago, he called his shot, claiming he was finally going to become a World Champion for the first time. It could very well happen in front of a Saudi Arabian crowd that is very much pro-Zayn. A Royal Rumble win would solidify Zayn as a main-event caliber superstar and would go on to headline WrestleMania.
Path to the WWE Championship
If Zayn does not win the Fatal Four-Way Match tonight to earn a WWE Championship opportunity against McIntyre, his path to the title comes through the Rumble next week. This year’s Rumble has the component of being unpredictable, just like it was last year, which makes it even more surprising and causes commotion upon said winner. Speculation will be around the Rumble if Zayn is participating, whether ot not WWE can push him to that next level. The pro-Zayn crowd in Saudi Arabia would love to see a meteoric win in Saudi Arabia’s first-ever Royal Rumble. If the four-time Intercontinental Champion wins and challenges for the WWE Championship, it could be the current champion, McIntyre, or perhaps the winner of the Fatal Four-Way Match at Saturday Night’s Main Event. We’ve seen a Zayn and McIntyre feud in the past. However, Orton potentially winning tonight and then again next week could set up Orton against Zayn, which would be extremely intriguing. Even Priest vs. Zayn or Williams against Zayn would also spark interest to the WWE Universe. Most likely, Zayn’s path to the WWE Championship would either run through the current champion or Orton. Either option would set up an interesting WrestleMania XLII match.
Back to Raw?
Zayn was moved from Monday Night Raw to SmackDown in August 2025. It wouldn’t make much sense for him to move back to Raw and chase the World Heavyweight Championship. Unless Bron Breakker was the World Heavyweight Champion, and they wanted to conclude a story between The Vision and the four-time Intercontinental Champion. Yet, Breakker looks to be in line for his own Rumble win. With CM Punk as the current champion, it wouldn’t make sense for Zayn to chase that title, as both superstars are faces at the moment. If they made Punk or Zayn a heel, this would make a little more sense to do. Yet, that’s not the case, and with how storylines have been playing out, it wouldn’t make sense to trade Zayn back to Monday Night’s. Plus, the four-time Intercontinental Champion pretty much did everything he could for the red brand.
The path on SmackDown is currently the smarter and overall better option if Zayn wins the 2026 Royal Rumble. Facing McIntyre or a heel Orton would play out as the best logical WrestleMania matches at that point, unless ‘The Scottish Warrior’ drops the title before WrestleMania. This certainly all depends if the four-time Intercontinental Champion wins tonight during the January 24th edition of Saturday Night’s Main Event. Zayn desperately wants a World Championship, and winning the 2026 Royal Rumble would be a great way to get that opportunity.
