Source: The Wrestling Observer Newsletter
UPDATE x 2: Former NXT Champion Sami Zayn’s match with WWE U.S. Champion John Cena was laid out this week to include Bret Hart’s involvement, as we all saw on RAW on Monday night, however things didn’t quite go as planned from there.
The plan was for Zayn to lose but in the process, get over as a big star in front of an audience in Montreal that WWE was sure he would get a huge reaction.
What’s interesting is that this was not apparently going to be Zayn’s official full-time debut on the main WWE roster, even though he was originally scheduled to wrestle on SmackDown again this week. Due to the injury he sustained at RAW, SmackDown this week had to be re-written to discluse him.
While there’s still no definitive word regarding the specifics of the injury, reports from those close to the situation have described it as “serious.”
There was talk in the locker room on Tuesday night at the SmackDown television tapings that Zayn would be out of action for a few months. Others claimed WWE had not yet received a report from the doctor yet, so it could be anything.
If Zayn is going to be out of action for a few months, WWE would have to cancel his match against NXT Champion Kevin Owens at the NXT Takeover: Unstoppable special on May 20th.
With Zayn out of the picture, if that turns out to be the case, the leading candidates for his replacement in the match with Owens would likely be Finn Balor or Hideo Itami vs. Tyler Breeze in a number one contender match, with the winner of that buot earning the shot at Owens.
UPDATE: According to one source, Sami Zayn’s shoulder injury “appeared to be serious” with some even saying he may have suffered a torn rotator cuff. At the WWE SmackDown TV tapings, there was talk that Zayn could be out of action for “at least a few months”, although two others said that the doctor had not given his report yet. We can confirm that Zayn underwent an MRI on Tuesday morning although we don’t know the results of that as of this writing.
While this was not intended to be Zayn’s full-time debut, he was scheduled to work SmackDown and the script was changed on Tuesday as a result of his injury.
ORIGINAL: WWE sources believe that Sami Zayn suffered some sort of rotator cuff injury on Monday’s RAW. One person believed Zayn had a torn rotator cuff, but that has not been confirmed. Zayn was out of action in March and April due to a shoulder issue.
On Monday’s RAW, Zayn was playing to the hometown crowd during his entrance, which is where he suffered the injury. Zayn injures his shoulder when he gets on the steps and is motioning to the crowd…
Zayn is currently scheduled to face Kevin Owens for the NXT Title on the May 20th NXT special. No word is he will be able to compete in the match at this time.
