Vince Russo Claims Sami Zayn Lacks Heat As Undisputed WWE Champion

Former WWE head writer Vince Russo has expressed strong skepticism regarding Sami Zayn’s current run as Undisputed WWE Champion, claiming the new top champion is trying too hard to manufacture a crowd reaction that simply isn’t happening.

Zayn stepped onto the September 18 episode of WWE SmackDown as the newly crowned champion after defeating CM Punk the previous week. WWE immediately placed Zayn in the main event spotlight, opening the show with a passionate in-ring promo. However, speaking on Coach & Bro, Russo argued that the crowd reaction fell flat:

“I could tell you this by watching that promo on SmackDown… He is trying really, really hard. He really is trying really hard and I’m listening to him and I’m listening to the crowd. There’s no heat there, bro.”

Russo drew parallels to young wrestlers attempting to force character turns, emphasizing that compelling storylines should drive crowd reactions rather than forced microphone work:

“That’s the problem. There’s no real heat with what he’s saying. He’s trying to create heat… The story will turn you. You don’t need the words. I promise you the story will turn you. And it just came across like Sami is trying to generate heat. But the story isn’t there for Sami to get the heat that he’s looking for.”

Co-host Jonathan Coachman pointed to Dominik Mysterio as an example of genuine, organic crowd heat, where fans boomed with disapproval without needing forced dialogue. Russo further noted that Zayn faces an uphill battle due to his comedic past, particularly his beloved run alongside The Bloodline:

“What Sami is working against as well is comedy got him over. They loved that stuff with Uce and all the stuff he was doing. Now you’re asking him to go from, you know, Lou Costello to a world champion… If I’m the hardcore fan that loved Sami with the Bloodline, now I’m supposed to hate the guy with really no reason. Bro, that’s a tough spot to be in.”

Zayn’s championship reign got off to a turbulent start overall, as his title defense against Kevin Owens later that night featured an awkward, botched pinfall finish that required improvisation to complete the match.