9 Wrestlers Who Had Their WORST Match EVER This Year
7. SAMI ZAYN Vs. Karrion Kross (WWE SummerSlam)
Karrion Kross dominated the wrestling conversation for much of 2025.
The debate ping-ponged in several directions. Why wouldn’t WWE push him? Why would WWE push someone who couldn’t wrestle particularly well? Could Karrion Kross even take a back bump?
Kross suffers from a particularly cruel curse, in that he has great attributes as a manager, but he’s caged within the body of a hulking powerhouse wrestler, somebody who gets managed, and he can barely move that body around. He has a very good presence, and an even better handle on the darkly funny putdown. It was hilarious when he threatened to break the Miz’s legs. The threat of him breaking anybody’s legs in the ring doesn’t work, though, since he wrestles like he’s a submersible.
His match against Sami Zayn at SummerSlam was a miracle, in that it should have been impossible for Sami to have a match that bad. And it’s not as if the matchmaking was bad, either; if anything, a smaller guy who is almost peerless at selling was the ideal opponent for Karrion Kross. And it still sucked.
The story saw Kross try to lure Sami over to the dark side. He tried berating him, he tried stomping him out. Neither worked. Sami, as mentioned, is great at selling - but even he was unable to convince fans that Karrion’s stuff was even remotely impactful.
At the finish, Sami appealed to the crowd. He was a good guy! He was going to win the right way!
Nobody bought it, and nobody cared about Sami’s soul - for the very first time during an incredible mainstream career high under Triple H’s regime.