Big E Wins WWE Intercontinental Title On SmackDown
Sami Zayn's WWE Intercontinental Title reign ended on SmackDown's Christmas special.
Big E defeated Sami Zayn in a main event 'Lumberjack' match to become the new Intercontinental Champion on last night's episode of SmackDown.
WWE's Christmas special played out more like a mini-pay-per-view than a standard edition of the show, and it was much better for it - it's also a huge show of faith in E that his title coronation was picked to headline.
This is both E's first singles title since 2013-2014 (when he also held the IC belt) and since soft-splitting from fellow New Day members Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods during the 2020 Draft. Who knows what the future will hold for Zayn now he's title-less, but some sort of rematch at January's Royal Rumble would make sense.
A delusional heel like Sami will likely bitch and complain about how the lumberjacks around ringside distracted him, for example.
After the match, a number of babyfaces hoisted Big E up onto their shoulders in celebration.
E's last IC Title reign lasted 167 days, so he'll have some going to top that one. For the record, Sami's most recent run ended at 89 days.