WWE has Trick Williams set to challenge Undisputed Champion Sami Zayn on the Oct. 30 SmackDown at Charleston Coliseum in West Virginia. The winner meets World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns at Crown Jewel on Nov. 7 at Riyadh Season Stadium. The feud dates back to the first SmackDown of 2026, and Zayn lost both of their premium live event singles matches against Williams. Here are three reasons Williams is the top threat to the undisputed title.
Trick Williams Has Targeted Sami Zayn Since Day One On SmackDown
Williams debuted on the main roster on the Jan. 2 SmackDown by interrupting a Zayn promo about chasing the WWE Championship. The interruption came with news of a move to SmackDown and a claim on the same title. Zayn offered some credit and warned that Williams still needed humbling.
Both men were in the ring at Saturday Night’s Main Event on Jan. 24 at the Bell Centre in Montreal. Zayn, Williams, Randy Orton, and Damian Priest met in a Fatal 4-Way to decide a No. 1 contender for the undisputed title. After Zayn hit a Helluva Kick on Priest, Williams pulled the referee out of the ring to stop the count. A second kick to Priest moments later gave Zayn the pin and a title match against Drew McIntyre at the Royal Rumble.
Trick Williams Beat Sami Zayn At WrestleMania 42 And Backlash
Two days before the WrestleMania 42 title match, Williams and rapper Lil Yachty brought a performer in a Gingerbread Man costume to SmackDown to mock Zayn. The performer took a Helluva Kick in response. Williams challenged for Zayn’s United States Championship on the second night of WrestleMania 42, April 19, at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Zayn attacked Yachty earlier in the bout, and the rapper later climbed onto the apron and got involved. Down the stretch, Zayn charged for the kick, but Williams struck first and scored the pin for the title. The match was the WrestleMania debut for Williams, and the win delivered a first main-roster championship.
Five days later, Zayn crashed the SmackDown title celebration in the Gingerbread Man costume and attacked Williams and Yachty with a candy cane. The rematch came at Backlash on May 9 at Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, Florida. Zayn faked an injury during the match and hit Yachty with a Helluva Kick. Late in the bout, another kick attempt missed when Williams moved, and the Trick Shot finished the match.
Trick Williams Keeps Beating Sami Zayn’s Allies
Zayn won the undisputed title at Night of Champions on June 27, rolling up Cody Rhodes in a Triple Threat that also included Gunther. Rhodes entered with the belt, and the pin came in Zayn’s tenth world title opportunity in WWE. Johnny Gargano and Ricky Saints have sided with the new titleholder on SmackDown since.
Williams interrupted Zayn’s address to Gargano on the Oct. 16 SmackDown and said the feud was far from over. Gargano answered for Zayn, and the two met in an impromptu singles match. Candice LeRae distracted Williams several times, while Zayn cheered from ringside. Williams slammed Gargano’s head onto the announce table and won with the Trick Shot and the Book End.
Zayn turned down a title shot request from Williams on the Oct. 23 SmackDown at Toyota Arena in Ontario, California, then landed a cheap shot and left the ring. Williams and Rey Fenix then faced Zayn and Gargano, but Saints attacked Fenix to cause a disqualification. Penta joined Williams and Fenix for an impromptu six-man tag against Zayn, Gargano, and Saints. Williams pinned Saints with the Book End for the win. The Oct. 30 title match became official on the same show.
End Of My WWE Trick Williams Rant
Zayn has tried everything against Williams. A candy cane, a Gingerbread Man costume, a faked injury, and a kick to Yachty all came up short. Williams beat Zayn at WrestleMania 42, then did it again at Backlash. Two big stages, two pins, one result.
Zayn’s friends have not solved the problem either. Gargano lost to Williams on Oct. 16, and Saints took the Book End and the pin on Oct. 23. The Undisputed Champion ducked the challenge, threw a cheap shot, and still ended up on the Oct. 30 card against Williams. Charleston has all the makings of a title change.
Reigns is waiting in Riyadh, and Zayn cannot afford to look past Oct. 30. Williams owns the head-to-head singles wins, the momentum, and a clean shot at the title. SmackDown has no bigger threat to this reign.
