"He's something very special" - Former Intercontinental Champion credits Sami Zayn for his work in WWE
Former WWE Superstar and talent scout William Regal recently praised Sami Zayn for the latter's contributions to the wrestling business.
Zayn and Regal are two of pro wrestling's most experienced performers, having worked in the industry for decades. Both men worked very closely together in WWE in the mid-2010s when Sami was an NXT Superstar. Meanwhile, William Regal was the on-screen General Manager of the promotion's third brand.
On the most recent edition of his podcast, Gentleman Villain, Regal spoke about Zayn's ability to connect with any crowd he performs in front of.
"He's something very, very special and I can't say enough good about what he did for NXT, what he did for independent wrestling before he got there. The way you know I mean, he busted his backside to get all over the world and did everything he had to do, the things that he's done in his own time to help people, which is very admirable."
He added:
"A lot of things can be said about whatever happened in NXT and the transition to the main roster WWE, Sami Zayn's figured it out. Zayn has figured it out and he's a top WWE Superstar. And I just have nothing but admiration for him because to figure it out and how to connect with your audience at whatever is given, he finds a way to do it." (From 1:31:40 to 1:32:58)
Irrespective of his on-screen character, the former Intercontinental Champion has always found a way to generate a passionate response from the WWE Universe.
Sami Zayn was William Regal's last match
While many believe the Englishman's final bout was against Cesaro in 2013, Regal has since revealed that he had one more match after facing The Swiss Superman.
Speaking on Talk Is Jericho, Regal mentioned that he faced Zayn in 2014 in front of a small group of athletes in Dubai who were trying out for WWE.
"That wasn’t actually my last match because the following year, 2014, we went to Duabi to do a tryout and Sami Zayn came. At the end of it, pretty much everybody there, none of them had seen pro wrestling." (H/T Fightful)
William Regal: I Had A Match With Sami Zayn In Dubai In 2014 At A WWE Tryout dlvr.it/SM0Wvz
Given William Regal's respect for Zayn, it is not surprising to hear that he trusted Sami to work together in his final bout inside the squared circle.
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