Jim Ross: It’s over! Sami Zayn gets the victory!
Sami Zayn rolled out of the ring as he was quite tired from the physical opening match and walked up the ramp as ‘Worlds Apart’ by CFO$ blasted the PA system and the fans erupted in cheers for the face. He celebrated with the fans who were closer to the barricades by slapping their hands and shaking some of them, before walking back into the middle of the ramp and looking at The Undertaker with his arm in the air in celebration. The Undertaker looked back at him in frustration as Sami Zayn breathed heavily and then turned around to put the match behind him. He continued celebrating with the fans as the Warfare cameras faded out to go to a commercial break. The cameras fade back in and we see Sami Zayn breathing heavily at the curtains before he continues to walk, he walks past a lot of workers as they congratulate him on his big win and he acknowledges them as he continues to walk past a lot of the production team; as he continues to walk he hears a familiar female voice.
Renee Young: Sami! Sami! Can I catch a quick word on your impressive victory out there?
Sami Zayn: Sure Renee, nice to see you; go ahead.
Renee Young: Well Sami, you did it; you finally did it and got that all-important first victory in the EBWF and what a way to announce yourself on to the scene as well, a triple threat victory over R-Truth and The Undertaker, what are your thoughts?
Sami Zayn: Well Renee any first victory in a new promotion is a special one, but for me this is extra special, to get a victory by pinning the legend that is The Undertaker, I…I don’t really think I could have asked for anything more. It was a great match and I hope that the fans were impressed as were the EBWF board and hopefully I showed them I’m not someone trick pony and I am here for good, here to stay and here to win, it doesn’t matter who the opponent is, where or when; this win means a lot and hopefully it triggers a long and successful career here for me.
Renee Young: What do you think got you that win?
Sami Zayn: Look I’m not going to dwell on this victory any more, I think one of the reasons I was pushed back a step or two in my career is because I sometimes get obsessive, I’m not making that mistake here, I won’t be obsessing over The Undertaker or obsessing over the win, it was a big win, I am happy but it’s time to look to the future and look towards the King of the Ring pay-per-view, I want to be on that card and to hopefully create some momentum, I’ll take anything…anything and I hope the booking agents are listening because you put anyone in front of me I will turn up to King of the Ring and give it my all.
Renee Young: Thank you for taking the time out to talk Sami, enjoy your victory and who knows, we might see you at King of the Ring in less than a week.
Sami Zayn: Thank you Renee and I hope so.
Sami Zayn continues to walk as other people congratulate him on his win, he then walks over to a table and looks over what they have before picking up a bottle of water and a Gatorade and walking towards the locker room, he opens the door as the camera follows him and he sits down and in an instant he downs the entire bottle of water before unlacing his boots. He hears a knock on the door and one of the booking agents for the EBWF walks in.
Booking agent: Hey Sami, is this a bad time?
Sami Zayn: No, no, please come in; what’s up?
Booking agent: Well, we just got out of a meeting a short while ago and I thought I’d wait until after your match to drop by and not distract you, great match out there, a great victory against an opponent of The Undertaker’s calibre. Now, we know you’re an experienced wrestler, you’ve travelled across the globe but this is a whole new scale even for someone like you, this Sunday is our King of the Ring pay-per-view and we have some star studded talent competing at this historic event, now it’s up to you…but we want you on that card.
Sami Zayn: Uh…yeah…definitely count me in! Wha…who is my opponent?
Booking agent: Well right now it looks as if the direction we’re going in is a 10-man Battle Royal with the winner becoming the new number one contender for the Breakout Championship.
Sami Zayn: That’s awesome, thank you! Where do I sign, who else is competing?
Booking agent: The contract is here with me and it looks as if you’ve taken the final spot, barring any unforeseen circumstances you will join Diego, Fernando, R-Truth, D’Angelo Dinero, Kofi Kingston, Mr. Kennedy, Tyler Breeze, Batista and Seth Rollins. So as you can see you have your work cut out if you’re to stand a chance of walking out of the match victorious, all of these guys want a win, they need the win and they’re not pushovers and there’s no way they’re going to simply let a newcomer into the company ease his way, be careful. So if you could just sign here and you’ll be confirmed for this Sunday.
Sami Zayn then takes the pen and skims over the few pages before signing the front page and the following two pages before handing the pen back to the booking agent. Sami Zayn then rubs his hands in excitement as the agent looks over the papers and then stands up to head out.
Booking agent: Well Sami, I believe…that should be all for now. If there are more updates in the next few days I will let you know so make sure you keep your cell on you should I need to call you or drop you a text. Other than the only thing left is that now you’re a pay-per-view superstar, the EBWF expects you to turn up to all media events and special promotions, so on Friday you will be attending AXXESS to go through signings, meeting fans and then on the Saturday there will be an official EBWF press conference for the event, and on Sunday the event itself so you have a busy week ahead and I heard about your interview and cover shoot for Wrestling Weekly, congratulations and good luck for Sunday.
The booking agent leaves as Sami Zayn goes and closes the door behind him, before jumping in the air and punching in celebration with a huge grin on his face, knowing his luck could be turning around after all. He continues to unlace his boots and pulls out his duffel bag and begins to pack away his equipment getting ready for his biggest and busiest week yet.
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We see Sami Zayn step out the hotel he is staying in this week for the King of the Ring pay-per-view in St. Louis, Missouri where none of the public really seem to recognise him at this stage in his career. He isn’t dressed up in any smart attire as you’d expect, being a low-key superstar he is simply wearing jeans, trainers and an Ultimate Warrior shirt. He hops into his rental car and as he shuffles into his seat, he brings out his iPod and plugs it in so he can listen to a particular podcast. The photo shoot and interview he is heading to also have a weekly podcast and he loads one up before driving off and listening to an extract from it throughout his journey to the studio.
Podcast: Well as we promised on the episode last week we do have a very special guest coming to our studio today here at Wrestling Weekly; Sami Zayn will be on the cover of the June edition of the magazine which should be released in a couple of days for you to either download or you can find our concession at the EBWF King of the Ring AXXESS which also takes place this week, so we will see you there. We’re excited to have Sami here, especially since it was recently announced that he will be making his pay-per-view debut for the EBWF this Sunday at King of the Ring, where he will be in the Battle Royal and the winner will be crowned the number one contender to the Breakout Championship. There are some brilliant superstars in this match and it’s certainly a match to tune in for and if we take a look at the results of our poll we ran earlier on Twitter…let’s see here…well it looks like Batista is an early favourite for this match and understandably so as well, he has already beaten Zayn so you’d expect Zayn to be on a bit of a revenge mission here. Some other votes as well Tyler Breeze has gotten some votes and Seth Rollins too, Kofi Kingston is a popular choice so that’s what our fans think and continue to let us know your thoughts and send us in your questions through our Facebook page, as Sami Zayn WILL be answering some of them during his exclusive interview and Q&A session so make them interesting and he will answer, and again you can pick up the magazine with Sami Zayn on the cover later this week…
Sami Zayn pulls out his iPod as he pulled up to a car park and turned off the car, grabbing his bottle of water and getting out and locking the car behind him. He approaches the door and walks in and is greeted by members of the Wrestling Weekly staff as they welcome him in and guide him around the building, before taking him to the photo shoot area where they set everything up for Zayn’s photo shoot. They ask him questions to keep him calm and within ten minutes they are done, showing he’s not a high maintenance superstars he only offered a couple of different poses and the magazine photographers were pleased with the one they chose to make the cover.
They then hand him an iPad in front of the camera as he looks through it and begins to answer some questions the fans of his and the EBWF have asked via Facebook; sitting on a seat in front of a camera and photographers as he begins to scroll through some questions looking for some appropriate ones to answer for the Q&A session inside the magazine; looking over certain topics which he will address.
Sami Zayn: Okay, let’s take a look here…first pay-per-view appearance, thoughts? Well yeah I am making my first EBWF pay-per-view appearance on Sunday at King of the Ring, I am not in the tournament itself but hopefully I am up there in the semi-finals and the finals next year.
My thoughts on the battle royal? Well we’ve got some real competitors in that battle royal, R-Truth, Mr. Kennedy, the Los Matadores are in there and Batista as well so it’s shaping up to be exciting and it should be a real test for everyone involved.
My biggest threats on Sunday? Of course everyone is in the battle royal for a reason, to be the number one contender for the Breakout Championship so everyone is a threat, so I have to go with The Animal, Batista. He has shown you all what he can still do, he showed me in the ring as well and it was an honour stepping in the ring with him so he will be up there as one of the final participants for sure. Other than that I would say Kofi, I like Kofi and I think he has a unique style which works well in this kind of match and Seth as well, he’s actually the biggest threats and the one I need to keep an eye on if I want to win.
The final two participants…Obviously I am going to pick myself ha-ha, I hope I can utilise my skills to be there and I don’t do easy, that’s not my style, I want the best so I personally would like Seth Rollins and myself to be the final two, we’re all opening the show and I think we’re the two best wrestlers. What better way than to have two of the independents greatest graduates go at it to give the fans something to cheer for and to set the benchmark for the rest of the night. I know how tough it is to get to this stage and I find myself to be quite similar to Seth Rollins so for the fans I think that’s something they’d want to see as well, but like I said earlier; Dave Batista is The Animal for a reason, he won’t go down without a fight so I hope he’s eliminated early! Ha-ha, but it’s no revenge mission for me or anything like that, I don’t have any specific targets or a specific strategy, whatever happens will happen inside the ring and all of us will go at it to get what we want, nothing less.
What do I hope to achieve? Hmm…I think it’s quite simple actually, win the battle royal this Sunday, put on a massive smile on the faces of the crowd who paid to come and watch the show, throw or kick everyone over the top rope and become the number one contender to the Breakout Championship and then become the champion. It is really that simple for me, usually promotions keep me tied down but I am free here at the EBWF, I am here to be champion.
Who do I think will win the King of the Ring? Good question, I think it’s difficult to choose from, a lot of solid competitors but as a fan I’d like to see…AJ Styles and Randy Orton in the final, that’s all you’re getting from me. Let’s not forget AJ Lee has momentum too so she could be one to keep an eye on in a tough match against Velvet Sky and Brie Bella…so be sure to tune in on Sunday!
After answering the questions which will feature in the magazine, one of the workers has a question for Sami Zayn before he takes off to prepare for his big match on Sunday.
Magazine Editor: Sami, what does it feel like to be on the cover of a big wrestling magazine and have an exclusive section inside for thousands of fans to read and enjoy?
Sami Zayn: It feels good, y’know I was a little nervous at the beginning because I’ve never done anything like this before, I am someone who keeps myself to myself, I am not the biggest social media user so it’s nice to see what fans on Twitter and Facebook think of your work inside the ring, and it truly is humbling to be on the cover because it’s something the fans want and are interested in. I know some of my competitors on Sunday are used to this kind of attention and are used to the limelight, such as Tyler Breeze let’s not get into that one too much but there are some quite like me, away from media and things like that so it should be fun to see who comes out on top, so buy this edition of Wrestling Weekly, bring it over at AXXESS and I’ll sign it for you and enjoy King of the Ring!
The cameras stop rolling as Sami Zayn gets up and puts the iPad on the table before everyone starts shaking his hand and he walks out, doing part one of his media work before leaving for the gym and preparing for his King of the Ring AXXESS with his fans which is followed by a press conference.
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The cameras fade in and we are outside of the Sprint Center in Kansas City, as it’s playing host to AXXESS this afternoon, as thousands of fans are gathered to meet their favourite EBWF superstars! There a number of stands with the superstars behind them signing autographs and taking pictures with the fans who managed to make the event today. Kids line up one after another in front of the Sami Zayn stand as he continues to take pictures with them and answer any quick questions they have. After a short while he is guided towards the middle where Todd Grisham takes him away so Sami can have his say on the events today and the match in general.
Todd Grisham: Ladies and gentlemen…oh wow that’s loud…ladies and gentlemen standing beside me is Sami Zayn, Sami how are you finding your first AXXESS event here at EBWF?
Sami Zayn: Oh it’s fun, really fun you get to meet some cool people from all over the world who watch us compete so it’s really a very humbling experience in this beautiful weather, great city a great event also so it’s been fun I hope to be here for all the other AXXESS events we have as well.
Todd Grisham: Now Sami, there’s only one question on everyone’s mind, we’ve all read the interview in the Wrestling Weekly magazine and you said you would like to face Seth Rollins in the final two if you were to get that far; everyone here and at home is wondering, why haven’t we heard you talk about your opponents yet? Any message to them?
Sami Zayn: Well Todd everyone has been asking me if I have a message for the other participants, I can only say wait another hour or two and you’ll hear everything from me that you want to hear, I avoided this topic on purpose until this day so some home truths will probably come out and I hope to see most of these fans there!
Todd Grisham: Ladies and gentlemen, Sami Zayn!
Sami Zayn waves at the audience as he moves back to his stand and takes a seat as more and more fans continue to pour through the queues in order to meet all of the superstars and divas here today. The event has already been going on for a couple of hours now and the stage for the press conference is set up already and it looks as if Sami Zayn is one of the first superstars to be sitting on the panel and discussing the match ahead, the reporters have already gathered in their seats as some of the EBWF superstars and divas have gathered on the panel to answer the questions.
Reporter: Sami, this is your first media day you’ve done with the company, you’ve been pretty quiet regarding the other competitors, is this some type of mind game you’re playing with them?
Sami Zayn: No sir, no mind games from me in any match. I go about my matches how I want to and this time I thought I didn’t want to open my mouth too early but I guess today is the day we do need to look at the facts and look at what is on offer, I can’t just sit on my backside all day and all night with a massive smile on my face acting like noting is at stake here, a lot is, there’s a shot at a championship and I want in, I deserve it and I’m not going to let any of the nine opponents take that away from me.
Reporter: So would you say you’re not afraid of any of them?
Sami Zayn: Of course not, if I was afraid I wouldn’t be sat here, I’d be begging for my Mom to come and pick me up from the airport because I can’t do this, but I know that I will walk out as the number one contender on Sunday, I can taste it, I can feel it and it’s only a matter of time before they realise that I am not someone who will sit down and watch them climb the ladder, it’s my time and these guys will be the shoulders I need to stand on when I reach for the every top.
Reporter: Any chance we will hear anything from you about them?
Sami Zayn: Ha-ha, well I know it’s your job and you need to stir things up but I don’t prepare anything for these things, but sure I mean there’s a lot which needs to be said or could be said in fact, and I think it is something I would want to get off my chest. I mean who do we have standing my way? Batista? Do we really need to hear all that again? Look I know he thinks I am a nobody, he thinks of me as a waste of space and you’re right, you’re all thinking the same thing. He did beat me, but in this match you can’t pin your opponent so I’m not worried about eating a Batista Bomb after Batista Bomb after Batista Bomb. A nobody…I mean he must hold me in some regard if he had to travel all the way to Tijuana to look for a masked superstar while I live all the way over in Montreal, he was worried then and needed some security to do some research but Dave I know you now and you know me, I am a lot quicker than you and before you even know me and the rest of the smaller guys you think nothing of will have you thrown over the top rope. It won’t be easy, but it will be achievable and you can bet your ass I want to be the one who kicks you out of that ring and crushes your dream of being Breakout Champion. In his eyes he still thinks he is the dominating animal he was ten years ago, he’s mistaken and I’m just saying what all of you reporters are thinking, you know he’s past it and no man of his age should be proud of being classed as a breakout star…
D’Angelo Dinero, the pope; I don’t know what to really say about him other than I think I need to be wary, he’s a tough cookie who has also probably never heard of me either ha-ha but let’s make sure I can change all of that on Sunday when he realises Sami Zayn tossed him over the top rope. I am confident, I think he won’t be much of a problem for me IF I can stay focused, one lapse in concentration then this whole match is blown wide open. Kofi Kingston, I said earlier I think his style suits this match and he is dangerous, he was unlucky to lose against Justin earlier in the week in a fantastic match so yeah he is a threat to me and what I want, at least this time round none of us here will have to sit through another geography lesson and listen to how much the people of Ghana have to suffer, I sympathise with him, I really do. I know a lot of countries suffer in the same way and in fact I admire what Kofi is doing, Ghana needs a role model like him and it will hurt a little when he fails to win, but will I feel bad that I did it? Nope. I think he needs to focus less on being the man his country wants him to be, and be the man, the wrestler, the superstar he NEEDS to be to succeed in this promotion. We have Diego and Fernando, Los Matadores and right there we have a team, a bond, two people who will help each other until the very end. The ideal situation for them is to go one on one by themselves in the end, but will that happen? I doubt it, as good as they are I think this match will really test the bond they have and there will be eight other superstars testing their resolve a team and I am sure they will be extremely satisfied when they see the two fight one another and implode, it’s all possible. Tyler Breeze, look I know Tyler from my time in the WWE and in NXT and I know how he operates, he has beaten me more times than I care to remember and it’s all because of the frustrations and that damn cell phone he uses in the corner to take a picture of himself, but I think even Tyler has the brain cells to realise that in this match there will be no time for selfies, if he decides to stop the match and pick up that cell I believe it’ll be lights out for him and he will cost himself that match. R-Truth…Truth…the truth is I wasn’t impressed on Monday, I felt the triple threat match was mainly a singles match between me and The Deadman, a match which I won, any performance like that and I think nobody will have a problem in eliminating, the truth will definitely not be setting us free on Sunday it’ll just be you walking back up the ramp when you realise you’re not who you think you are. Mr. Kennedy, impressive words from him and he is someone who is classed as the dark horse, we know what he can do and what he’s capable of, he has had some massively important victories in his career and he’d enjoy nothing more than to rub this win in not only our faces, but all of yours as well. I don’t need to repeat my name to these fans Ken, to me that sounds like you’re forcing yourself to be remembered as the man you once were; let’s see if you can keep up the act and walk as loud as you can talk…
Reporter: There is one more, you seem to have forgotten about Seth Rollins, someone who is a heavy favour…
Sami Zayn: No comment from me.
Sami Zayn then is asked to leave the table as another superstar replaces him and the press conference for the King of the Ring continued long into the evening, with Sami Zayn not talking a lot about Seth Rollins which confused the reporters. Next stop for Sami, King of the Ring on Sunday…
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It is finally Sunday at King of the Ring with the opening match only a short while away, the cameras go in to Sami’s locker room as he is lacing up his boots and warming up for his battle royal, he drinks some water before getting up and stretching, jogging on the spot and then jumping up and down wearing his usual black and red attire. His cell phone then rings as he answers the expecting call.
Sami Zayn: Finally, you almost missed me, how’re you doing Mom? How’s Dad? Good…good…yeah I am all set just a few last minute preparations and then I should be called out for the match, you’re all watching right? That’s awesome, well it was good to hear from you and let’s hope I am the number one contender when you see or hear from me next? Okay? Take care, talk soon.
Sami Zayn puts the phone down into his pack and shoves it into his locker before exhaling heavily and slapping his face to pump himself up, he shout’s “c’mon” loudly before walking out of his door and walking towards the gorilla position, before he reaches it he is stopped by Renee Young, who wants some final words from Zayn before his pay-per-view debut.
Renee Young: Sami…just need a moment of your time before you get out there, it’s you EBWF pay-per-view debut, how have preparations gone for you?
Sami Zayn: Hello Renee, preparations have gone well, better than I expected, I am calm, nervous, excited, happy all rolled up into one big confident. I am confident of walking out of there as your new number one contender for the Breakout Championship, nine men stand in my way and nine will have to fall.
Renee Young: Well you mentioned nine men and we all saw your press conference, but it seemed you refused to comment on Seth Rollins…
Sami Zayn: Seth Rollins, the man everyone wants to hear about isn’t it? And rightfully so, he is that good inside the ring, no, no, he is ridiculous in this ring because he can do things certain guys can't, he’s no architect for the sake of it. That name wasn’t given to him like The Animal was given to Batista, he has earned this and I know right now he thinks he will be the number one contender as well. That’s the Seth Rollins I know, if I talked about Seth in that press conference I know he’d think I was weak, I can’t afford that when I am THIS close to getting one over him, he wants this as much as I want this, the fans know what he’s of and so do I, the only way to prove that I belong here is to eliminate the best and right now in this match Seth is at the top, this is why I want it to be me…and Seth…the final two participants and we can see who the best really is. It should be fun Renee, it should be fun and I hope Seth Rollins is ready because we’ve done this before on a much smaller scale, let’s see who can handle the pressure when it starts to matter…I believe in myself and my abilities and I know Seth, deep down, no matter how much he tries denying it or tries to shrug it off, he sees me as a threat…as he should…
Renee Young: Thank you Sami…
Sami Zayn walked away from Renee as she smiled into the camera whilst the camera fades out as we get ready for our first match of the King of the Ring pay-per-view…