Bully Ray Explains Appeal Of WWE Star Sami Zayn

Over the course of two years, Sami Zayn has transformed himself into one of WWE's most beloved performers, both with and without a championship strapped around his waist. On the latest episode of "Busted Open Radio," WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray assessed Zayn's recent work, pinpointing the aspect he believes to be one of the driving forces for Zayn's continued popularity.

"I said [to Sami, while backstage at WrestleMania 40], 'Nobody does the art of the struggle quite like you do Sami.' And the struggle is one of those forgotten aspects of a wrestling match, much like registering has been forgotten," Ray said. "These are such important aspects of a match, especially when you're working from underneath, when you're working as the underdog. One of the things that I tweeted last night about Sami was, even though he's the [Intercontinental] Champion, he does a fantastic job of painting himself as the underdog in every single match. How can you be the underdog if you're the champion? He's able to do that because if you're fighting from underneath at all times, people are going to get behind you, especially your hometown crowd of Montreal."

Like Ray indicated, this week's episode of "WWE Raw" emanated from Zayn's hometown of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. There, Zayn defended his newly won Intercontinental Championship against Chad Gable in the main event. Before the action got underway, though, Zayn emerged through a sea of buzzing fans to make his grand homecoming entrance. Fueled by the electricity of the Montreal crowd and his never-say-die attitude, Zayn later defeated Gable in what Ray described as an "excellent" showcase.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.