WWE's Sami Zayn Discusses Hometown Montreal, Compares Reaction To CM Punk In Chicago

WWE star Sami Zayn grew up in a suburb of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, and the wrestler has maintained a close connection to the city throughout his career. Zayn always receives an ovation when performing there with WWE, and speaking to the Toronto Sun, he elaborated on his connection to Canadian fans.

"I actually think I have some kind of cheat code, because I have 15 hometowns, you know what I mean? If we go anywhere in Canada, I'm treated as like a hometown guy. Montreal, obviously, is a whole other level," Zayn said. "I don't think there's any wrestler – and CM Punk in Chicago comes the closest I can think of – but there's no hometown that treats their hometown guy the way Montreal has treated me."

The wrestler theorized on the reason for this, and he believes part of it may be that the city had a close relationship to pro wrestling for a long time but, until recently, it was often deprived of hosting major shows. Residents of Montreal also carry a chip on their shoulder because the Canadian government and its citizens treated the French-Canadian population there with disdain for many years.

WWE has started hosting more events in Montreal over the last few years, undoubtedly in part due to the popularity of Zayn and fellow Quebec native Kevin Owens. An episode of "WWE SmackDown" just took place there this past August, and the company will return in January 2026 with both "SmackDown" and WWE Saturday Night's Main Event.

As for Zayn, he last wrestled on the October 17 edition of "SmackDown," losing to Ilja Dragunov while defending the United States Championship. After losing the title, Zayn has moved on to feuding with Solo Sikoa.

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