Nattie Believes Sami Zayn Will Become 'Massive Babyface' Following WWE Title Loss

Sami Zayn's run as Undisputed WWE Champion has come to an end, but something significant may still await him, according to fellow WWE star Nattie at least.

Following Zayn's title loss to CM Punk on "WWE Raw," Nattie believes that WWE fans will embrace him, perhaps more than they ever have before. "You might disagree with me, but I actually think that Sami is going to come out of this thing as a massive, massive babyface," Nattie said on "Busted Open Radio." "We saw Sami doing stuff with Trick [Williams]. Remember when the fans were booing Sami when he was getting ready to wrestle Trick and everybody was turning on him? Well, as soon as our fans can turn on someone, they can also get behind someone."

To illustrate the trend of fans and pundits' wavering perceptions, Nattie noted that recent training sessions at The Dungeon 2.0 included discussions about Zayn's loss and the emotional promo he cut after it. Those conversations amongst wrestlers then yielded a general feeling of sympathy toward Zayn.

"People feel like Sami was screwed," Nattie said. "Didn't he have the title for what, ten days? So he had it for less than two weeks, but I'm telling you, it feels like it could spark something really cool for Sami."

Zayn initially claimed the Undisputed WWE Championship by pinning Cody Rhodes at WWE Night of Champions on June 28. Rhodes earned a rematch against Zayn shortly after, but come bell time on "Raw," he was unable to compete. As a result, a returning CM Punk challenged and bested Zayn for the title in his hometown of Chicago instead.

Coming out of "Raw," Nattie hopes to see Zayn lean into the sympathy he's garnered in order to reestablish himself as a babyface in WWE. Conversely, "The Lowkey Legend" wants to see CM Punk revive his former heel behavior.

"If I'm going to be brutally honest, what I love about CM Punk is that some people love him, some people hate him. But whatever it is about him, you want to watch him. Those are the best characters. My favorite version of CM Punk, if I'm going to give my little Nattie take on it, my favorite version of him was when he was a heel," Nattie said. "I loved CM Punk as a heel with Paul Heyman. That was my favorite version of him because I just felt like that was the most interesting version of him ... What I would personally love to see is heel CM Punk and Sami Zayn fighting and scratching and clawing his way back to what he lost."

As of now, it is unclear if Zayn will have a chance to reclaim the Undisputed WWE Championship in the coming weeks. Reports do indicate, however, that Punk is currently slated to defend the title against Rhodes at the 2026 SummerSlam event, which suggests that even if Zayn does, his efforts may not result in him regaining the title.

With the Undisputed WWE Title belonging to the "WWE SmackDown" brand, Punk will mark his return to WWE's blue brand later today. Elsewhere on the show, Zayn's former rival Trick Williams will face Carmelo Hayes.

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.