When Sami Zayn decided to stay home during the coronavirus pandemic, WWE went ahead and stripped him of the Intercontinental championship. A tournament was held to crown a new champ, and the finals of that tournament took place on this week’s episode of Friday Night SmackDown, with Daniel Bryan meeting AJ Styles in a match up befitting the “workhorse” legacy of the title.
Bryan got to have the kind of match he loves:
.@WWEDanielBryan continues to turn this #ICTitle showdown into a technical showcase. #SmackDown @AJStylesOrg pic.twitter.com/EgunInKe9A
— WWE (@WWE) June 13, 2020
They were given a lot of time to have the match they wanted, and they delivered the goods. It wasn’t your typical WWE main event style match, and it was better off for it.
Can these two fight forever? #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/IVpKbRRZpe
— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) June 13, 2020
In the end, despite a valiant effort from Bryan, Styles countered the running knee with the Styles Clash and followed it up with the Phenomenal Forearm to score the pinfall and the victory.
Styles is your new Intercontinental champion.
After, Styles proclaimed himself the best WWE champion we’ve ever seen.
Something tells me they’ll be running this one back soon enough.
Get complete SmackDown results and coverage of this week’s show here.