Bengaluru, May 14: For weeks now, we haven't spotted the Intercontinental Championship and its possessor on SmackDown, forcing the WWE to take action against him.

Sami Zayn is no longer the holder of the prestigious belt from last night as WWE stripped him off the belt, as of last night. The news was broken on the latest episode of WWE Backstage on FS1.

The show dedicated to happenings around the WWE announced that top management decided to vacate the Intercontinental Championship as Sami Zayn is currently unable to defend it. Thus within just two days gap, another title was vacated on WWE main roster. But unlike the previous one on Raw, no automatic choice is available to crown the new champion.

BREAKING NEWS:@SamiZayn is unable to compete and defend the Intercontinental Championship, therefore @WWE has declared the title vacant. A tournament to crown a new Champion will begin on Friday Night Smackdown on FOX. pic.twitter.com/5qZgUyL9rC

— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) May 13, 2020

As per confirmation received from WWE Backstage, the company will host a tournament to determine the new Intercontinental Champion. It begins this week in SmackDown on FOX which will also feature fallouts from 2020 Money In The Bank. However, there is no update on the format or participants of the tournament which starts this Friday night.

Sami Zayn was not happy with the decision taken by the WWE. He took to his Twitter handle and donned his annoying on-screen heel persona pointing that it was a complete injustice from WWE as they stripped him of the belt for not showing up. He still believes to be the champion, in mind,

"I disagree with this decision and no matter what anyone says, I am still undefeated and therefore still the Intercontinental Champion," Sami Zayn wrote.

Sami Zayn has not been seen in action in WWE since the WrestleMania 36 tapings were over in the last week of March whereas the actual event aired on April 4 and 5.

Zayn retained his Intercontinental Championship over Daniel Bryan which was his first title defense after winning the prestigious belt at Elimination Chamber on March 8. He defeated Braun Strowman to win the title in March.

I disagree with this decision and no matter what anyone says, I am still undefeated and therefore still the Intercontinental Champion. -SZ https://t.co/SUFsBFeRDB

— Sami Zayn (@SamiZayn) May 13, 2020

Apparently, WWE may have wanted to put over Sami Zayn in a big way by using top names like Daniel Bryan of Strowman against him as both of them digested losses.

But later, Sami himself falied to capitalize on these wins and upping his status on the roster as he opted not to attend TV tapings. He has reportedly sandbagged his own push on SmackDown.

It's been reported that the 'Underdog from the Underground' chose not to attend the Performance Center tapings due to his personal health concerns. He didn’t want to travel and work in WWE shows during the coronavirus pandemic.

WWE instructed employees that if some of them don’t want to work during the COVID-19 outbreak, they can take the time off. This decision would not be used against them in the future. Hence, stars like Roman Reigns and Sami Zayn are taking advantage of it.