WWE Night of Champions 2026 results, grades, analysis: Sami Zayn shockingly wins WWE title after 10-year journey

WWE's latest premium live event, Night of Champions 2026, took place on Saturday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and ended with one of the most shocking title changes in recent memory as Sami Zayn pinned Cody Rhodes to win the Undisputed WWE Championship for the first time in his career. The biggest match on the card was the triple-threat main event for the aforementioned Undisputed WWE Championship. Across nearly 20 minutes, Rhodes, Gunther and Zayn put together a masterpiece in every sense of the word, igniting the Kingdom Arena crowd with excellent action and storytelling. As the action and tension built, the dramatic conclusion — Zayn's victory — sent the fans in attendance into a frenzy and will upend the landscape of "SmackDown" for the foreseeable future.SAMI ZAYN IS UNDISPUTED WWE CHAMPION!!!!!A MIRACLE IN SAUDI ARABIA!!! pic.twitter.com/rtmYqWSgfw— WWE (@WWE) June 27, 2026 WHAT A MOMENT FOR SAMI ZAYN!!! 🥹 pic.twitter.com/NPgf2Anv8x— WWE (@WWE) June 27, 2026 Apart from the main event, the two matches with the most immediate and consequential impact moving forward came in the first hour of the show, as Oba Femi and Iyo Sky won the King and Queen of the Ring tournaments, respectively. While Femi will still have to make his decision as to which champion to challenge at SummerSlam, Sky made her decision instantly, opting to run it back with Liv Morgan in August. Also on the show, we got what is seemingly the final chapter in the ongoing rivalry between Bron Breakker and Seth Rollins. The two men told a wonderfully violent story in a steel cage, with Rollins coming out on top and appearing to end his feud with both Breakker and the faction he helped build, The Vision. Zayn's win was ultimately the only title change of the night, as both Trick Williams and Tiffany Stratton retained their United States Championships. The biggest takeaway from these two matches was the setup for a potential SummerSlam clash between Jade Cargill and Charlotte Flair, who along with Chelsea Green intervened to help Stratton retain. Here are the full results, grades and analysis from WWE Night of Champions 2026:Oba Femi def. Jey Uso in 7:56 to win the King of the Ring tournament Grade: B Best spot: Oba Femi's shoulder breaker Analysis: I don't think I am alone in being a bit surprised that Femi won and there was no outside interference in this match. With The Bloodline lurking in the background and a potential rubber match against Brock Lesnar begging to be held at SummerSlam, all signs pointed to Femi's coronation being put on hold for a year. That said, you'll hear no complaints from me that Femi's ascent is continuing and he will be in a theoretical main-event match at SummerSlam. Femi has already teased a showdown with Reigns and we got a sneak peek of a showdown with Cody Rhodes at Cena's retirement event last year. On the other side, we'll likely see Uso suffer some form of punishment from Reigns, as he failed to accomplish what "The OTC" asked of him. As far as the match itself went, it was perfectly fine for what it was. There was nothing that we'll be talking about on Monday besides the outcome, which is the way it should be.Iyo Sky def. Liv Morgan in 14:54 to win the Queen of the Ring tournament Grade: B+ Best spot: Iyo Sky's Spanish Fly Analysis: Sky and Morgan put on a solid match here, with Morgan being the clear aggressor and doing great character work in the ring. The outcome — Sky winning and immediately challenging Morgan — gives a little bit of added context to how we view what went down in Saudi Arabia. While the match had plenty of good moments, it did feel like we could have seen more, which we likely will at SummerSlam. Giving Morgan a clear-cut feud for the next five weeks will be a welcome change from her relatively quiet run since winning the Women's World Championship at WrestleMania 42. Sky remains arguably the best women's wrestler on WWE's roster and should dethrone Morgan in Minnesota, especially considering Danhausen has now cursed the Judgment Day leader.Seth Rollins def. Bron Breakker in 19:03 Grade: A+ Best spot: Rollins superplexing Breakker off the cage Analysis: This was an incredible closing chapter to the Rollins and Breakker rivalry, with great action, violence and storytelling on full display. Normally, I prefer when steel cage matches end via escape, but Rollins finishing the fight in the center of the ring was absolutely the right move for this ongoing feud. With the Vision saga now behind him, Rollins should set his sights on one of the top champions on "Raw" or "SmackDown," with the obvious answer being a showdown with Reigns at SummerSlam. As far Breakker goes, he looked as strong as he possibly could have without winning in this match. He is capable of things few others in wrestling are and has a brilliant future ahead of him. It'll be interesting to see how The Vision is handled moving forward, but it felt like there was a mutual sign of respect shown between Breakker and Rollins at the end of this match. I wouldn't be surprised if Breakker splits from the maligned faction.Trick Williams def. Ricky Saints in 10:42 to retain the United States Championship Grade: B Best spot: Saints faking the kendo stick hit Analysis: Williams and Saints are clearly two stars who will have major roles in the future of the "SmackDown" and WWE as a whole. With Williams being the undeniably bigger star, this match felt more like a showcase for Saints than anything else, especially considering he's been on the main roster for roughly two months. As impressive as Saints was, Williams' title reign never felt truly in jeopardy and he should get a bigger match for SummerSlam, potentially against Carmelo Hayes or even in a triple threat involving Saints again.Tiffany Stratton def. Jade Cargill in 7:39 to retain the Women's United States Championship Grade: C Best spot: Stratton's dropkick counter out of a powerbomb Analysis: The writing was on the wall here when it came to potential run-ins for this match. Stratton and Cargill put together a decent match and actually mesh together well with the champion's counters and high-flying ability offering a good complement to Cargill's power. With Flair getting involved to cost Cargill, it looks like we'll get that much-anticipated match at SummerSlam. As for the champion, Stratton should have no shortage of challengers, including Chelsea Green, Giulia, Kiana James and even the recently debuted Blake Monroe.Sami Zayn def. Cody Rhodes and Gunther in 18:38 to win the Undisputed WWE Championship Grade: A+ Best spot: Sami Zayn winning the Undisputed WWE Championship Analysis: Bron Breakker and Seth Rollins had the match of the night for a couple of hours on Saturday. Then Rhodes, Gunther and Zayn put together an absolute classic, creating an epic WWE moment in the process as Zayn finally captured WWE's top championship. By all measures, this match was remarkable. The action was equal parts technical and violent, executed at a level that showcased the talents of all three men involved. The storytelling was impeccable, with moments like Rhodes pulling the referee out of the ring and Zayn grabbing Rhodes' fading arm illustrating the desperation of all three men involved. With Zayn winning, this moment enters a pantheon alongside Mankind's victory in the late 1990s, Daniel Bryan and Kofi Kingston's wins at WrestleMania, or even Rhodes himself finishing his story. This will be a match we'll weigh heavily at the end of the year as one of WWE's best.For complete coverage of WWE Night of Champions, follow along with Uncrowned's live blog below: