Sami Zayn found some humor in Finn Balor’s latest WWE setback following SummerSlam.
After Balor took to X to express his disappointment over coming up short in the No. 1 contender’s match at WWE SummerSlam 2026, Zayn replied with the popular James Franco “First Time?” meme from The Ballad of Buster Scruggs. The image features Franco’s character standing on the gallows with a noose around his neck, asking another condemned man, “First time?”—a tongue-in-cheek nod to Zayn’s own recent frustrations with WWE’s booking.
Zayn’s rough stretch began shortly after CM Punk returned in early July and ended his Undisputed WWE Championship reign after less than two weeks. His fortunes did not improve at SummerSlam Night Two, where what was originally set to be a singles No. 1 contender’s match against Balor became a Fatal 4-Way after Gunther and Kevin Owens were added at the last minute.
The bout ended with Owens pinning his longtime friend Zayn to earn a future Undisputed WWE Championship opportunity, leaving both Zayn and Balor empty-handed.
For Balor, the loss marked another missed opportunity in his ongoing pursuit of championship gold, while Zayn appeared to take the latest disappointment in stride by poking fun at the shared misfortune.
https://t.co/I4cldzlp4C pic.twitter.com/gxr8NA1A5i
— Sami Zayn (@SamiZayn) August 4, 2026
