Watch: New champion crowned at SmackDown tapings (SPOILERS)

Sami Zayn has defeated Shinsuke Nakamura to become the new Intercontinental Champion at tonight's SmackDown tapings in New Orleans, LA.

Next week, WWE's crew is set to travel to Saudi Arabia for the Elimination Chamber 2022 event. Next week's SmackDown was taped tonight at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. The card featured an Intercontinental title bout between Shinsuke Nakamura and Sami Zayn.

As per WWE's latest tweet, Zayn has defeated Nakamura to win the Intercontinental title.

Check out some tweets highlighting Zayn's big win below:

Sami Zayn's SmackDown win marks the beginning of his third Intercontinental title reign

Sami Zayn made his WWE main roster debut in 2015 after a successful stint on NXT. Zayn won the NXT Championship on one occasion during his run on the black-and-gold brand and engaged in a heated feud with his arch-nemesis Kevin Owens.

Zayn's main roster run has seen its fair share of highs and lows. He has done quite well for himself, though, as a strong mid-card act. Zayn won the Intercontinental title for the first time at Elimination Chamber 2020.

At the event, Zayn teamed up with Shinsuke Nakamura and Cesaro in a 3-on-1 Handicap match against Braun Strowman for the Intercontinental title. Zayn was later stripped of the title as he refused to compete amidst fear of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The new Intercontinental Champion won his second Intercontinental title at Clash of Champions 2020. He defeated AJ Styles and Jeff Hardy in a Triple Threat Ladder match to win the belt that night. He lost the title to Big E on the December 25, 2020, edition of SmackDown.

Sami has been one of the highlights of the blue brand over the past year or so. His anti-conspiracy gimmick has been a big hit among the WWE Universe. He kicked off a feud with popular actor Johnny Knoxville earlier this year. He eliminated Knoxville from the 2022 men's Royal Rumble match.

Zayn was later kicked out of the Jackass Forever premiere by Knoxville. It looks like the two men might face off in a high-profile match at WrestleMania 38. It remains to be seen where this leaves Nakamura, as The Show of Shows looms closer.