The record-breaking reign of The Ring General ended at WWE WrestleMania 40. Gunther captured the WWE Intercontinental Championship just weeks into his main roster call-up, defeating Ricochet on a June 2022 edition of WWE SmackDown. He went on to run roughshod on the competition, besting former world champions Sheamus, Drew McIntyre, and The Miz in hard-hitting defenses. Gunther’s run surpassed the multi-decade record reign of WWE Hall of Famer The Honky Tonk Man (454 days) in Fall 2023. The distance between the two widened immensely over the subsequent months, as Gunther’s reign sits at over 200 days longer than the previous record. Gunther’s WWE Intercontinental Title reign concluded at 666 days after Sami Zayn defeated him on April 7th.
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While he has continued to compete on live events, Gunther has disappeared from WWE television. His stablemates in Imperium have continued to show face on WWE Monday Night Raw, but The Ring General himself has not been seen since WWE WrestleMania 40.
Gunther’s WWE Return Date Revealed
That changes on Monday.
According to insider account @WrestleVotes, Gunther is scheduled to make his WWE return this Monday, April 22nd on WWE Monday Night Raw. His role on the show is unknown.
It’s worth noting that WWE Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn is currently entangled in a feud with Chad Gable. That program received a fresh coat of paint this past Monday, as following his successful defense against Gable, the Alpha Academy leader turned heel by attacking Zayn after the bell. While Gunther could be inserted into that program, as Zayn has been defending the WWE Intercontinental Title in four-way bouts against Gable, Gunther, and Finn Balor on the live event circuit, it’s likely that WWE has bigger plans for the Imperium frontman.
When Will Gunther Challenge For a World Championship?
Look for Gunther to be a world champion before the end of the year.
Gunther made his WWE debut on January 12th, 2019 and has a 870-day NXT UK Championship reign and 666-day WWE Intercontinental Title run to his name. That means for 79.8 percent of his WWE tenure, Gunther has been a champion. History shows it won’t be long until that statistic resumes.
WWE heads to Germany for WWE Bash in Berlin on August 31st. Despite being born in Austria, Gunther has roots in Germany and often instructs his Imperium stablemates in that country’s native tongue. Like how Drew McIntyre headlined WWE Clash in the Castle 2022 and Rhea Ripley main-evented WWE Elimination Chamber 2024, WWE will likely continue the trend of putting hometown heroes in the closing match of international live events. All that is there is no better place than WWE Bash in Berlin to christen Gunther with a world championship, whether that be the WWE Championship or the WWE World Heavyweight Title.
