Remember the good old days, when the WWE Intercontinental Championship meant something, when the holder was next in line for the world title?
I feel like we as wrestling fans have asked and answered those questions countless times over the last 20 years or so.
That is not to say the title did not have its share of highlights during the last two decades. The Miz and Dolph Ziggler’s battle over the Intercontinental title in 2016 was the best feud of that year. I thought Cody Rhodes introducing the classic title design was an amazing decision.
I also believe the list of title holders is still as illustrious today as it’s ever been with the likes of Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Bobby Lashley, Finn Balor and AJ Styles.
But Miz and Ziggler’s feud was an outlier among mostly forgettable ones. The classic design conjured up memories of the title’s heyday, but its historic luster was never fully restored. And the title felt more like a demotion to the middle of the card rather than a stepping stone to greater success.
But Gunther’s record-breaking title reign has changed that.
As Gunther surpasses Honky Tonk Man to become the longest-reigning Intercontinental champion of all time, the title feels as important today as it did during its glory years when legends like Bret Hart, Randy Savage and Shawn Michaels held it.
But how did we get to this point? How did WWE successfully revitalize a title that had seemingly lost its place in the wrestling business for so long? Well, there were a few reasons.
First, Gunther was the right person to become champion once he arrived on the main roster. At the time, there was only one top title in WWE and we all know who that belonged to (hint: it’s Reigns).
WWE has never been shy about immediately strapping the rocketship to someone’s back and placing them in main events. Gunther’s size and strength made him a prime candidate for such a position.
However, WWE was more patient, mainly because it could be. The promotion already has a monster heel enjoying a lengthy title reign at the top of the card. There was no need to rush another into the same position. It was a luxury WWE fortunately took advantage of by giving Gunther the Intercontinental title instead.
As Intercontinental Champion, Gunther defeated virtually all of the company’s mid-card stars, slowly earning him and the title more credibility in the process. Once again, his size and strength also made him a believable candidate to run roughshod over a good chunk of WWE’s roster.
This does not feel like the Honky Tonk Man squeaking out technicality victories. This is Gunther winning night in and night out, which brings me to my next point: Gunther has not been pinned.
If there is one well WWE loves to go to time and again, it’s having its champions lose non-title affairs. Yeah, they will eventually somehow win when the title is on the line, but they could easily lose every match leading up to that point, leaving the wrestler and the title as collateral damage to terrible decision-making.
Gunther, on the other hand, literally didn’t lose a match until Chad Gable defeated him a couple of weeks ago on Raw. And even that was via count-out. Gunther being so dominant obviously helps him, but it also helps the person that eventually beats him — because, in theory, that person will also be looked at as a future star.
Speaking of future stars, Gunther’s title reign sure has done a lot for Gable, even with him ultimately coming up short of winning the title in the end. Time will tell if WWE will eventually capitalize on Gable’s newfound momentum as a singles competitor beyond a couple of great title matches. But the opportunity is there, which is saying a lot given he has seen most of his success occur as a tag team wrestler going back to his days on NXT.
The matches Gunther recently had with Gable were not the only great ones during his run. Gunther’s hard-hitting affair against Sheamus at Clash at the Castle was arguably WWE’s best of 2022. Throwing Drew McIntyre into the mix at WrestleMania 39 only helped create another bruising classic.
And these matches are not exclusive to Raw or secondary premium live events. They have taken place on the biggest shows on WWE’s calendar, which was not a guarantee for many other Intercontinental Champions.
Remember the good old days, when the WWE Intercontinental Championship meant something, when the holder was next in line for the world title?
I’m happy to say that I don’t have to think back all that far.