Gunther defeated Matt Riddle at WWE Money in the Bank on Saturday to retain the Intercontinental Championship and extend his reign of 380-plus days.
The Ring General won the match by submission after attacking his opponent's injured ankle and placing him in an ankle lock, forcing him to tap out.
As Gunther celebrated his victory, a familiar face emerged.
Two-time WWE champion Drew McIntyre made his long-awaited return and attacked Gunther, appearing to set his eyes on the intercontinental title. It was the Scot's first appearance since WrestleMania 39 in April.
B/R Wrestling @BRWrestlingDREW MCINTYRE BACK ⚔️🔥<br><br>(via <a href="">@WWE</a>)<a href="">
Over the past several weeks, Gunther and Riddle have grown to dislike each other on Raw, mostly due to the fact that The Original Bro has not shied away from involving himself in Imperium's affairs.
Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci targeted Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens and the WWE Tag Team Championships shortly after getting moved from SmackDown to Raw as part of the WWE draft, and the added element of Gunther made them huge threats.
In an effort to even the odds, Riddle joined forces with Zayn and KO, and they beat Imperium in a six-man tag team match on the May 22 episode of Raw.
Imperium attempted to take Riddle out in subsequent weeks, but he actually put Vinci on the shelf last month by placing an ankle lock on him during a backstage altercation.
Gunther and Kaiser did eventually succeed in injuring Riddle's ankle, which led to The Original Bro laying down a challenge for an Intercontinental Championship match at Money in the Bank.
The Ring General accepted on the go-home episode of Raw, but he also severely weakened Riddle's ankle even more by stepping on it during an altercation.
Vinci also returned to WWE programming on the same episode, using a crutch to interfere in a match and help Gunther beat Zayn.
With Imperium back at full strength, Riddle faced an uphill climb at Money in the Bank even though he is perhaps one of the few Superstars in WWE who can match up with the champion from a physicality standpoint.
Riddle gave The Ring General a run for his money, but in the end, Gunther extended the third-longest Intercontinental Championship reign in WWE history.
Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below.
IF RIDDLE WINS TITLE
Matt Riddle defeated Gunther at WWE Money in the Bank on Saturday to win the Intercontinental Championship and end Gunther's reign of 380-plus days.
Over the past several weeks, Gunther and Riddle have grown to dislike each other on Raw, mostly due to the fact that The Original Bro has not shied away from involving himself in Imperium's affairs.
Ludwig Kaiser and Giovanni Vinci targeted Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens and the WWE Tag Team Championships shortly after getting moved from SmackDown to Raw as part of the WWE draft, and the added element of Gunther made them huge threats.
In an effort to even the odds, Riddle joined forces with Zayn and KO, and they beat Imperium in a six-man tag team match on the May 22 episode of Raw.
Imperium attempted to take Riddle out in subsequent weeks, but he actually put Vinci on the shelf last month by placing an ankle lock on Vinci during a backstage altercation.
Gunther and Kaiser did eventually succeed in injuring Riddle's ankle, which led to Riddle laying down a challenge for an Intercontinental Championship match at Money in the Bank.
The Ring General accepted on the go-home episode of Raw, but he also severely weakened Riddle's ankle even more by stepping on it during an altercation.
Vinci also returned to WWE programming on that Raw, using a crutch to interfere in a match and help Gunther beat Zayn.
With Imperium back at full strength, Riddle faced an uphill climb at Money in the Bank even though he is perhaps one of the few Superstars in WWE who can match up with Gunther from a physicality standpoint.
Even so, Riddle beat Gunther to become IC champ for the first time, and he ended the third-longest Intercontinental Championship reign in WWE history in the process.
Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. Catch the latest episode in the player below.
