At 556 days, GUNTHER holds the distinction of being the longest-reigning WWE Intercontinental Champion of all time. Tonight on WWE Raw, he found himself defending his gold again against a man he loves to bully and deride, The Miz. The former reality show star has long sought approval from pro wrestling fans and his peers and has assembled an impressive resume of his own in his quest to do so. If Miz could dethrone GUNTHER, that would hand him his ninth Intercontinental Championship, tying him with Chris Jericho for the all-time record for number of reigns.
GUNTHER was very reluctant to give Miz his title shot tonight but was sold on the idea that if he can win, Mike Mizanin will not be allowed to challenge for it again as long as The Ring General holds it. With the stage set for tonight’s collision, both men were given promo time to hype the match, and their full entrances were presented on TV. Once in the ring, the match was given the full title match intro, with both men’s names being announced to the live, dimly lit crowd.
GUNTHER, the bigger of the two men, was on the receiving end of what Wade Barrett referred to as “some new stuff” early in the match but eventually took control. Slowing things down, the leader of IMPERIUM did what he does best: chop and bludgeon his opponents in submission. At one point, as Miz lay on the ground, GUNTHER screamed at him that he was a wannabe while slapping him around the back of the head. Miz attempted to fire up and engage in a chop battle, but that quickly backfired, and he once again found himself on the mat.
Eventually, Miz was handed an opportunity when GUNTHER went for a big chop on the outside. Miz was able to evade the chop at the last minute, and GUNTHER slammed his big hand into the ring post instead, causing him to cry out in pain as the cameras cut to commercial. The relief was short-lived as GUNTHER was decidedly back in control when we returned, but thanks to a series pair of DDTs, Miz found himself with one more chance.
With his chest turning beat red, Miz continued his assault but was cut off by a giant missile dropkick, followed by a powerbomb he somehow kicked out of. GUNTHER immediately flipped the Cleveland native into a Boston Crab, and all seemed lost, but Miz got to the ropes, breaking the hold. At this point, the crowd erupted in “This is awesome” chants, and Miz hit a Skull Crushing Finale, which GUNTHER kicked out of.
The fans requested one more Skull Crushing Finale, but before Miz could deliver on what the fans wanted, he was met with a massive clothesline or punch; it wasn’t clear, but it was brutal. GUNTHER then made his way to the top rope but was eventually cut off by Miz, who hit him with a top rope Skull Crushing Finale, but because he was so out of it upon landing, he could not roll over into a pinfall attempt. GUNTHER got out of the ring, gathered his bearing, returned, and hit Miz with a powerbomb, a clothesline, and another powerbomb for the win.