At SummerSlam next month, Gunther will challenge The Judgement Day's Damian Priest for the World Heavyweight Championship.
Many fans have argued that the match isn't big enough, particularly when all signs point to the PLE being where the longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion will finally get his hands on a world title.
In a new interview, Gunther addressed the criticisms head-on. "I heard that too. People were like ‘Why is Seth not involved? Why is Drew not involved? Why is Punk not involved?’ On the other hand, it’s the same people that would complain that there are no new stars built, there’s no opportunities for other people than the usual ones."
"I feel going into a match with Priest, maybe the 2nd or 3rd biggest PLE in the company, it's just a testament for management right now, how it's important to them to feature new faces in those big roles and situations, and now it’s up to both of us to step up to it and fulfil the expectations or exceed them."
"So I am very happy it happened that way and from the view of a performer, it’s maybe a bigger challenge than being in there with Seth or Punk or Drew who is like a household name and I feel like Priest and I in our individual ways are becoming household names," he continued. "But I am looking forward to the challenge."
While it's true that this isn't the match many of us expected, WWE has made an effort to establish Priest as a viable champion and he's picked up victories over the likes of Jey Uso, Drew McIntyre, and Seth Rollins.
Plus, we can't fault WWE for giving us a match we haven't had before!
As for his recent absence from television, Gunther explained, "I’m a big fan of ‘less is more.’ It applies to many aspects of life. After winning King of the Ring, it was clear I’d be challenging for the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam. So, there wasn’t much need for me to be heavily involved before Money in the Bank."
"I had the luxury of sitting back and watching the drama with Judgment Day, Seth’s return, and all the chaos with Punk and Drew. It was quite amusing, and I enjoyed it."
We'd imagine Gunther will be on RAW tonight as SummerSlam is now rapidly approaching. You can check out the full interview with him below.