WWE SmackDown Superstar Gunther continues to impress officials.
A new report from Fightful Select notes that Gunther has impressed many “people of influence” in WWE, but that’s nothing new. Gunther has had plenty of supporters within WWE for a while, going back to his record WWE NXT UK Title reign, but word now is that many things have kept the former WALTER in favor with WWE.
Gunther reportedly received high marks for his move to the United States, and his dedication to diet and training.
It was no secret that WWE wanted Gunther to move to the United States for a few years until he made the move a few months back after different factors in his personal life changed. Gunther has also trimmed down in recent months, and there’s been a feeling within WWE that being willing to move to the United States and getting into better shape was a good sign for his future.
WWE had plans for Gunther’s main roster move from when he first moved to the United States. They knew the call-up would eventually happen, but the Imperium split in NXT 2.0 was abrupt. Marcel Barthel came to SmackDown with Gunther as Ludwig Kaiser, while Fabian Aichner has been re-packaged into Giovanni Vinci, who will debut next Tuesday night.
It was also said that Gunther’s willingness to “play ball” and make the best out of his move, his lifestyle changes, and even his new name were all said to have made great impressions on WWE officials, especially the name change as not everyone has been willing to change their ring names.
While Gunther has several higher-up supporters within the company, word is that WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon is enjoying his in-ring work on the SmackDown brand, based on what he’s seen of it as of late.
Tonight’s SmackDown on FOX will see Gunther challenge WWE Intercontinental Champion Ricochet, with the title on the line. This comes after Gunther’s two SmackDown wins over Drew Gulak in May, and last week’s SmackDown where he and Kaiser defeated Ricochet and Gulak in tag team action.
It will be interesting to see if the strong internal praise for Gunther translates to his first main roster title reign with a win over Ricochet tonight.
Stay tuned to WrestlingHeadlines.com for more.
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