During the June 9 edition of WWE RAW, Gunther captured the World Heavyweight Championship for a second time by defeating Jey Uso. The decision behind the title change has since been clarified, pointing to a strategic plan orchestrated by Paul “Triple H” Levesque to elevate an upcoming premium live event.
According to a report from Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the title was moved to Gunther specifically so that his planned match against Goldberg could be contested for the championship. The bout is scheduled for the July 12 broadcast of Saturday Night’s Main Event, which notably airs on the same day as AEW’s All In Texas. By making the contest a World Heavyweight Championship match, WWE aims to create a major attraction on free network television to directly compete with the rival event.
Meltzer elaborated on the long-term planning involved in the decision, noting that the encounter with Goldberg was always intended to be the legend’s retirement match and was positioned to maximize viewership.
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Gunther beat Jey Uso to win the World title on the 6/9 Raw show in Phoenix. It was confirmed to us the reason this happened is because Paul Levesque made the call to make Gunther vs. Bill Goldberg on 7/12’s Saturday Night’s Main Event a title match, likely since it was going on the same day as All In Texas. Gunther vs. Goldberg was always going to be the retirement match and it was always going against All in Texas and on NBC, with the idea of maximizing that day with the big match not on Netflix but on free network TV.
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The championship victory on WWE RAW was a rematch from WrestleMania 41, which took place on April 19, where Uso had ended Gunther’s initial 258-day reign. In their latest encounter, Gunther exploited an injury to Uso’s midsection, which his opponent had sustained just two days prior at Money in the Bank. The match concluded when Gunther applied a sleeper hold, causing Uso to pass out and prompting a referee stoppage. This win makes Gunther the first two-time holder of the championship since its introduction in May 2023, ending Uso’s reign at 51 days.
Following his victory, a confident Gunther appeared on the Raw Recap podcast on June 10, giving his first interview as the new champion and discussing his successful strategy to reclaim the title.
The next chapter in this storyline is expected to unfold quickly, as Goldberg is scheduled to make his return to WWE television on the June 16 episode of WWE RAW. His appearance is anticipated to be a direct confrontation with Gunther, officially kicking off the build to their high-stakes championship match.
READ MORE: WWE Veteran Weighs In On Whether Jey Uso Is ‘Buried’ After Gunther Loss
