On the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer discussed Gunther losing to Trick Williams in a dark match after Monday’s Raw in Greenville, South Carolina. Meltzer noted that the loss could be related to Gunther refusing to travel to Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia.
Meltzer revealed that Gunther was set to wrestle Finn Balor at the show on Saturday in Riyadh. WWE even taped segments to build to the match, and the two were featured on promotional material at Riyadh Season Stadium, the show’s original venue. But after days of uncertainty, Gunther decided not to make the trip, and the match was pulled.
Meltzer added that Balor wasn’t excited about the trip either, but WWE was under the impression that he would go if Gunther agreed to.
Williams pinned Gunther clean with a spin kick followed by the Book End. Meltzer noted that the babyface is usually the winner in a dark match, but WWE will typically protect top stars like Gunther with a run-in and a DQ win.
“Gunther didn’t go,” Meltzer said. “The match was off. Gunther lost to Trick Williams tonight. Spin Kick, Book End, one two three. It’s possible this is all coincidental. It is possible because in a dark match, the babyface does go over. That’s the rule.”
“Usually with a guy at the level of Gunther, they’ll do a run-in and a DQ because they protect the top guys in these type of matches,” Meltzer added. “So there’s probably something to this, but that happened in Greenville tonight.”
Bryan Alvarez, who was also on the show, said he wasn’t aware of Gunther losing a singles dark match in WWE other than by DQ before Monday.
“So I would say that one way or the other, this is unusual,” Alvarez said.
Meanwhile, Williams is from Columbia, South Carolina, and a lot of fans see the United States Champion winning in front of a crowd in his home state as the main reason for the result.
But Gunther does not have a good record in non-televised matches in 2026. Cagematch lists him with a 10-22 record in those matches this year, so he has lost more than two-thirds of the 32 matches he has had.
Saturday’s Crown Jewel took place amid security concerns in the Middle East, and there were only four matches on the show.
It’s unclear how WWE will use Gunther heading into Survivor Series: WarGames, which takes place on November 28 at Daikin Park in Houston, Texas.