4 mistakes WWE should avoid making with Gunther's Intercontinental Championship run
WWE has not invested much time in making its Intercontinental Championship meaningful in the last two decades.
Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, this was a title that was given as much prominence as the World Championship, and the performers that held it often went on to do great things within the company and the industry as a whole.
With Gunther winning the Intercontinental Championship from Ricochet on SmackDown, the company finally has a performer that has the potential to make the title credible again.
His long and dominating championship run in NXT UK has set him up nicely to do the same on the main roster. This is particularly important now, as the Bloodline holds the majority of the men's titles and Roman Reigns is rumored to be working on a reduced schedule.
Now is the time to elevate the secondary championships like the Intercontinental title so that fans can have some meaningful matches to look forward to.
This article outlines four common mistakes that WWE tends to make with the Intercontinental Championship that they must avoid if they wish to give Gunther a meaningful run with the title.
#4. WWE should not book Gunther to lose non-title matches
A classic formula that WWE uses when building to Intercontinental Championship matches is to have a potential challenger pin the champion either in tag team matches or in a non-title bout.
The most recent example of this booking was with Ricochet, as he lost several non-title matches during his reign to superstars such as Angel, Humberto and Theory. Another example is Apollo Crews, who lost a televised non-title match to Big E prior to dropping the championship.
Gunther is not the performer they should employ that strategy with. There are other ways for a challenger to earn a title opportunity without pinning the champion outright.
WWE could book the challenger to go on a journey of facing and defeating other contenders before he faces Gunther. This will not only produce interesting matches as the challenger moves up the ranks, but it will also make the title match mean more when it finally happens.
#3. WWE should not turn Gunther babyface
WWE is in need of babyfaces that fans want to cheer for and heels that they want to hate. In Gunther's case, he is best suited as a heel; however, there is a portion of the fanbase that cheers him because of his style and aggressiveness.
Despite Gunther's popularity, the company needs to stay the course and present him as the monster heel that fans want to see defeated. In order for this to work, they'll need to invest the time and effort to build babyface challengers that the fans want to see overcome the odds.
Putting Gunther in this role would limit the potential of how far he could take this run.
#2. WWE should not have Gunther defend the title on television too often
Another common practice is to have the Intercontiental Champion defend the title on television with little to no storyline build.
For example, during both Ricochet's and Nakamura's reigns, title defenses were often added to SmackDown or Premium Live Event pre-shows suddenly against lower-level talent that the company had not invested a lot of time in. These matches were often forgettable and did little to elevate the title.
To make these matches credible, they should limit Gunther's in-ring exposure on SmackDown and have his defenses be reserved for the monthly Premium Live Events. Take the time to tell a story, establish a challenger and build anticipation for the match.
Additionally, if they're going to be added to these shows, they should be presented on the main card and not relegated to the pre-show. If built properly and Gunther is positioned as well as he has been in the past, the championship could potentially be the main event of a premium show down the road.
#1. WWE should give Gunther a long title reign
In the past, the company has gotten into the habit of moving the title on and off its talent quickly. By doing this, it devalues the title and doesn't serve to build the champion.
Gunther has built his reputation through a long run as NXT UK Champion. Give him that same kind of run on the main roster with credible challengers that he can defeat. The performers, the championship, the company and the fans will be better off for it.
For example, having him hold the title for a year or longer will build anticipation to see who will finally dethrone him. Secondly, even though he will eventually drop the title, a long reign against top contenders will immediately establish him as a main event talent who can easily transition into the main title picture.
Finally, whoever beats him for the title gains instant credibility and can go on to have his own solid run.