We’re a month away from WrestleMania, and a few of WWE’s biggest stars still don’t have a clear path to The Showcase Of The Immortals. Gunther, arguably a top five star in the entire company, doesn’t have an obvious ‘Mania direction, and if the rumors are to be believed, it’s because he was going to work with Rey Mysterio, who might not be cleared in time. If the legendary luchador can be healthy next month, that should absolutely be WWE’s plan, but if he’s going to be out, I’d like to propose a new path.
Gunther’s current storyline has seen him retire three different legends: Goldberg, John Cena and AJ Styles. Rey Mysterio is the obvious next candidate on that list, given he’s also a Hall of Famer and crowd favorite who is likely ready to leave his boots in the ring. Brock Lesnar and Randy Orton fit that same bill, but both of them have more in the tank and other storylines for this year’s ‘Mania. No one else on the current roster jumps out as an obvious choice, but perhaps there’s someone not on the current roster who does.
I propose Gunther issues an open challenge to any wrestling legend to come face him at this year’s ‘Mania. Fans would have a great time speculating about who might show up, and there are plenty of past favorites who we know can still go if called upon. It’s hard to imagine someone like Rob Van Dam or Jeff Hardy wouldn’t jump at the chance to get another WrestleMania match. They would only need to work for about five minutes or so. Maybe we could book in a hope spot to get the fans excited and then they’d ultimately succumb to an onslaught from Gunther.
I’m not a fan of big stars missing WrestleMania if they’re healthy. It’s the annual show most likely to be rewatched decades from now, and keeping someone off the card because there’s not the ideal match in play for them just doesn't make sense. Ten years from now, if someone watches WrestleMania 42, they’re going to expect to see Gunther. He should be on the card, even if it’s not in the most exciting match in the world. Aura farming in a big moment is a lot better than being absent.
Last year as an example, Randy Orton gave us a quick beatdown of Joe Hendry that was a lot of fun. It got him on the card and gave Hendry the biggest stage of his career. At WrestleMania 39, Brock Lesnar made quick work of Omos, and after watching him lose to Roman the year before, it was a great way to get him an easy and dominant win. There are tons of examples throughout ‘Mania’s history. I have vivid memories of being a little kid and watching The Hart Foundation roll Nikolai Volkoff and Boris Zhukov in like thirty seconds at WrestleMania 6.
Yes, there are performers on WWE’s roster who could give Gunther a better match than whichever legend answers the open challenge. Many on social are calling for Penta. They’d no doubt have a match of the night banger, but that would mean Gunther either needs to lose or win The Intercontinental Championship again, which feels like a step back in his career. I don’t want that.
Gunther needs to be on the WrestleMania card. The AEW move would be to find the best possible wrestler without a match and go let them cook. There’s some validity to that. The WWE move, however, feels like finding a way to let him continue his current storyline, and the best way to do that is by bringing in a legend from the past.
