– During a recent interview with Gorilla Position, former WWE Intercontinental Champion Gunther discussed Sami Zayn beating him to win the title at WrestleMania 40: Night 1. Below are some highlights (via Fightful):
Gunther on Sami Zayn being the right option to end his title reign: “I don’t think there was one right person. I think there would have been a few options. Chad is the other one that would have made a lot of sense. Sami is definitely one of those where it was ‘he’s the right guy to do it.’ He’s absolutely a fantastic professional wrestler.”
On Zayn’s connection with the fans: “He has the natural connection with the audience. He’s really the underdog that people can connect with and understand the struggle. It’s naturally the personality he is. He doesn’t look like the perfect athlete. That’s not who he is or ever was. That also adds to the people having a connection because basically nobody in our audience is a perfect person. It’s a very human thing to not be perfect. It’s very easy to connect with it and to go through those struggles with that person.”
On how good Zayn is in the ring: “On top of that, he’s fantastic in the ring and has been for years. To do the match with him at the biggest stage possible and go out in the biggest way possible, I was very happy with that. It was a very successful ending to that reign.”
Gunther held the title for 1,316 days, making him the longest reigning Intercontinental Champion in WWE history.
