Gunther To Defend Intercontinental Championship At Money In The Bank

IC champ puts title on the line against new rival who has been thorn in Imperium's side.

By Scott Carlson /

WWE

Gunther will put his yearlong Intercontinental Championship reign on the line this Saturday at Money in the Bank against Matt Riddle, accepting the Original Bro's challenge Monday night on Raw.

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The Ring General hasn't backed down from any challenger, but that also hasn't stopped him from taking steps to gain an upper hand. Imperium has seen Riddle as a threat to the IC title in recent weeks, attempting to soften him up through attacks, including one last week where Gunther and Ludwig Kaiser targeted his ankle. They zeroed in on the injury again Monday night, blindsiding Riddle before accepting his challenge.

A Riddle/Gunther match could be a show-stealer at this weekend's PLE, with the contrasting attitudes and styles potentially providing the best kind of conflict. Riddle's MMA background could mesh really well with Gunther's stiff strikes.

However, Riddle's injured ankle could be WWE tipping its hand that this late addition to the card is going to be more of a setup for a rematch at SummerSlam than the match itself. We'll have to wait and see how Saturday's match goes first.

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During his yearlong reign, Gunther has defeated the likes of Sheamus, Shinsuke Nakamura, Ricochet, Braun Strowman, Mustafa Ali and Drew McIntyre.