Gunther has moved from King General to the World Heavyweight Champion, choking out Damian Priest to win his first major belt on Saturday night from the Cleveland Browns Stadium at SummerSlam.
Gunther and Priest put on a banger, with hard hitting action coming from both competitors across the match. Priest landed the South of Heaven chokeslam for an early two count, while Gunther connected on a powerbomb that couldn’t finish the job.
CHOP, DROP & ROLL!#SummerSlam pic.twitter.com/7cAdmssD9w
— WWE (@WWE) August 4, 2024
Priest landed another South of Heaven chokeslam, but as the referee’s hand counted to three, Finn Balor placed the challenger’s foot on the bottom rope. Priest saw the replay and turned to a menacing Balor, when Gunther grabbed him from behind in a chokehold.
WHY FINN WHY?!#SummerSlam pic.twitter.com/U4LCYuhUhu
— WWE (@WWE) August 4, 2024
Priest began to fade before fighting Gunther off, reaching under the bottom rope and choking Balor. Gunther pulled Priest off his former Judgement Day team member, powerbombed him, then put him to sleep with a chokehold.
The Judgment Day has IMPLODED!#SummerSlam pic.twitter.com/abJm0MOnwq
— WWE (@WWE) August 4, 2024
The win is Gunther’s first major championship win as part of the main roster and continues his rise into one of the top stars in wrestling. Priest’s loss comes after Dominik Mysterio cost Rhea Ripley a chance at the Women’s World Heavyweight championship, turning on Mami and aligning himself with Liv Morgan. If it wasn’t clear before, it seems like the Judgment Day is officially done.