Gunther has admitted that he’s glad he got to work with Vince McMahon, adding that he is, and always will be, a professional wrestler.
When Vince McMahon announced his retirement from WWE on July 22nd, Gunther had only been part of Friday Night SmackDown for a little over three months.
Although the star signed with the company back in 2019, his stints with NXT UK and NXT in the United States meant that his interactions with the now former WWE Chairman were few and far between.
Speaking during a recent interview with Chuck Bean of Nerdradio, the giant Austrian said that he was glad he got to work with McMahon before addressing his status as a professional wrestler. Following reports that talents were now allowed to use the term “wrestler,” Gunther caused a stir on social media with a post where he referred to himself as a “pro wrestling champion.”
However, the star says that he has always been a professional wrestler and the recent management change has done nothing to change that.
“I’m actually glad I got the chance to work with Vince a little bit. My time there and the few interactions we had, there weren’t that many. I’m kind of glad that happened so I still make the experience a little bit. Obviously, everybody was surprised by that. Whatever company, if somebody else is in charge, things are going to be done a little different. Everybody has their own approach.
I haven’t felt stressed or anything like that before, I always focused on myself, did myself, and that’s not going to change. From the tweet, there was big reactions and stuff, if you open my Twitter page or Instagram, it’s always said Berufsringer, the German word for professional wrestling. It’s always been in there.
Professional wrestling is a sports entertainment. It’s a sport that this there to entertain. It’s not a competitive sport. You can say one or the other way. I always refer to myself as a professional wrestler. Even in WWE, where the entertainment aspect is way higher compared to other places, at the end, when the bell rings, wrestling will never change. There has not been a memo or something where it’s like, ‘Hey guys, you can call yourself wrestlers again.’ I never stopped referring to myself as that,”
Gunther will be back in action at Clast At The Castle when he defends his Intercontinental Championship against Sheamus.
H/t to Fightful for the transcription.