GUNTHER Puts Sami Zayn To Sleep, Retains World Heavyweight Title In WWE RAW Main Event

Sami Zayn vs. GUNTHER has become a fairly major rivalry in WWE over the last year. At WrestleMania 40, Zayn defeated his nemesis to become Intercontinental Champion, ending GUNTHER's historic 666-day reign, but their rivalry took on a new chapter after GUNTHER beat Damian Priest to win the World Heavyweight Championship. For weeks, the champion refused to give Zayn a shot at the gold; when he finally relented, the two men were the main event of the first two-hour "WWE Raw" in a very long time, and while Zayn once again put up a strong fight, this time GUNTHER was able to retain.

The match was a back-and-forth affair from the beginning, but it turned when Zayn hit the Helluva Kick on GUNTHER on the outside. Unable to win the title on the outside or via count-out, Zayn was eventually able to get the champion back in the ring, where he hit another Helluva Kick in the corner. He then went for a third one, however, and GUNTHER countered with a massive clothesline. From there, it became a matter of how much violence it would take to keep Zayn down — he kicked out of the clothesline, kicked out of a powerbomb at one, and even kept his arm in the air while locked in a sleeper hold. Zayn's fingers were inches away from touching the rope and breaking the hold when GUNTHER dragged him back into a grapevine position. Even then, Zayn never tapped, passing out in the champion's grip instead.

The victory means GUNTHER will face Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes for the newly announced Crown Jewel Championship at the titular Crown Jewel event in Saudi Arabia next month. After the match, Rhodes' music hit and he came out to stare down his counterpart as "Raw" went off the air.