Gunther reveals the reason for his weight loss during his call up to WWE‘s main roster.
In ascending from the WWE NXT brand to WWE’s main roster in 2022, Walter took on a new ring name, Gunther. The move also brought about a physical transformation, with “The Ring General” noticeably slimming down his physique.
During an interview with Enry Lazza, Gunther explained the motivation behind his weight loss: shaping the wider audience’s perception of him.
“I was the person I wanted to be a lot, because in my case I never felt uncomfortable before or anything, and my wrestling idols were butch-looking heavyweights from America that went to Japan and beat up all of the Japanese babyfaces and they were all, as they call it, barrel chested with a little bit of gut,” Gunther said (H/T WrestleTalk). “So I always had that romantic thing for those guys because I watched it a lot and liked it and I thought like, ‘Ah, (I’m) in that category, I’m one of them.’ But obviously in WWE, we’ve expanded so much and now with Netflix there’s such a different viewership on it that’s so much wider. So I thought that’s going to be necessary (his weight loss).
“So when I went to the main roster I made the call, like you know what it’s time to change it up because there’s a difference. Up until WWE, I only wrestled for hardcore wrestling fans that were die hards basically, and they can understand. But in reality, for the major public I would have looked like somebody out of shape and doesn’t look like a champion. So I knew I had to adjust it and find a way to still stay myself, but just give it a fresh look.”
Gunther first surfaced as a member of the NXT UK brand, in which he’d enjoy a record-setting reign as NXT UK Champion. His success continued on WWE’s main roster when he shattered another record with the WWE Intercontinental Championship. Following two reigns as World Heavyweight Champion, Gunther has now fixed his eyes on the one belonging to “The American Nightmare” Cody Rhodes, the Undisputed WWE Championship.
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