Drew McIntyre Returns, Attacks GUNTHER

Drew McIntyre returned at WWE Money in the Bank 2023 to confront GUNTHER following GUNTHER’s rather quick Intercontinental Championship win over Riddle.

McIntyre has not appeared on WWE programming since WrestleMania 39, where he had an instant classic Triple Threat match against GUNTHER and Sheamus. The contest was a match of the year contender, and may have even been the greatest Triple Threat match of all time.

During McIntyre’s hiatus, some even speculated that Drew McIntyre may be on his way out of WWE after the top star went dark on Twitter. The WWE announce team acknowledged these rumors, with Michael Cole even plainly stating “the rumors of Drew McIntyre’s demise are not true.”

After being serenaded with sing-song “Drew McIntyre” chants, McIntyre hit a headbutt on GUNTHER followed by a Claymore. McIntyre’s Intercontinental Championship chase will be an interesting one with GUNTHER on the verge of making history as the longest-reigning Intercontinental champion on September 6, 2023.

For both WWE and McIntyre, the timing couldn’t be any better for a fresh top star to come back into the fold. Though WWE’s roster is very deep, its main event picture is quite thin on both Raw and SmackDown. SmackDown has given up on creating any new challengers outside of the Bloodline—as Reigns continues to enjoy a title reign with zero world title defenses in the past three months—while Raw has masked its lack of WWE World Heavyweight Title challengers through open challenges. But McIntyre doesn’t have his sights set on any of the world titles as he vies to stop GUNTHER, which at this point is just as good.

WWE is also negotiating its latest television deal, where WWE President Nick Khan anticipates a 150% increase. With a star the level of McIntyre’s caliber, WWE television will remain fresh and ratings can expect to continue to soar this summer headed into SummerSlam, not like that was a concern in the first place.

The Triple H Era has struggled with his countless returning stars, however Vince McMahon-era holdovers such as Cody Rhodes, GUNTHER, Seth Rollins, Bianca Belair, Asuka and many others have thrived under Triple H’s leadership, which prioritizes long-term storytelling.

Through McIntyre and GUNTHER, WWE will be able to tell the long-term story of whether or not GUNTHER’s marathon Intercontinental Championship reign will continue into the annals of history. There are not many current WWE Superstars who will serve as a convincing history-stopper, but a returning McIntyre is on the short list.