Gunther (wrestler)

Walter Hahn (born 20 August 1987) is an Austrian professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he performs on the SmackDown brand under the ring name Gunther. He is a former two-time World Heavyweight Champion, and the longest reigning WWE Intercontinental and NXT United Kingdom champion in company history. Hahn first became known under the ring names Big Van Walter, Big Daddy Walter, and Walter during his tenure in Germany in Westside Xtreme Wrestling (wXw) and various German independent promotions. Early in his career, he competed in Japan for Big Japan Pro-Wrestling (BJW) and Pro Wrestling ZERO1 under the Big Van Walter gimmick, as well as the short-lived Gha-Cha-Ping. In wXw, he became a three-time wXw Unified World Wrestling Champion and a four-time wXw World Tag Team Champion. He was one of the promotion's most respected figures throughout his tenure, leading him to become the head trainer of the wXw Wrestling Academy from 2015 to 2020. He also became a popular figure on the British, Irish, and American independent circuits, competing in promotions such as Progress Wrestling, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG), and Over the Top Wrestling (OTT), where he held their respective world championships between 2018 and 2019. In 2018, Hahn signed with WWE and was assigned to its NXT UK brand, the British sister brand of its American developmental brand NXT. He established Imperium, the succeeding stable to the independent stable Ringkampf, which he founded in 2016. He soon won the NXT United Kingdom Championship against Pete Dunne, and held it for 870 days, the championship's longest reign and the eighth overall longest singles title reign for any WWE championship. In January 2022, he moved to the NXT brand, where his ring name was changed to Gunther. He moved to the main roster on the SmackDown brand three months later, winning the WWE Intercontinental Championship once and holding it for 666 days to set the record for both the longest singular reign with the title and the most cumulative days as champion, as well as the 10th longest singles championship reign of any WWE title. He later became the 24th King of the Ring and won the World Heavyweight Championship twice. He was the final opponent for Goldberg, John Cena, and AJ Styles in their retirement matches, defeating all three and earning the moniker of the "Career Killer".