Gunther Breaks the Record, The Bloodline Better on Red Brand and More WWE Raw Takes

Gunther will now be the longest-reigning intercontinental champion of all time.Credit: WWE.com.

On the back of a successful Payback, the September 4 edition of WWE Raw in the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina featured an awesome Intercontinental Championship match between Gunther and Chad Gable as well as the arrival of Jey Uso.

Gunther defeated his most competitive challenger to date to solidify his legacy, guaranteeing that he will break the 454-day record to become the longest reigning IC champion in history.

Cody Rhodes facilitated the trade of Jey to the red brand, and Main Event made an immediate impression. He and Sami Zayn reunited as friends while The Judgment Day began trying to bring him over to their cause.

Zoey Stark and Shayna Baszler fought for the second time, but after The Queen of Spades won, the two bonded over their shared toughness.

The feud of The New Day vs. The Viking Raiders vs. Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle continues to form the foundation of the Raw tag team division. Erik and Ivar picked up another big win over The Scottish Warrior and The Original Bro.

This show was high energy, relying upon some major stories that continue to grow on the red brand each week.

Jey Uso has truly become a star. He opened Raw to a raucous ovation from the crowd and instantly reconnected with Sami Zayn to continue the best dynamic from The Bloodline angle.

Jey and Zayn together is still magic. Both are now feuding with The Judgment Day in their own way, which will put them in the most important spotlight on Raw. The Bloodline angle is new again on the red brand.

This is happening while The Bloodline saga struggles to stay relevant on SmackDown. Roman Reigns has yet to return to television, while Solo Sikoa has connected as a headlining act on his own. Jimmy Uso does not have his footing yet as a solo act.

The blue brand has heavily relied upon the group as its top act, raising TV ratings consistently. While the red brand will not feature The Tribal Chief, Jey's jump to Raw is bigger than anything Reigns, Sikoa and Jimmy will do for the rest of 2023.

Something big could come of Jey's move, as a major name is expected to go to SmackDown as trade compensation, but Raw is the hottest brand at the moment.

The men's tag team division has struggled in 2023 despite the consistently strong champions at the top. The problem has been a lack of depth in spite of talent across Raw and SmackDown.

The New Day's absence for much of this year has been a major blow to the division. Luckily, Kofi Kingston is back from an ankle injury, so he and Xavier Woods have gotten back to top competition.

The first story for them has been a steadily building feud with Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle as well as The Viking Raiders. While The Scottish Warrior and The Original Bro slowly learn to work together, Erik and Ivar have picked up a string of wins.

The value of all three teams has risen in this rivalry. That has made the entire Raw tag team division matter more as well. Hopefully, this will only continue until all three are legitimate challengers for The Judgment Day.

Zoey Stark and Shayna Baszler have relied upon legends in the past to raise their own stake.

Stark broke up her team with Trish Stratus at Payback on Saturday, while The Queen of Spades emphatically ended her own friendship with Ronda Rousey at SummerSlam.

This sets them both up to work together and hopefully become positive influences for each other. Stark and Baszler have a similar mean streak that could make them a formidable team.

Both women could be in title contention soon, but the championship scene has not cleared up for them. The best way to keep them both relevant is to pair them up.

They can work together to build a winning streak. If they choose to go after the WWE Women's Tag Team Championships, Chelsea Green and Piper Niven would be in serious trouble.

Even if they focus on capturing the Women's World Championship, they will look like more legitimate opponents for Rhea Ripley by working together.

WWE has broken title records left and right in in the last couple years, but none feel as important as Gunther's Intercontinental Championship run.

While most expected The Ring General to do well in WWE, few expected him to dominate this much after his SmackDown debut in April 2022. His reign has been even more impressive than his NXT UK Championship run.

Gunther's current reign is the best title reign in modern WWE history. It even eclipses the record-setting run of Roman Reigns.

While The Tribal Chief has held the Universal Championship longer, Gunther has already defended his title 63 times, including at live events. Reigns has only defended his title 51 times since his win in 2020.

In his 450-plus-day reign as champion, The Ring General has put on some of the best matches in WWE. His battles with Chad Gable, Sheamus, Drew McIntyre, Ricochet, Shinsuke Nakamura and more have been showstoppers.

No matter when he loses his belt after breaking the record, he will have redefined the legacy of the Intercontinental Championship. While WWE has a talented roster, it's hard to believe anyone will have a better reign for a long time.