WWE Raw Predictions After SummerSlam: Big E Will Return To Challenge Gunther

WWE Raw is kickstarting its road to WWE PayBack 2023, which is expected to follow organically from their huge SummerSlam event. On this week’s episode of WWE Raw, neither matches nor segments are planned. Although SummerSlam was great with Iyo Sky’s memorable cash-in as well as amazing matches between Cody Rhodes and Brock Lesnar as well as Seth Rollins and Finn Balor, there were so many rumored returns that never came to fruition, such as Randy Orton, Bray Wyatt, The Rock, Goldberg, and especially Big E.

In other news regarding WWE Raw, it is expected that Rhea Ripley (c) vs. Raquel Rodriguez for the women’s title and Becky Lynch vs. Trish Stratus will continue since they were unceremoniously left off the SummerSlam card. Becky Lynch defeated Zoey Stark to get her rematch against Stratus, and Rodriguez will want revenge for Ripley’s vicious attacks on her tag partner, Liv Morgan. Since it is the Raw after SummerSlam, there could even be some NXT call-ups, such as Bron Breakker, Roxanne Perez, Wes Lee, and Cora Jade.

The following will focus on the idea of Big E returning to challenge Gunther on the road to WWE PayBack 2023.

WWE Raw is scheduled to take place on August 7, 2023, live on the USA Network, and Big E will return to challenge Gunther en route to PayBack.

WWE Raw will be at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, which is not only the hometown of Brock Lesnar but also the hometown of Chad Gable. Chad Gable told Gunther that he wants next for the IC Title once he is finished with Drew McIntyre at SummerSlam. This feud sparked after Gunther challenged Gable to last five minutes with him in the ring last week on Raw. It is likely that they will battle for the IC Title on this episode since Gable would get a huge pop from his hometown crowd and get some awesome near falls and close, nail-biting finishes on Gunther.

However, despite any fan’s dreams and appreciation for how good Gable truly is inside that squared circle, he is obviously not going to dethrone Gunther, especially since Gunther is only one month away from breaking Honky Tonk Man’s record. The man who is truly the biggest threat to Gunther’s title reign is Big E, who has been highlighted in many rumors lately. In fact, there was a major rumor about plans being in store for Big E to return, reignite the New Day-Imperium feud, and get a huge return title victory against Gunther to become the new Intercontinental Champion.

With that being said, Big E can truly make the mid-card on Raw something special. Since there were no returns at SummerSlam, maybe WWE did not want to overshadow Iyo Sky’s MITB cash-in and instead saved their big returns for the Raw after SummerSlam. Maybe Big E will blow the roof off the place, return with his brothers, Kofi Kingston, and Xavier Woods, and challenge Gunther to a dream match for the IC Title, the first title that Big E ever won in the WWE. Not only would this be a huge return for Big E but also be a great consolation prize for losing the WWE Title so abruptly.

More importantly, the IC Title has become so prestigious and taken more seriously with Gunther that it can actually be used as a beacon or token of advancement for Big E back into the main event scene, where he so rightfully belongs. And who knows? Maybe his dream match with Goldberg will even come true for the world title down the line. Goldberg has been looking for a retirement match, and Big E would want nothing more than a 30-min classic with Goldberg. The possibilities are endless on WWE Raw this week. Hopefully, WWE delivers here.

Although there are reports and rumors going around that the spine specialists recommended that Big E does not go back into the ring and relegate his involvement in WWE to commentary, Big E was on Family Feud with WWE talent and was even at SummerSlam this weekend checking out the new recruits. Also, he did say that he feels 100% after his debilitating neck injury. This is the closest he has ever been to an in-ring return, and there is still a glimmer of hope that he can make his way back to the squared circle. The fans will have to wait and find out.

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