Early Life
Walter Hahn was born on August 20, 1987, in Vienna, Austria. Not much is known about his upbringing. Walter has said that he has been a wrestling fan his entire life, however, he did not have any favorite superstars in particular. Instead, he was drawn to the aura of the sport itself and decided to try his hand at it.
Independent Wrestling Career
Walter made his pro wrestling debut for the German promotion Westside Xtreme Wrestling on May 4, 2007. On October 2, 2010, Walter won his first title for the company by defeating Zack Sabre Jr. to win the wXw Unified World Wrestling Championship.
As time went on, Walter began to branch out to different independent promotions across the globe. He competed in promotions like Big Japan Pro Wrestling, and Progress Wrestling in the United Kingdom.
During his time in Progress Wrestling, Walter became the leader of his first faction, Ringkampf. The group comprised of himself, Axel Dieter Jr., and Timothy Thatcher. At Progress Chapter 74, Walter defeated Travis Banks to become Progress World Champion, cementing his rank as one of the most dominant wrestlers on the independent scene.
In 2017, Walter began competing in American promotions such as Evolve and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla. American fans were awestruck by the Ring General’s prowess. On April 21, 2018, Walter conquered yet another wrestling promotion by winning the PWG World Championship.
WWE UK Championship Reign
Walter made his WWE debut at NXT UK TakeOver: Blackpool by confronting the WWE UK Champion Pete Dunne. He made his in-ring debut a few weeks later by winning a squash match. Then, at NXT TakeOver: New York, Walter defeated Pete Dunne to become the WWE UK Champion.
What followed was one of the most dominant title reigns in WWE history, second only perhaps to those of Bruno Sammartino and Roman Reigns. Walter defended his championship against stars like Travis Banks, Tyler Bate, A-Kid (AKA Axiom), and Tommaso Ciampa.
During his time in NXT UK, Walter formed his second faction, Imperium, alongside Fabian Aichner (Giovanni Vinci) and Marcel Barthel (Ludwig Kaiser).
On August 22, 2021, at NXT TakeOver 36, Ilja Dragunov defeated Walter in a critically acclaimed bout, bringing Walter’s historic reign to an end at an astounding 870 days.
The Ring General In NXT
Following the loss of his WWE United Kingdom Championship, Walter crossed the pond and began competing on the American brand of NXT alongside his Imperium stablemates.
On the January 18, 2022, episode of NXT, Walter defeated Roderick Strong and then revealed his new ring name to the WWE universe: Gunther. The decision was met with immediate disapproval from fans, but eventually the name stuck.
Intercontinental Championship Reign
During the April 8, 2022 episode of Smackdown, Gunther and Ludwig made their main roster debut. Gunther was immediately presented as a destructive, unstoppable force in WWE. On June 10, Gunther defeated Ricochet to become the WWE Intercontinental Champion.
At Clash at the Castle on September 3, 2022, Ludwig and Gunther reunited with Giovanni Vinci to reform Imperium.
Gunther’s reign as Intercontinental Champion has arguably surpassed his UK Championship reign in terms of prestige and dominance. Gunther has defended his Intercontinental Championship against stars like Sheamus, Drew McIntyre, Rey Mysterio, Braun Strowman, and several others.
On the September 4, 2023, episode of Raw, Gunther defeated Chad Gable to ensure that he would become the longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion in WWE history, surpassing The Honky Tonk Man’s record of 454 days.