The Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes kicked off the May 1 edition of Friday Night SmackDown with his promo. The American Nightmare spoke about what’s next for him as the titleholder and announced that he has been medically cleared to compete. His promo was cut short by Ricky Saints, who laid a challenge for The Prodigal Son.

Rhodes, a fighting champion, accepted the challenge to face Saints that night, and a non-title match was booked between the real-life friends.

Later, the same night, The American Nightmare and Ricky locked horns in a singles match which was techicanal battle and the chesmity between Saints and Rhodes on a different level, the ending of the match was also creative, when Cody managed to turn former NXT Champion’s Razor’s Edge move into his own Cross Rhodes and sealed a clean win over the newest member of blue brand, welcoming him in the big league.

However, that wasn’t the shock: the Prodigal Son was celebrating his big win over Ricky when Gunther jumped the American Nightmare from behind, putting him into his signature Sleeper Choke, making the Champion unconscious in the middle of the ring. Then, The Ring General locked his eyes on the Undisputed WWE Championship and showed it to the crowd, showing his true urge to capture the strap.

In this listicle, we will explore three reasons why Gunther attacked Cody and why he is next in line for the Undisputed Championship.

#4. Randy Orton may be unfit

The Orton-Rhodes saga is nowhere to end, as their main-event match at WrestleMania Saturday ended with a cliffhanger, where, despite losing clean to the Prodigal Son, The Apex Predator snapped and took his protege out with a Punt Kick and also snapped at Pat McAfee, clearly hinting that he is not with Cody.

However, rumors circulated that Orton was injured heading into the match, which also contributed to his failure to win the title. Now, WWE putting Gunther in the Undisputed WWE Championship mix may have subtly confirmed that the rumors may be true. There is a massive chance that The Apex Predator is unfit, as he hasn’t been on television since the Showcase of the Immortals, and now the Ring General has officially replaced him in the feud with Rhodes for now, at least.

#3. To eliminate the predictability from the WWE product

Since Triple H and his creative regime have taken over WWE’s creatives, in their efforts to make the product even more engaging, they also always try to pull off unexpected moves; the Orton and Rhodes saga being directly kicked off again post-Mania was predictable.

Hence, to eliminate predictability, The Game and team crafted a new angle, pitting Gunther against The Prodigal Son, possibly saving Orton vs. Rhodes for a bigger maybe at SummerSlam 2026.

#2. Gunther needed something major

The Ring General is on a massive run and has gained major momentum by retiring three legends, Goldberg, John Cena, and AJ Styles, in a row over the course of months. At WrestleMania 42, he beat Seth Rollins after Bron Breakker intervened and punished The Visionary.

Therefore, he indeed needed something bigger, and if by any chance Orton is out, there could be no better name than The Career Killer to replace him, as he needs a big storyline to justify his major push.

That being said, it will be interesting to see where Gunther-Cody goes next in the coming weeks.

#1. Title defense at WWE Backlash

The first PLE after WrestleMania, the Stamford-based promotion is set to host is Backlash Tampa, and the World Heavyweight Champion, Roman Reigns, has already booked to defend his strap against his cousin, Jacob Fatu.

The company may also need to defend its title at the Premium Live Event, and with Randy’s in-ring status probably hanging in doubt, WWE may have replaced him with Gunther to place him on the card.