[0.0] "This is a terrible match that is absolutely completely unnecessary. Obviously we knew that Gunther was going to win but was the point of this? I find it difficult to have any praise for this match and it increasingly shows TKO greed for the wrestling product that they offer. How can Gunther tap out John Cena who in the eyes of WWE is the goat and tap out AJ Styles who is another goat level wrestler but cannot tap out a commentator. Embarrasing."
[0.0] "Dude, Gunther can tap out someone who never gives up, but he can't tap out a commentator? Triple H had to be crazy levels of drunk with how he booked Gunther at this time. With no context it's a whatever match but once you do get the context it's God awful. It looks even worse when you realize they weren't trying to bury him and they were simply being idiotic as usual. As Keith Lee once said, If what I'm hearing is true, poor Walter."
[9.0] "It's just unbelievable how underrated this match is. In essence, this match had a powerful story that didn't need 1000 moves to be great. It was a commentator vs. a former world champion so the outcome was obvious from the start. It felt like Pat jumping out of a plane without a parachute. But the fact that he was doing it for the advice of a friend added meaning and every successful move felt like a personal victory."
[7.0] "This match was very solid, much better than Gunther's mania match & the fact so many people bitched about how this went despite Gunther dominating the whole match besides two minutes is pathetic"
[2.0] "This was down right terrible, this should have never happened and since it did, it 100% should have been an squash match where Gunther just beat MacAfee for the whole match and didn't let Pat get any offense in, it was way closer to 50/50 than it needed to be. The Booking for Gunther around this time was genuinely despicable. (1.0*)"
[0.0] "An unnecessary match. For me, it shouldn't even have existed, but since this 'great idea' went ahead, they could at least have had Gunther beat the other guy in seconds. Stupidity once again -- congratulations, WWE. I don't know what else to write, but Cagematch only accepts my rating if I write 400 characters, so once again: a waste of a great wrestler in this kind of nonsense made for casual fans."
[3.0] "Gunther, needing momentum after losing to Jey Uso of all people at WrestleMania, is booked to fight against a celebrity commentator? Like, I'm glad it was just a long, drawn out squash match and Gunther winning was never in doubt, but this being on a PPV and Gunther's first feud post WrestleMania when he needed to regain steam the most made this feel like a humiliation ritual."
[3.0] "This was just a waste of Gunther's talent. The in ring work wasn't really terrible, it was just a long squash match, McAfee didn't stand a chance and Gunther obviously won. The problem is this didn't need to be on the PLE card and why Gunther couldn't face anybody else. He needed momentum after looking weak at WrestleMania."
[3.0] "Gunther was WORLD champion a month ago, he lost against JEY USO by submission which made him lose a lot of credibility, but what they do to him in this fight, he is fighting against a COMMENTATOR, Pat McAfee looked like Super Cena in this fight, he held on until the end and gave a very close fight to Gunther who was world champion a month ago and intercontinental champion for 2 YEARS, extremely dominant, and Pat endures everything Gunther did to him. Not a single logic and poor and humiliating booking for Gunther"
[4.0] "I don't even know what to say about this, honestly. I'm glad McAfee wasn't a convincing threat to GUNTHER, but this just dragged for so long. This should have been, like, five minutes, in my opinion. I don't know. Maybe it's because I don't like McAfee, but this was just boring for the most part."
[5.0] "This wasn't terrible in my opinion but was easily the worst match of the night. Gunther didn't have to do too much here though I'm very glad he went over here, as losing to McAfee would have been brutal for a character that has been booked like Gunther throughout his entire WWE run. Pat has certainly had better matches than this and this one seemed pretty uninspired and somewhat dull. Solid 2 stars."
[6.0] "I'm so glad Pat didn't shockingly won because it would'vebeen the end of my ring general. It was a fun showcase match. I enjoyed it. It served its purpose"
[1.0] "This match was a complete misfire from the start. Putting Pat McAfee in a singles match against Gunther on a major show was a baffling decision. There was no tension, no realism, and no real offense from McAfee that felt credible. The pacing was flat, the crowd was silent, and Gunther looked like he was going through the motions. An embarrassing booking choice that helped no one and wasted valuable PPV time."
[2.0] "This match dragged on too long, made Gunther look weak, and just was not fun. It had no reason to be longer than Dom vs. Penta. The story could've been told in under 10 minutes. Pat getting out of Gunther's sleeper was awful. Many other wrestlers deserved this time."
[5.0] "Looking back on this match, it was still a fun watch, just seeing Pat getting his ass whooped was fun, but Gunther deserved a better match than this. Pat got offense, which was fine, but this should've just been a few minute match, not 14 minutes. Micheal Coles inclusion was also funny and stupid. Still loved this for how dumb and fun it was, but as a wrestling match, this was unnecessary."
[0.0] "I cannot fathom how anyone could watch this match (or anything Pat McAfee has been involved in) and not want to kill themselves after because of how fucking horrible it was. Pat McAfee isn't a wrestler; he isn't even a commentator; he is just an annoying grifter with a massive ego who has to make himself involved in everything and anything he can force himself into. This "storyline" was complete idiocracy; nobody gives a fuck about Pat and Michael Cole. It has been abundantly clear that Triple K does not understand wrestling whatsoever. This whole "feud" was a failure at creating any other emotion besides irritation. Michael Cole and Pat McAfee are possibly some of the worst actors I have ever seen; both men are completely unlikable and untalented. Words cannot describe just how horrible this (and almost everything else in WWE) is. WWE is legitimately trying to kill professionally wrestling."
[3.0] "I think what frustrates me about this match is the storytelling that is fundamental to this matchup. Pat McAfee, despite being a former NFL player, has not been portrayed in the WWE as a tough guy. In fact, it's been the opposite - he's positioned to be a lovable goofball as a commentator. As a result, seeing him trying to toughen up against Gunther, the most intimidating wrestler in the business, fails to land with me whatsoever. I believe this match did nothing for Gunther's stock, and did nothing for Pat McAfee either. This match is a non-story that attempts to be a story."
[6.0] "Have seen a fair amount of criticism of this one and whilst it was a bit longer than necessary I thought it was generally effective. Whilst some of Pats comebacks were a little much all the points it was a "legit contest" Gunther wiped the floor with Pat as he should. Some effective false finish hope spots for Pat were all after interference or antics. A solid affair that did Gunther little harm and made Pat look somewhat credible. ***1/4"
[5.0] "I thought it would be worse, but it surprised me because Pat tried hard to do some moves and for someone who is not a full-time wrestler I thought it was decent. The purpose of this match for me was to put Gunther back as a threat after that tragedy at Mania."
[0.0] "This match is a disgrace to wrestling. It was way too long, the content in the ring was boring and lame, there's nothing to salvage from it. What shocked me the most in this match was the resistance of Pat McAfee who is supposed to be a commentator, remember at WrestleMania, Gunther gave up in two seconds on a submission hold that Jey Uso had never done before, do we agree? Well, how come Pat McAfee resists that same submission hold when Gunther is an expert at it? As well as not ending up passed out he got up from it. Anyway, once again Gunther comes across as a clown, but it's becoming a habit."
[6.0] "To be honest, this match exceeded my expectations. It was fun and did its job on the card. The big problem, though, is that with only 5 matches on the PLE, this was one of them. That said, it was quite fun and, surprisingly, it wasn't the worst match of the show."
[5.0] "It went on for way too long, but they still did a fine job considering the circumstances. Pat's work has been pretty meh and watching him run the ropes was honestly painful. That said, they pulled off some phenomenal hope spots that Gunther shut down immediately, which got great reactions from a crowd that was into it from the start."
[5.0] "While I don't think this did anything for Gunther, I do think the mini story between Pat and Cole was entertaining, I genuinely thought Cole helped Pat win at one point which I think would've made more sense as a finish. We knew Pat would get squashed and he did even when Cole helped him cheat. We already knew Gunther was powerful but fighting commentary doesn't make that point any clearer at all. Also wish we would've seen weapons involved. Still a solid match beyond the overall strange story arc."
[4.0] "Gunther taps to his own finisher against Jey freaking Uso but Pat McAfee is tough enough to hold on till he passes out? This kind of garbage is why I have a really tough time watching the current product"
"No matter how much people try to convince me Pat McAfee is a great athlete, he's first and foremost a commentator. It's unacceptable for an ex WWE World Champion not to defeat a guy like that in under five minutes, especially since Gunther isn't a comedy character. Pat escaped Gunther's hold but eventually lost consciousness and lost via referee decision. The match made Pat look strong but for what? Many complained that Gunther looked weak in and after the match against Jey Uso, but Jey is no loser; he's the man to pin Roman Reigns, probably twice. So who exactly is Pat McAfee that Gunther couldn't handle him in a couple of minutes? It wasn't really a match, so there is need in giving this any points"
[2.0] "fued does nothing for either men involved, the fact that this takes up a spot on the card is kind of pathetic and a slap in the face to everyone trying to work towards a spotlight, context aside, the match was very uninteresting, mcafee botched the first real move he attempted and the rest of the match was flooded by cole screaming"
[5.0] "Probably better than I expected it to be, despite still not being great. I had no real issue with any of the work until Pat took for ever to pass out in the sleeper, no need for that."
[0.0] "Some of the most ridiculous stories WWE has had the rennet to put on work (and there arent few examples exactly). Gunther has fall from a cliff since he won the King of the Ring tournament and is involve in incongruent spots for somebody of her caliber. Pat MacAfee is atrocious as a commentator he is equaly abhorrent inside the ropes. We are suppose to care about her love for Michael Cole and how he stood up for his friend but, come on, nobody can care. Or some have given the notes ans reaction that causes. ? And Gunther offers the hannd at the end? Please get out of here. F··· this. Levels of Cole vs Lawler achieved."
[2.0] "This match was utterly terrible. The only thing that could have made it worse is if McAfee had actually won. I don't think people understand what the problem is here. Gunther had nothing to gain and everything to lose. And please, explain to me what the point was of this match being 15 minutes long."
[8.0] "This was a good match and absolutely underrated. The selling was excellent, the story is great, and Pat did very good. Gunter looked like a killer here. People who complain about match going 15 minutes... Did you even watch it? The whole story was that Gunter could have ended the match early, but chose to play with him. Only that allowed Pat to have some moments, of which there were few."
[4.0] "I'm so torn on this one. On one hand, watching it live I had a good time, you have a good enough story with Pat defending Michael Cole from Gunther, but I don't care for announcer storylines at all. Everything they did was fine and got the crowd going really well, and they tried to retcon it after the fact that Gunther was just messing with Pat and not taking him seriously, but him taking 15 minutes to beat an announcer(granted one that has been shown to be trained, but still) really just doesn't sit well with me. I know Gunther needed a program to get his heat back but I just don't think this was it. Idea is an A+, but it's a typical WWE problem where a match that should only be about 5-6 minutes ends up being 15-20 minutes long which works against the idea of the story."
[0.0] "This match was a pointless filler. Considering the theories about Goldberg returning, this match still was capable to underdeliver more than expected. A complete squash from beginning to end, baiting a McAfee win for a few times. That's the best idea they have for Gunther. And to top it off, they make a terrible and uninteresting match last 15 minutes. Gunther didn't get over, Cole added nothing besides the foot spot. And then there is McAfee. For some unknown reason, they decided to book McAfee to be completely out of Gunther's level, but still had the "fighting spirit" inside of him. Are you fucking kidding me. Total waste of time."
[9.0] "Pretty funny how lost the art of the celebrity match is to some folks. This was a perfect non-championship issue for Gunther to jump into after losing the world title. I do agree that Cole was annoying throughout the storyline (and this match especially). McAfee was better as a performer than his recent commentary. I also did not like Gunther shaking McAfee's hand after, why back away from the heat?"
[9.0] "I thought this was just about perfect for what it was supposed to be. Gunther was brutal, confident, and ruthless. Pat was decent at firing up, loved by fans and took a good beating. What I didn't like it that Pat looked too big by comparison and Michael Cole trying to cheat. It wasn't that dire of a situation for babyfaces to try and cheat. Cole's performance was really good too. But Gunther performed great, simply great."
[3.0] "Waste of time for everyone involved. Gunther shouldn't be taking 14 minutes to beat a commentator, even though he was toying with him, chops and laying on the ground isn't fun to watch for 14 minutes. Pat can be used for wrestling but not in this type of match 1 v 1. Michael Cole was also just doing way too much."
[5.0] "This is exactly the type of match McAfee should not be in. It should be tag teams so the focus isn't always on him. I will give him an "E" for effort as McAfee does give 100% in everything he does but he's just not for me. Stick to announcing where he's at least tolerable opposite Cole (At this point Cole can be great with anyone)."
[7.0] "I thought this match would get a lot of flak lol. It was no masterpiece but it did what it was intended to so. The crowd exploded when Cole stood up, which means they told the story well. And no, this doesn't bury Gunther, it just makes him look like a sadistic heel that plays with his food."
[0.0] "Nearly 15 minutes for Gunther to beat a punter. A horrible match that does nothing for Gunther. Pat McAfee can't wrestle. He can do a few things and do what he's told but he's pretty horrible and it was exposed here. I really had hoped this would get Pat off tv for any amount of time but he showed up the next night on Raw like nothing happened. A total farce of a match that was a complete waste of time for everyone involved. McAfee has no redeeming qualities in wrestling or college football. The only things McAfee seems to love are himself and Aaron Rodgers."
[3.0] "I really did not feel like this match ended up looking how they wanted it to. Gunther did not come out looking great like I think WWE was looking for. Also Michael Cole was a little bit much in how this match was done. Could have preferred that he slow became biased"
[3.0] "I don't even know why this was a match on the PPV card. Gunther is phenomenal, so it's almost insulting that they give him a match against Pat McAfee. AND PAT DIDNT EVEN TAP! WTF! complete waste of a match spot. I get it, it's supposed to be fun, but you could have given Zelina, or anyone else a match. Super unfortunate, and it was even worse that the match still sucked."
[4.0] "Ugh. We're using GUNTHER this way in a PPV.... OK. This had the potential to be one of the worst PPV matches of all time and well I guess it wasn't that. This should have been 6 min top, Pat looked borderline OK but at no point did they ever try and convince us he would win which I did appreciate. Oh and of course because he's a retired NFL Punter most of his offense is kicks that Gunther has to sell like they're coming from Low-Ki. Too long but only 1 obvious botch by Pat made it the world's most OK Pee Break Match."
[1.0] "Y'all aren't burying this enough. The only way for this match to possibly work is by making it a squash. Pure Gunther beat down on Pat, would've restored a sense of menace to what's supposed to be this monster heel after his tap out loss at Mania. That's not what they do. Instead, the match goes on for fourteen minutes and Pat McAfee gets multiple different hope spots. The worst thing done to him was a few chops, and then he comes back on the next Raw. That doesn't put Gunther over at all, all it does is make Pat McAfee, a COMMENTATOR, a top babyface with a triumphant return pop. That alone would make this match terrible, but the in ring work isn't good either! It's a bad joke told for too long, Gunther does a move, Michael Cole complains about the brutality, McAfee does a hope spot. Rinse and repeat for fourteen minutes."
[1.0] "Pointless match that could have salvaged itself if it actually committed to what it was trying to do, but also that would have been horrible because it would have buried Gunther completely. This match was just doomed to fail from the start, serious what the hell were they thinking booking this in the first place. Yes, Gunther is a good wrestler but that doesn't mean that you can throw dogshit at him and expect him to deliver you a proper fine meal. Only way this was good was this being a hopeless squash for McAfee but they wanted to do all of this, to get McAfee more over and do nothing for Gunther."
[5.0] "This overstayed its welcome a bit for me. You could have probably shaved 5 minutes off and achieved the same match. It was what it always should have been, an extended squash, with Pat getting a few small hope spots. I could've done without Cole getting involved for sure. Even him going to ringside was, for me, too much. The crowd were into this though in a big way - they were behind every little bit of offence Pat got and you'd think he was the hometown hero on the show tonight. A hard one to rate but I was somewhat sports entertained. Gunther plays trolling heel really well."
[5.0] "They did the best they could to make the match entertaining, and to be fair, they somewhat succeeded. But this match had no real reason to happen in the first place. Gunther seriously needs to get back into the main event scene, because I can't handle seeing him stuck feuding with clowns like this. If Michael Cole had somehow helped Pat win, I would've written ten more lines just to express the stroke I'd have had. But hey, let's not celebrate too soon -- apparently, Goldberg is up next for Gunther..."
[3.0] "This wasn't as bad as I thought it would be... but this still went on way too long, and it's pretty silly that this wasn't the shortest match on the card. At it's best, it got a chuckle out of me, but at it's worst it was repetitive and an eye-roll, as watching the same gimmick of Gunther chopping Pat, Pat doing it back, Gunther looking mad at him, Pat looking scared from it, and Gunther chopping Pat harder, got pretty old fast."
"Gunther played with Pat for the entire match. Throughout the match, they made the audience believe that Pat had a chance in hell at winning, when everyone knew damn well going into it that Gunther was winning and there was no possible way he wouldn't. He took him lightly until he couldn't, as Pat stood up to him and proved he wasn't afraid. Pat chopped and kicked and punted and Gunther asked for more and more, and it consistently took one chop or kick to put Pat down. The only thing I didn't care for was how much of a struggle it was to finally end, for Pat to finally pass out, but I still like that he didn't tap out. Very well done match for the kind of match it was, tremendous story. Highly recommend."
[0.0] "I really can't understand how people can give a positive score to this. It was ridicule and humiliating for Gunther: a guy who, in less than a month, went from being the World Heavyweight Champion to get a not-so-easy win against a...commentator? Is that the level of the World Heavyweight title in WWE? It should have been a much shorter squash match. Or do we have a possible World Heavyweight title challenger who simply prefer to be at the commentary table? I think the only one who benefited from this was Pat himself. Gunther and the WWE World Heavyweight Championship lost their value."
[3.0] "Gunther has significantly lost importance and status after WrestleMania 41 and this match against a commentator. The match was too long, and even though he won easily in the end, his character as a tough, imposing, and merciless wrestler took a hit. What a poor choice by WWE."
3x
9x
19x
89x
129x
96x
154x
23x
17x
7x
15x