The Path to Gunther vs. Goldberg, WWE's Latest Karrion Kross Botch, More Quick Takes

The announcement of Gunther going back after Jey Uso's World Heavyweight Championship on the June 9 edition of Raw raised flags for fans, but it quickly became clear why the WrestleMania rematch will be taking place.

All signs point to that being where Goldberg makes his grand return to WWE TV and rekindles his rivalry with Gunther that started at Bad Blood last question. The bigger question is when and where WWE intends to pull the trigger on the anticipated attraction this summer.

Meanwhile, Karrion Kross continues to struggle to score mere seconds of television time on Raw. The two-time NXT champion generated serious buzz coming out of WrestleMania weekend in Las Vegas, only for the company to fail to capitalize.

The great reactions he's been receiving on WWE's syndicated show Main Event haven't gone unnoticed by fans online. After showing what he's capable of in self-produced vignettes and character profiles, a significant push for him should be in order imminently.

This installment of Quick Takes will discuss what more Kross can do to get in the good graces of management, AEW's lackluster build to Double or Nothing, Rhea Ripley needing to avoid overexposure in the title picture, and more.

SummerSlam Is the Appropriate Stage for Gunther vs. Goldberg

Gunther vs. Goldberg has been inevitable from the moment Gunther taunted Goldberg while the WCW legend was seated in the crowd at October's Bad Blood event. The spark their quick interaction created cemented Gunther as the perfect opponent for Goldberg's swan song.

The timing was never right for the bout to be booked, at least until now. Gunther was riding high as the World Heavyweight champion for the first four months of 2025 and needed time to bounce back after losing the title to Jey Uso at WrestleMania 41.

His announced rematch with Uso on the June 9 edition of Raw provides the perfect opportunity for Goldberg to cost him the win, prevent him from suffering another clean defeat and set the stage for a SummerSlam encounter.

The Biggest Party of the Summer will be two nights for the first time ever this August and WWE will need as many major matches as possible to fill out the card. Goldberg vs. Gunther is an excellent addition to either of the nights and can be a straight-up singles match without anything at stake.

Holding it at Night of Champions on June 28 is another option—if only for the guaranteed payday in Saudi Arabia—but there wouldn't be enough time between June 9 and the event to properly promote the match, especially if it ends up being Goldberg's last.

Rhea Ripley Would Benefit from Time Away from the Title Picture

Despite falling short of regaining the Women's World Championship since losing it back in March, Rhea Ripley remains in the mix and is very likely next in line for an opportunity after pinning Giulia in a tag team match last Monday night.

The only issue with going right back to Ripley vs. Iyo Sky is that there is no satisfying endgame. Ripley has yet to beat Sky one-on-one and will have to do so eventually in order to finish that story, and Sky getting yet another win over Ripley would only extend the rivalry.

For as well as they work together, Ripley and Sky would benefit from going their separate ways for a bit, specifically with Ripley taking time away from the title picture.

Ripley is as over as she's ever been in her career, yet her overexposure at the top of the card could turn more and more members of the audience against her. She has spent the last two-and-a-half years defending or chasing a championship and could desperately use a period where she's more of a supporting player, much like Bianca Belair was during her lengthy stint in the tag team ranks.

The Eradicator's dominant booking was a huge factor in her success, but the rest of Raw's women's division can't reach that same level of stardom if they're always falling short to her.

AEW's Double or Nothing Build Has Left a Lot to Be Desired

AEW's pay-per-views rarely disappoints, primarily from an in-ring standpoint. The cards tend to be more packed than necessary, but there's always enough standout matches and moments to make the events worthwhile.

Double or Nothing on May 25 should be no exception, even though the build itself has left a lot to be desired.

It's been a recurring issue with the promotion for years, though some pay-per-view builds have been better than others. The road to Double or Nothing has lacked the energy that made past installments must-see, and gone is the vibe that the show is anywhere near the company's biggest of the year.

The lineup itself has plenty of potential, most notably the finals of the men's and women's Owen Hart Cups with Will Ospreay vs. Adam Page and Mercedes Moné vs. Jamie Hayter. Anarchy in the Arena has become a Double or Nothing staple, but virtually anything involving The Death Riders feels inconsequential until Jon Moxley loses the AEW World Championship.

As it stands, the remainder of the card is solid albeit unspectacular. Several more matches are expected to be announced by Wednesday's Dynamite in a last-ditch attempt to fill it out.

The hype surrounding July's All In event should be far greater, but the build should begin on the sooner side to avoid it coming across like an afterthought in the same way Double or Nothing does.

SmackDown Move Will Give Giulia a Main Roster Reset

Gulia being introduced by Nick Aldis on the May 16 edition of SmackDown as the newest member of the blue brand was a slight surprise, if only because she had just debuted on Raw coming out of WrestleMania 41 and formed an unlikely alliance with Roxanne Perez.

Rhea Ripley and Iyo Sky have prevailed over them at every turn, so Giulia instead taking her talents to Friday nights might her best bet long-term. Furthermore, she's a fantastic fit for the show's midcard scene if the plan isn't to push her out of the gate toward the WWE Women's Championship.

A standout showing in the women's Money in the Bank Ladder match would get off to a solid start as well as pinning Women's United States champion Zelina Vega in this Friday's qualifier. Vega hasn't held the gold for long, but there would be nothing wrong with slowly starting to build toward Giulia dethroning her down the line if it means not rushing The Beautiful Madness into a prominent spot too quickly.

For those who didn't catch Giulia's short stint in NXT, her in-ring ability is well above average and her “aura” alone should make her an instant fan favorite on SmackDown, even if she's initially positioned as a heel. The key is WWE ensuring she's a weekly fixture on the program and portraying her as the star she is.

Karrion Kross Must Remain Undeniable to Gain WWE's Attention

Karrion Kross being among the first fired Superstars Triple H brought back into the fold upon assuming creative control of the company in the summer of 2022 should be a sign that he sees upside in him.

Unfortunately, nothing WWE gave him to do after returning clicked with crowds, including giving him his own faction in The Final Testament. Authors of Pain and Paul Ellering were released in early 2025, but Kross was kept around, presumably because management saw him having a higher ceiling on his own.

The two-time NXT champion has done everything in his power to get over on his audience—and it's worked. His engagement numbers on social media are higher than most wrestlers on the roster, he's doing more to interact with the audience during his matches on Main Event, he documented his WrestleMania week in a video that currently boasts nearly 400,000 views on YouTube, and he recently revealed that WWE will begin selling his shirt at television tapings starting with Monday's Raw.

Those are the metrics that WWE pays attention to most, yet he hasn't been involved in anything meaningful on Raw all year. The occasional brief backstage segment can only accomplish so much. He should be in the ring either wrestling or cutting a promo if there's any hope of him actually be elevated.

It's been firmly established for ages that WWE will spotlight the stars that that they want to and conveniently ignore those putting in the work to get noticed and make waves, but in being undeniable, the overwhelming fan support should become too much for even them to ignore.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.