Pat McAfee got into the ring with Gunther at WWE Backlash, and though he put up a valiant effort, he passed out from a rear-naked choke.
After the bout, Gunther showed respect to McAfee for stepping into the ring with him.
Speaking on his show, McAfee reflected on the bout.
"The body is a little battered and bruised. Me and Gunther had a moment in time where I believe I showcased to him something that he showed a little respect. This was a big moment, taking the shirt off. Everybody knows Gunther has a powerful [chop]. I showed him I wasn't scared to eat one of those if need be. We could certainly get into a fist fight.
"We fought. I don't know how many people were in the crowd, I heard 16 or 17 thousand. I want to say thank you to all of them. This went a lot longer than I thought it was going to be. I was planning on going in like Mike Tyson, early knockout, try to win this thing. It went a lot longer than I thought it was going to go. Landed some kicks. I feel good about the strength of my leg. My entire chest was the color of a tomato for a good reason. He was beating me down. Him kicking out at one from my punt was certainly something. 'I don't know what else to give this guy.'
"At the end, Gunther showed a little bit of respect, an acknowledgment, I think. I feel pretty proud of what I did for not only myself, Michael Cole, but the good of society as well. Sometimes you have to stick up to the big ol' bully. To Gunther's credit, him giving me the head nod at the end, I think he acknowledged what happened in there. I think he was waiting until it was on camera to be able to do that. If you saw him talking to the ref, I think he was asking the ref, 'I would like people to see this and know this.' What an honor it was to get into the ring once again and be part of Backlash and fight [Gunther]. He might be in GOAT conversations when it's all said and done. Michael Cole, I'm sorry I couldn't get us the win. At least I think the guy who was bullying your old ass around knows we're willing to fight if we have to.
"I think the first chop popped both of my eardums, the sound. I'm surprised my nose didn't pop. It was startling, when that thing hits you for the first time. Through the TV you can feel it when he does that. From the commentary table, you can see it, hear it, and you think you can feel it. I was coming off the ropes to give him a big one, and what I realized was, 'Wow, I'm pretty exposed here.' He took advantage. He certainly did. Chest burning, obviously. Neck hurting from holding my head up whenever I was getting my ass beat. Back is pretty sore. Hips are not good either. Knees, both of them, problematic. [The powerbomb] hurt too. That one will wake you up a little bit and then make you dead."
Michael Cole tried to get involved in the match to help McAfee, but his trip of Gunther and holding his leg down on the pinfall only amounted to a two count.
Fans can find Fightful's coverage of WWE Backlash by clicking here. Check out the post-show podcast for a full review by clicking here.
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