WWE could soon make a big mistake by choosing 39-year-old star to end Gunther's title reign, says veteran (Exclusive)

Gunther extended his incredible WWE Intercontinental Championship reign on SmackDown by beating Ricochet in a highly-publicized title match. Braun Strowman once again confronted Imperium after the bout, making him the favorite to dethrone Gunther before WrestleMania. However, former WWE manager Dutch Mantell explained why that would be a bad idea while reviewing the latest episode on Smack Talk.

Gunther has been the IC Champion since June and is edging closer to the 200-day milestone of his dominating run. Dutch Mantell felt that Gunther was at the peak of his powers and a title change could severely hurt his momentum in the long run.

The former NXT UK star is rumored to face Brock Lesnar at WrestleMania, and most expect him to drop the Intercontinental Championship before the dream match. That's where Braun Strowman comes into the picture, as he could free up Gunther for the Brock Lesnar clash by becoming the new IC Champion.

Dutch Mantell went against the idea of Strowman going over Gunther and revealed why, as can be seen below:

"Well, I hate to see that because to put it on the Monster of all Monsters, in my opinion, is a mistake. If the car is running good, if the car is flying down the road, it's not missing anything. You've got great tires on it, and you've got a lot of mileage out of it. Ride that car until it runs out of gas. Gunther is about a full tank, and he is running." [30:50 - 31:20]

You can watch the full video below:

Dutch Mantell would not mind seeing Gunther have another year as WWE's Intercontinental Champion

Barring Roman Reigns, no other champion in WWE has come close to having a similar impact as Gunther. The Imperium faction leader is having a very successful year on the main roster, and Dutch Mantell urged WWE to build up the monster heel even further by feeding him more babyfaces.

Mantell said that while a title change could also be feasible, Gunther needs to get the belt back if WWE does book him to lose heading into the WrestleMania season.

The former WWE manager also agreed with co-host SP3's suggestion about Gunther having an even longer reign.

Mantell continued:

"And I would start running some of those babyfaces by him. I think he could, and I have nothing wrong with switching that title, but not for long; I think he needs to end up with it again. I would, too (have Gunther hold on to the title for another year)." [31:21 - 31:40]

Should Braun Strowman be the superstar to dethrone Gunther? Sound off in the comments section below.

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