Shanky recalls working with Gunther in his final WWE match | Exclusive
Shanky opened up working his last match in WWE against Gunther around three years ago in India.
In an exclusive interview with F4WON, Shanky was asked about wrestling Gunther in his last match before getting released by WWE. While still unaware then about the upcoming roster cuts, the 34-year-old recalled that he expected more cooperation from Gunther and WWE in that match.
“It was a really great experience with him. I did a show with him in Hyderabad. But at that time, I didn’t know—after that, whether they were going to release me or what they were going to do, I had no idea then. But yeah, I did have a match with Gunther. Gunther is kind of like that [hard hitter and stiff chops], you know—like, what can I even say right now, okay? I wanted them to cooperate a bit more, but that didn’t happen. The thing I was asking for at that time didn’t happen. But yeah, it’s good that I had a match with Gunther, because now he made John Cena tap out.”
Back wrestling now, Shanky wrestled his first match after WWE at the OPW Australian Stampede in 2024. He also wrestled his latest match there in a loss against Parker Boudreaux. Although he later recovered and earned his first singles win after WWE against Slade Mercer in PCW.
Speaking on his current mental and physical recovery, he stated, “I’m saying I’ve improved a lot—mentally as well as physically. When I was in the U.S., in WWE, around that time, my weight was about 120, 120 Kgs. Now I’ve gained a bit of muscle too. Back then, I looked kind of skinny; now I’ve put on some muscle. Because for a seven-foot guy, it’s really tough to gain everything, to build up muscles, right? I’ve never taken steroids. I stick to a simple diet, and I’m never going to take steroids. So whatever I’ve got, that’s what I’m working with—I just keep doing my thing.”
“I’ve earned everything through wrestling. I had nothing before. I’ve earned everything through wrestling—through WWE. I built a house for my mom and dad, and I bought a car for myself. Right?
I mean, I gave them a slightly better life. Yeah, that’s there—God’s grace is there too. It’s the same thing: I’ll keep doing wrestling, I’ll keep doing it. I’m definitely looking for opportunities—whichever company hires me, I’ll keep doing it, I’ll keep doing it,” he added.
Shanky answers possible character changes like Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre
Shanky’s character in WWE got over with the crowd very quickly. His high energy, passion, and live dance performances were well-loved by the WWE Universe. However, Shanky feels it was part of the job, and he views himself as a hardcore wrestler.
When asked about his comeback and undergoing a possible character reinvention like Jinder Mahal and Drew McIntyre, Shanky claimed, “No, no—look, the culture is fine, I’ll carry it on. But yeah, the dance—that’s just a character thing. This time I came out with the dhol, but I didn’t do the dance and all that. I don’t like that stuff that much. Yeah, I mean, it’s a job—if I’m told to do it, I’ll do it, no problem, it’s fine. But I want to see myself as, you know, like a hardcore wrestler—yeah, a 7-foot guy, that kind of thing. I’ll carry my culture, no doubt. But wrestling—wrestling, wrestling—that’s the thing for me.“
“Definitely, definitely [on character change]—I will, I will. I’ll work on that a bit, because you know how it is, right? Like… for example, I’ve always been a huge fan of The Undertaker in wrestling. So I want it the same way he used to play that character earlier [both The Phenom and The American Badass]—like, yeah man, it happens a bit, like, yeah, the wrestler’s walking in from there, but people still love him. Whether he’s a bit of a heel or a babyface. I want to do a mix-up kind of character,” he added.
When asked about his fondness for hardcore matches, Shanky recalled his brutal chair shots segment with Drew McIntyre and how he wants to stay in that lane.
“I like hardcore matches because I’ve taken 34 chair shots—I’ve taken them from Drew McIntyre. And that history is there. Thirty-four chair shots—I took them from Drew McIntyre. That history is there. So now I want to stay in that lane: yeah, if I get chair shots, if I get tables, if I get ladder matches, that’s great for me—because I’m getting opportunities where I can show my aura.”
Hailing from a small town in India, Shanky struggled a lot throughout his career before getting selected by WWE. Reflecting on the creative process there, he said, “If I’m being honest, when I was in WWE, okay, I was still kind of new at that time. So whatever it was, but I was already wrestling—before that. So I didn’t really get that kind of chance in WWE, you know—because there’s this story like, ‘Yeah, people don’t even know, man, that he used to dance, that he used to be a dancer.’ People don’t realize the connection I was building with the audience there. The crowd was really connecting with me. They started chanting, ‘Go Shanky, go Shanky.’ They were bringing banners for me. I saw it myself. When you’d go to the airport or outside the arena, people would ask for autographs—they were connecting with me. So that was their motive, like, ‘First we’ll get him connected with the audience, then we’ll move forward.’ And then, like, they moved me with Jinder Mahal, and my story started. So yeah, that was a good thing for me.”
Released by WWE in 2023, Shanky now finds himself active in OPW (Oceania Pro Wrestling). “Now, sure, I’m not with WWE. But whenever I get an opportunity… like, as soon as I got released from WWE, right after that—four months later, I remember—the biggest opportunity I got was from OPW. Mr. Cam Vale—Australia, in Melbourne.”
Shounak Chakrabarti is an experienced sports journalist with a lifelong passion for athletics and storytelling. He holds a Master’s Degree in International Journalism from the University of Leeds and joined F4WOnline in 2025.
Shounak takes particular interest in soccer, closely following top clubs like Real Madrid and Arsenal. Beyond sports, he enjoys fiction writing, photography, gaming, and cinema.