# Trick Williams Pins Gunther Clean in Raw Dark Match Label: RESULTS Promotion: WWE By WrestlingNews.com Results Desk Published Nov. 10, 2026, 5:20 PM ET URL: https://wrestlingnews.com/story/trick-williams-pins-gunther-in-raw-dark-match-nov-9/ > Trick Williams pinned Gunther clean with the Book End in a dark match after WWE Raw on Monday, Nov. 9, in Greenville, South Carolina, per F4W Online. WWE has not said why. Gunther reportedly skipped the Crown Jewel trip. ## The quick version - Trick Williams pinned Gunther with the Book End in the dark match after Raw on Nov. 9 at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C., per F4W Online, Cageside Seats and NoDQ. - The match was not on Netflix. F4W says fan footage shows the finish. We did not see it. - WWE and Gunther have said nothing. Dave Meltzer said the result could be coincidence. Bryan Alvarez said it is the first clean singles dark-match loss for Gunther that he knows of. Trick Williams beat Gunther clean in a dark match after WWE Raw on Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. A dark match is an untelevised bout that runs after the broadcast ends. F4W Online reports that fan footage shows Williams hitting a spin kick and then the Book End for the pinfall. ## How it went Cageside Seats says Gunther got in plenty of offense and kicked out of several covers, and that the match was short. NoDQ notes that Williams is from Columbia, South Carolina, and says a hometown win could explain the finish. It adds that Gunther has lost untelevised matches before. ## What Meltzer and Alvarez said On Wrestling Observer Radio after the show, as printed by F4W Online, Meltzer said: "it's possible this is all coincidental. Because in a dark match, the babyface does go over." He said a performer at Gunther's level usually gets a run-in and a disqualification finish. His next line was: "So there's probably something to this." Alvarez said that "to the best of my knowledge" Gunther had never lost a singles dark match by anything other than a disqualification, and had lost one house show on the main roster in his career. Neither man said the loss was a punishment, and Wrestling Inc says neither could confirm it. Wrestling Inc also quotes Meltzer on how WWE has treated refusals of Saudi trips. He said that in recent years the message became that "we're going to have to readjust your push." That is his description of company practice. It is not a WWE statement. ## The background Meltzer reported on Nov. 9 that WWE left Gunther vs. Finn Balor off Crown Jewel because Gunther decided against traveling to Riyadh. WWE has not confirmed it. See [our rumor story](https://wrestlingnews.com/story/rumor-gunther-reportedly-opted-out-of-crown-jewel-trip/). F4W says Meltzer also said Balor was not keen on the trip, but WWE believed he would have gone if Gunther agreed. Cageside Seats says the rumors tie Gunther's decision to safety concerns. We found no reason from Gunther or WWE. Crown Jewel ran with four matches and no Gunther. See [our results story](https://wrestlingnews.com/story/crown-jewel-results-reigns-beats-zayn-stratton-cashes-in/) and [our Raw results](https://wrestlingnews.com/story/raw-results-nov-9-punk-joins-team-usa-reigns-challenges-946/). ## What we do not know Whether WWE meant the finish as a message, whether the Balor match is still planned, and when Gunther is next on television. WWE has not said. The result itself rests on outlets and fan footage. We did not attend the show. **How we know.** Source: F4W Online (Ian Carey) for the finish and the Meltzer and Alvarez quotes, with Wrestling Inc (Eric Mutter), Cageside Seats (Sean Rueter) and NoDQ (Aaron Rift). The Wrestling Observer Radio quotes are as printed by F4W and Wrestling Inc. We did not hear the show or see the footage. The link to the Saudi trip is speculation by the outlets, not a WWE statement. Nothing in this story is a rumor except the Saudi background, which our linked story labels as one. ## Sources - F4W Online (Ian Carey), "Gunther vs. Trick Williams dark match result after WWE Raw", Nov. 10, 2026, 6:28 (the finish, Meltzer and Alvarez quotes, Balor detail). https://www.f4wonline.com/news/wwe/gunther-vs-trick-williams-dark-match-result-after-wwe-raw/ - Wrestling Inc (Eric Mutter), "Dave Meltzer Comments On GUNTHER Losing WWE Dark Match After Turning Down Crown Jewel", Nov. 10, 2026, 2:09 PM EST (Meltzer on WWE's treatment of trip refusals). https://www.wrestlinginc.com/2312469/dave-meltzer-gunther-wwe-dark-match-crown-jewel-trick-williams/ - Cageside Seats (Sean Rueter), "Gunther pinned clean in dark match after allegedly declining to travel for Crown Jewel", Nov. 10, 2026, 5:40 PM UTC (the match description). https://www.cagesideseats.com/wwe/485918/gunther-pinned-clean-wwe-raw-dark-match-after-refusing-travel-saudi-crown-jewel-pro-wrestling-rumor - NoDQ (Aaron Rift), "Trick Williams pins Gunther in dark match at WWE RAW following the 2026 Crown Jewel PLE", Nov. 10, 2026 (the finish, Williams' hometown). https://nodq.com/news/trick-williams-pins-gunther-in-dark-match-at-wwe-raw-following-the-2026-crown-jewel-ple/ - Wrestling Observer Radio (Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez), Nov. 9, 2026 episode. No link: we did not hear the show and read it only as printed by F4W Online and Wrestling Inc. - WrestlingNews.com, "Rumor: Gunther Reportedly Skipped Saudi Trip, Match Pulled", Nov. 9, 2026. https://wrestlingnews.com/story/rumor-gunther-reportedly-opted-out-of-crown-jewel-trip/ - WrestlingNews.com staff reporting: read all four outlets in full and compared their accounts of the finish. We did not see the footage, attend the show or contact WWE or Gunther. How we credit sources: [Editorial standards](https://wrestlingnews.com/editorial-standards/).