Is Daniel Bryan Nearing The End Of The Road?

[Jmare007]

I'm pretty sure ROH or Gabe would book him in a heart beat if he's available.

[Victator]

TNA booked 2006 Kurt Angle, who was a train wreck. They are using Del Rio right now who has a ton of baggage. They would definitely sign Bryan.

[Jmare007]

I don't see Bryan signing with them though.

[Strummer]

I listened to Bryan on E & C. He has to be in a handful of wrestlers I've heard that are that unapologetically honest

[Cap]

It feels like a matter of "when and how" rather than "if" Danielson comes back. I don't have strong or insightful feelings on what he does with his career. From a completely selfish standpoint, I am excited to see him wrestle again and just hope he does what is best for him.

 

 

That said, I really think he has a singular opportunity within the history of wrestling. I am not sure anyone in the world could generate more interest on indy shows. He could tour the country wrestling mops for 6 months and people would show up. American and European indys would pay top dollar for him and it would pay off for him. He would generate more interest in different promotions than they could probably get with the next three big draw wrestlers put together (I don't feel like I am exaggerating). NJPW would probably fall all over themselves for him (or should), though that wouldn't be my personal favorite choice. I see companies absolutely taking the risk on him, putting him with the safest guys they have and probably not encouraging him to run his head into stuff. Hell, he and ZSJ could have 20 matches that would draw before they ever had to throw a punch. Dragon would wind up ultimately being Dragon though, but I don't see that really stopping anyone from signing him.

 

What is far more interesting to me though, it seems he has some capital and an undying passion for the business. If anyone has ever had the means, motivation, stature, and talent to create something truly unique and compelling within the wrestling landscape, it is him. I don't think he would create something that would compete with the WWE, but I won't be surprised if he starts or goes in on a promotion that provides an alternative to much of the indy scene (and no, I don't have any strong grasp on what that would look like).

[Loss]

I expect WWE to turn nasty, threatening lawsuits if indies try to market shows featuring the crowd doing the "Yes!" chant, trying to claim ownership of his likeness, and other things. WWE isn't going to just let him go and not fight it. If it's like it was when TNA did the ECW revival, indies that use him will probably have to post signs asking fans not to "yes" or chant "Daniel Bryan". Knowing it's BS but doing it just to drag things out, WWE could also try to claim that the beard itself is part of the Daniel Bryan character. Those types of fights are coming if he goes anywhere else.

[PhilTLL]

 

That said, I really think he has a singular opportunity within the history of wrestling. I am not sure anyone in the world could generate more interest on indy shows. He could tour the country wrestling mops for 6 months and people would show up. American and European indys would pay top dollar for him and it would pay off for him. He would generate more interest in different promotions than they could probably get with the next three big draw wrestlers put together (I don't feel like I am exaggerating). NJPW would probably fall all over themselves for him (or should), though that wouldn't be my personal favorite choice. I see companies absolutely taking the risk on him, putting him with the safest guys they have and probably not encouraging him to run his head into stuff. Hell, he and ZSJ could have 20 matches that would draw before they ever had to throw a punch. Dragon would wind up ultimately being Dragon though, but I don't see that really stopping anyone from signing him.

 

I don't think even pure mat wrestling is all that safe, in the scheme of things. Anything north of exhibition pace in any style could be a danger to him.

[cm funk]

 

 

That said, I really think he has a singular opportunity within the history of wrestling. I am not sure anyone in the world could generate more interest on indy shows. He could tour the country wrestling mops for 6 months and people would show up. American and European indys would pay top dollar for him and it would pay off for him. He would generate more interest in different promotions than they could probably get with the next three big draw wrestlers put together (I don't feel like I am exaggerating). NJPW would probably fall all over themselves for him (or should), though that wouldn't be my personal favorite choice. I see companies absolutely taking the risk on him, putting him with the safest guys they have and probably not encouraging him to run his head into stuff. Hell, he and ZSJ could have 20 matches that would draw before they ever had to throw a punch. Dragon would wind up ultimately being Dragon though, but I don't see that really stopping anyone from signing him.

 

I don't think even pure mat wrestling is all that safe, in the scheme of things. Anything north of exhibition pace in any style could be a danger to him.

 

 

You do know that he still trains MMA and Jui Jitsu and is regularly rolling around on the mat, right? And that he weight trains the same as he did (maybe not the same, but you get what I mean) as when he was active?

 

If the doctors all clear him (and they all cleared him last time around, except for one, and that was ultimately the one that mattered)......I don't see why he shouldn't return to the ring. I absolutely want him to tone down his style, no more diving headbutts and crazy dives please. I do worry about him going to NJPW though. I think he could have safe "dream matches" with Tanahashi and Okada though. Just please no hard slaps to the head/headbutts/diving stuff.

 

And yeah, every indy that could afford him would be on the phone with him immediately. He'd be a HUGE draw on the indy scene, and he wouldn't have to do much in his matches. He could do mat based & comedy and the crowds would eat it up.

 

I also don't think for a second WWE would try and fuck with him. He's very beloved and respected in that company, the Bellas too, and oh yeah, that brother in law of his. And don't forget the boys.....many of whom came up in the indies with him and are good brothers to him. And, he's been totally open and honest with them about his desire to return to the ring.......it's just not gonna happen under their watch......and I understand their position. And Bryan does too. They've known this day was coming for a long time, I think they'll shake his hand, wish him well, and he's always welcome back (in a non-wrestling capacity) when he hangs em up

[Loss]

I don't think they'll mess with him so much. I think they'll mess with the company that signs him, much like they did WCW with Hall and Nash. The most recent example of something like this was when TNA did the Extreme Reunion. We'll see, but I just think if they weren't going to play games like that, they would have let him go when he asked them to let him go last year.

[cm funk]

I don't think they'll mess with him so much. I think they'll mess with the company that signs him, much like they did WCW with Hall and Nash. The most recent example of something like this was when TNA did the Extreme Reunion. We'll see, but I just think if they weren't going to play games like that, they would have let him go when he asked them to let him go last year.

 

I don't even think they'd do that. He'll be "The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson. He won't encourage the YES! chants. He won't use Ride of the Valkyries. They can't trademark the man's facial hair. The crowds will YES! and chant "DANIEL BRYAN" anyway.........nobody can control that, and WWE can't sue anyone over how a crowd acts. I really don't anticipate this being an issue

 

Also, WWE has never attempted to trademark a wrestler's moveset either. This is a total non-starter, waste of time for them. They know it, and because they're on such good terms with Bryan and his wife and brother/sister in law this would never happen.

[PhilTLL]

You do know that he still trains MMA and Jui Jitsu and is regularly rolling around on the mat, right? And that he weight trains the same as he did (maybe not the same, but you get what I mean) as when he was active?

 

Weight training holds no risk of concussive blows unless you drop the weights on yourself, but I'll stick with the notion that full-speed sparring of any martial arts is probably a bad idea for someone with 10+ concussions, 15 years of sub-concussive blows, and maybe a brain lesion that causes seizures.

 

I also fear in the long run that "safer" working (at least of any style that involves bumps) might end up being like "teaching kids the right way to tackle" - it doesn't help a thing, but it makes us feel better about watching. I don't think pro wrestling is AS inherently unsafe as football, but it's up there.

[Mad Dog]

My father in law is in his 50s and suffered a lot of concussions in life. It's absolutely brutal how ravaged he is by it. He has to go to therapy on a weekly basis just to be able to go from point A to point B okay and to be aware of his emotional state to manage himself better.

 

He does all of that and you throw one wrench into his routine and he's absolutely fucked for days on being able to function. We're talking leaving the keys in the fridge type of stuff happens.

 

It's absolutely ugly and that's the kind of life Daniel Bryan wants right now.

[Loss]

From what I understand, a lot of the tests available for concussions right now can show false optimism if the subject is especially intelligent or has a high IQ. That applies to Bryan, and it could be giving him false hope. I hope that's not the case, and I don't know if that's the case for every single test available.

[Mad Dog]

I think what's happening to us the oxygen therapy is helping his cognitive abilities and making his brain function better. That's probably also giving him false hope as it's alleviating the symptoms but not reversing the damage.

 

He's also an addict. I say this about taking player's word for it in other sports. They are all addicts and you have to treat them as such when it comes to not letting them play after potential head trauma.

[Sean Liska]

On one hand I totally understand the concerns. On the other hand a guy who was already a brilliant all-time great has been studying Lawler and Tenryu in his free time. I'll probably talk myself into it until he starts doing stupid stuff.

[Cap]

I think they may mess with companies - which is another reason I think it is quite possible he starts his own - but I don't think the WWE nor Bryan's health will stop people from booking him. The wwe will try to tie some companies up in the legal process just by having more resources, but if he shaves and goes by Bryan Danielson their ground is fairly limited on what they can do to stop people.

 

I do suspect that they might cut Evolve and Progress off for him though through their relationship with those companies, which would be a real shame.

 

To be clear, I am not saying I WANT this to happen. Ok, in a way I am selfishly wanting it to happen, but if i had any actual say in this I would 100% defer to his health and happiness. If he never wrestles again I won't complain a bit. I will be perfectly happy. When I think about what I want as a fan it is sort of in a vaccuum, without really thinking of results. That isn't because I don't care about his health (if there is a celebrity that I don't know at personally, but genuinely care about as a person, it is him), it is that I don't have nearly enough information and I don't think it is honestly any of my business what a grown man does with his body and his career. So, when I say "as a fan I would love this" it comes with the understood caveat of "if wrestling is what he wants to do and chooses to do with the information he has". Ultimately the "wrestling harming themselves" vs "enjoyment of the product" conversation is I think far bigger and more complex than this case; this is just the easiest case to filter it through.

 

I am just saying I believe he will wrestle again and I believe he will do outside the WWE if not inside and I don't believe that health concerns will stop wrestling promoters from booking him and watching money roll in. What I think will happen, what I as a fan would love to see, and what I think SHOULD happen given his health are three totally different conversations (three conversations that are getting interwoven here quite a bit).

[Victator]

 

I don't think they'll mess with him so much. I think they'll mess with the company that signs him, much like they did WCW with Hall and Nash. The most recent example of something like this was when TNA did the Extreme Reunion. We'll see, but I just think if they weren't going to play games like that, they would have let him go when he asked them to let him go last year.

 

I don't even think they'd do that. He'll be "The American Dragon" Bryan Danielson. He won't encourage the YES! chants. He won't use Ride of the Valkyries. They can't trademark the man's facial hair. The crowds will YES! and chant "DANIEL BRYAN" anyway.........nobody can control that, and WWE can't sue anyone over how a crowd acts. I really don't anticipate this being an issue

 

Also, WWE has never attempted to trademark a wrestler's moveset either. This is a total non-starter, waste of time for them. They know it, and because they're on such good terms with Bryan and his wife and brother/sister in law this would never happen.

 

Ride Of The Valkyries is public domain and chanting Yes seems too generic to trademark. I feel like this would be a case they would lose if Bryan fought it.

[Eduardo]

The "Yes" chant came from Diego Sanchez as well, and Danielson has been very intentional about where it came from.

[Loss]

I don't think the goal would be to win so much as it would be to make it really difficult to debut him and stall any plans. This is how WWE operates, like when they accidentally on purpose kept missing parts of the paperwork to grant Flair's full release in 1993, or the attempted and failed barriers they tried to put in place for WCW to use Hall and Nash. The last major star that left and wrestled somewhere else was Kurt Angle, and they fired him, and the circumstances were very different. So you could say this isn't how they are anymore and that's quite possibly true, but then I think about how they were with TNA when they did the Extreme Reunion, threatening lawsuits over crowd chants and use of initials. I would guess that to be on the safe side, Daniel Bryan won't encourage "Yes"-ing and might make some changes to his look, none of which are crucial to his popularity in the first place.

[sek69]

This all makes me wonder how NJPW feels about WWE using Bullet Club inspired merch for Finn Balor.

[FMKK]

This all makes me wonder how NJPW feels about WWE using Bullet Club inspired merch for Finn Balor.

Maybe a can of worms they don't want to open when the Young Bucks do Too Sweet and Suck It gestures

[Victator]

 

This all makes me wonder how NJPW feels about WWE using Bullet Club inspired merch for Finn Balor.

Maybe a can of worms they don't want to open when the Young Bucks do Too Sweet and Suck It gestures

 

Can you really trademark that?

[Matt D]

 

 

This all makes me wonder how NJPW feels about WWE using Bullet Club inspired merch for Finn Balor.

Maybe a can of worms they don't want to open when the Young Bucks do Too Sweet and Suck It gestures

 

Can you really trademark that?

 

http://www.mtv.com/news/1517546/diamond-dallas-sues-jay-z-over-diamond-cutter-hand-sign/

[sek69]

The Too Sweet gesture dates back to North Carolina State using that since their teams are called the Wolfpack prior to anyone who used it in wrestling, so WWE really wouldn't have a claim on that. The Suck It stuff you would think is different since they sold a billion DX Suck It shirts back in the day.

[Zoo Enthusiast]

And the Turkish Deep State, the Grey Wolves.

 

(and the Patreon supporters of greatest podcast on earth, Chapo Trap House)