During a recent interview with talkSPORT, Bryan Danielson revealing the moment in AEW that made for his exit from WWE. Danielson joined AEW in 2021, making his debut at the promotion’s All In pay-per-view that year.
Danielson noted is was AEW’s tribute show for the late Brodie Lee, who back on December 26, 2020, that was the defining moment for his decision to sign with Tony Khan’s promotion.
“We had a wrestler, Brodie Lee, who had passed away…they did this incredible tribute show. At that point, I was still with WWE. And the way that they did that show – Brodie was my friend – it touched something in me and in my mind…I was thinking like, ‘Oh, these are the good guys of professional wrestling’…there’s going to be times where we make wrong, or bad decisions, that happens everywhere…but one of the things that I like to think about AEW is that we try – and we don’t market ourselves as this – to be good.”
Danielson also said that AEW are the ‘good guys in professional wrestling’ and that Khan is a wrestling fan who cares about the fans, the industry and his talent.
“Tony Khan never says it. He never says, ‘We’re the good guys in professional wrestling.’..but that’s one of the things that I thought of when I was in WWE…I was like, ‘Oh, the people behind this, who are running this thing, they care about the wrestlers. They care about the fans, too.’..The one thing that I love about Tony is that he is a wrestling fan and he wants to produce a show for wrestling fans, or that wrestling fans will enjoy.”
Danielson lost the AEW World Championship to Jon Moxley at the WrestleDream PPV last October in his home state of Washington. The event took place at the Tacoma Dome just south of Seattle. Danielson is originally from Aberdeen, which is on Washington’s beach coastal area.
Since dropping the title, Danielson has taken on a consulting type role with AEW. He also added that while he has not ruled out returning to the ring, he’s ‘very comfortable’ with stepping back from the industry.
“The last six months of my career, I was in a lot of pain with my neck, I could notice it in my wrestling…also the flying, the traveling, all that kind of stuff was so hard that by the time October came around, I was ready…I don’t want to put the word like retirement out there, but I’m honestly very comfortable where I’m at now...the reality is, I’ve given 25 years of my body to to wrestling. I think now it’s OK for me to step back. And honestly, I don’t crave the spotlight or anything like that…I enjoy being a homebody. I enjoy being with my kids.”
In the first part of the interview, Danielson told talkSPORT that AEW, as a company does not approach other companies in a ‘warlike fashion.’ He also said they do not feel like they are at war with anybody. He then added that he does not know that if at some point AEW needs to go more on the offensive and that has friends who thinks AEW ‘should attack.’ He then said that is not his personality, its not Khan’s personality and its one of the other things that drew him to AEW.