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When Bryan Danielson let it be known that he was going to step away from professional wrestling for some time after his loss at WrestleDream to tend to his neck, it left more than a few AEW fans in their feelings.
Danielson, the “American Dragon,” out of wrestling for the foreseeable future with no real timeline for his return, even in semi-retirement? Goodness, that's disappointing, right? You bet, and it got even more so at the AEW All In Texas Countdown show, where, in conversation with Denise Salcedo of Instinct Culture, he let it be known that his neck is still bothering him two months into his retirement.
“My neck is not great. It's causing me to not sleep good and some other things. At the end of the day, I'm happy,” Danielson explained via Fightful. “At first, it was a little tough. For parents out there, the first three weeks of having a child where you're not sleeping at all, but then you get used to not sleeping very well. I've just become used to not sleeping. I'm happy, and I've had an incredible time being with my family and kids.”
Asked if he plans to get surgery, Danielson said he hoped not, which, understandably, raised more questions. Why doesn't Danielson want surgery when he can afford it and has the free time to do so? Well, because he views the option as a last resort, not a first resort.
“Maybe? I'd like to avoid it as much as possible,” Danielson noted. “The idea to me is that surgery is a last resort, not a first resort. I'm trying some other things. I'm a little goofy. I'm going to try some other things first before undergoing the knife. That's my plan now.”
So, will Danielson return to the ring and wrestle ever again? Well, he isn't sure, putting the odds at 50-50.
“If I had to guess right now, I'd say it's 50/50 if I'll ever (wrestle again),” Danielson noted. “I'm okay with that. I loved the time I got to spend doing this, but I also love what I'm doing now.”
Would it be a shame if Danielson never wrestled again? Yes, it really would be, especially with his final match ending in such a bummer way. For everyone's sake, let's hope things can turn around in a major way, be that luck, magic, or good old-fashioned surgery.
Big Boom AJ almost saved Bryan Danielson at AEW All Out
In a completely different but equally eyebrow-raising interaction at the AEW All In Texas Countdown show, Big Boom AJ of the Costco Guys discussed watching the “American Dragon” get jumped by the Death Riders at All Out back in September. While AJ wasn't then fully back into professional wrestling just yet, he thought about jumping the ropes to save the then-AEW Champion, as he wanted to make sure he was okay, one babyface to another.
“Did you see that it took every ounce of refrain I had to not jump that barricade and save Bryan Danielson?” AJ told Denise Salcedo via Fightful. “Did you see the old instincts coming back? I was about that close, but now that I'm here, watch out because that happens again, Big Boom AJ's bringing the boom.”
Goodness, now that would have been an interesting way to close out All Out and set up more cool content for the future. AJ versus Jon Moxley for the AEW Championship? Book it, Tony Khan.
