Goodbye Daniel Bryan, hello Bryan Danielson?
In today's edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reveals that Bryan and AEW have actually been in talks for months, and while he did consider returning to WWE, it seems getting to work with New Japan Pro Wrestling was what sealed the deal for him.
It's also been revealed that Bryan has been pulled from WWE 2K22, with the team working on the game told he will not be featured in that (a pretty strong sign he's done with WWE). In the same report, Meltzer pointed out the fact he believes CM Punk has 100% signed a deal with AEW, so the company is about to get a serious injection of star power.
Interestingly Konnan has claimed he recently spoke to Tony Khan about Bryan's staus because he wants to book him in AAA.
"I will tell you this because I did ask Tony Khan. The only reason I asked him is because I wanted to use Bryan Danielson in AAA. I was like, ‘Hey man, have you signed Bryan Danielson?’ He goes, ‘You know I can’t tell you that’ and then I looked at him and I go ‘Bro, if that **** shows up in Chicago, that place is gonna melt’ and he just smiled so I think he might have but he has not told me."
So, yeah, it's looking like Bryan and Punk will soon be "All Elite," a major blow to WWE at a time when they're looking to rebound in terms of ratings after a rough time during the pandemic era.
As always, you need to stay tuned to The Ring Report for additional updates.