Bryan Danielson was always going to lose the AEW World Championship at WrestleDream, just not the way that fans witnessed.
AEW WrestleDream saw the day come that many fans had anticipated but were still not ready for as Danielson lost the World Championship to Jon Moxley and brought to an end his full-time career in the process. After the match, The American Dragon was assaulted by the rest of The Blackpool Combat Club and stretchered out of the building. Despite the fact that fans were anticipating a follow-up to be sent home happy, announcer Justin Roberts confirmed that it was the end of the show, reportedly resulting in a negative response from the fans in attendance in Tacoma, Washington.
According to a new report by Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Danielson was originally intended to drop the title to Darby Allin, who won a number one contenders match earlier in the year before losing his opportunity to Jon Moxley at Grand Slam. However, the switch was made to put maximum heat on the recent Moxley angle, which has seen The BCC terrorise the roster in recent weeks:
There was an expectation, although not a certainty, that Danielson was going to lose. As noted many times, the original plan when he won the title at Wembley Stadium was to lose it to Allin on the 10/12 WrestleDream show in Tacoma, WA, since Allin grew up in Seattle (35 miles away) and Danielson in Aberdeen, WA (about 80 miles away). But the Moxley turn on Danielson after his title defense over Jack Perry at All Out in Chicago, changed the direction with the idea of putting as much heat as possible on Moxley and the BCC in an attempt to jump-start interest in the promotion.
Danielson defeated Swerve Strickland at All In to win the championship for the first time in his career.
Bryan Danielson Health Update
Ahead of the match, Danielson has stated in numerous interviews that he is dealing with health issues and that he requires surgery. Also in the newsletter, an update was provided on the former World Champion’s health with the added uncertainty that it is unknown when or if he will return to action:
“As far as what happens with Danielson involves the state of his neck. He is going to have an MRI done to see the damage. He had an MRI done not too long ago and it showed damage all the way down his neck. What happens next depends on if the level of damage is the same as it was or if it has worsened, and if [so], by how much. The hope is that he won’t need surgery and can heal up strong enough with stem cell treatment therapy. But if not, he’ll have to undergo surgery. If or when he can return to the ring depends on how well all of this goes.”
“They and he had always said regarding this match that it would be the end of his full-time career, and not the end of his career.”
Featured image: AEW
