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CM Punk might not be the only megastar joining AEW as Daniel Bryan has been heavily touted to become All Elite.
On this week's Dynamite, Punk dropped a massive hint by asking the fans to be a little patient when they were chanting "YES." He then posted a picture of himself and Bryan on his Instagram story.
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Daniel Bryan is widely expected to debut at Arthur Ashe Stadium for AEW Grand Slam and the evidence of his signing keeps mounting every week. The American Dragon is one of the greatest of all time and would be a huge asset to an already stacked All Elite Wrestling roster.
A couple of months back, you'd be laughed at for suggesting that Punk and Bryan would be in AEW but here we are. With Bryan almost certain to join Tony Khan's promotion, let's look at five reasons why it would be best for business.
#5. Daniel Bryan will get to work in promotions other than AEW
Daniel Bryan's admiration of New Japan Pro Wrestling is no secret. He has expressed his desire to work there before but it was always unlikely with WWE not too keen on crossovers.
AEW is quite the opposite in that regard, as it has welcomed stars from multiple promotions and allowed their own stars to wrestle in other companies. Jon Moxley has called out multiple NJPW stars and Lance Archer wrestled in the main event of Resurgence.
Daniel Bryan is a former IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Champion when he wrestled in Japan from 2001 to 2004. NJPW has some big names Bryan would love to square off against, including first-time matches against Kazuchika Okada, Shingo Takagi, and Will Ospreay or a dream rematch against Hiroshi Tanahashi.
The possibilities for Bryan aren't restricted to just Japan, as he could go to Mexico, a place he wanted to wrestle in but was denied by WWE.
#4. Daniel Bryan will have a lighter schedule in AEW
Daniel Bryan had to retire from pro wrestling in 2016 due to concussion-related injuries that he had sustained during his career. Hence, despite returning to the ring, it's imperative for him to preserve his body and AEW's lighter schedule compared to WWE would facilitate that.
All Elite Wrestling runs three hours of televised wrestling every week, Dynamite on Wednesday and Rampage on Friday. AEW rarely has their biggest stars compete in consecutive weeks, and appearances on Dark or Dark: Elevation are even more rare. Moreover, the promotion runs just four pay-per-views a year, unlike WWE that has one every month.
Daniel Bryan is a wrestling treasure and using him judiciously is essential, therefore a less hectic schedule would suit him perfectly.
#3. Daniel Bryan will help nurture AEW's young stars
AEW has some incredibly talented people on their roster like Jungle Boy, Darby Allin, MJF, Adam Page, and Sammy Guevara. All four of them, among others, will have great careers.
Daniel Bryan had a backstage role in WWE during his retirement and is known to put the pro wrestling business before his own interests. Apart from learning from arguably the greatest in-ring technician in the world, the company's young superstars will get an opportunity to share TV time and perhaps go over Bryan.
Be it from an in-ring standpoint, or perfecting their craft backstage, his presence will be a huge boon for AEW's future.
#2. Daniel Bryan will not have to restrict his wrestling style in AEW
Daniel Bryan's matches are always a must-see. It doesn't matter who he is facing, his opponents will look like a million bucks after facing him. It's telling that during The Fiend's awful run with the Universal Championship, his only good match came against Bryan.
Bray Wyatt's best career match came at Royal Rumble 2014 against, you guessed it, Daniel Bryan. Brock Lesnar, Kofi Kingston, The Miz, Sheamus are just a few more names who had arguably their best career bouts against Bryan. The interesting part is, this was all despite WWE restricting The American Dragon.
Bryan is a master of all kinds of wrestling. What elevates his matches is his all-action style and incredible intensity. Every hold looks painful, every kick looks stiff and the storytelling is always on point. When unleashed, there's simply nobody better than him inside the ropes.
Unfortunately, for better or for worse, WWE insists on imposing their own formula on wrestlers which doesn't allow us to see wrestlers at their full potential. Luckily, that won't be an issue in AEW, who allow their wrestlers ample creative freedom inside and outside the ring.
Just imagine Kenny Omega and Daniel Bryan going at it for 30 minutes, speaking of which...
#1. The dream match possibilities for Daniel Bryan in AEW are endless
We live on a timeline with both Kenny Omega and Daniel Bryan existing and they have faced each other in a singles match just once.
Their solitary encounter came at Pro Wrestling Guerilla in 2009. The match wasn't what you would expect as they had a more unorthodox, comedic-themed match. But if they were in AEW together, Omega vs. Bryan would blow the roof of the arena. If the latter is headed to All Elite Wrestling, that absolutely needs to happen.
The buck doesn't stop at the AEW World Champion. An MJF vs. Daniel Bryan feud would be magical. Bryan is one of the greatest babyfaces of all time, and a program against him would elevate The Salt of the Earth to the greatest heel in the industry.
How about a Daniel Bryan vs. Malakai Black angle? Black has a lot of similarities with Bryan, in-ring wise. If there's one person in AEW who can claim to have a better precision with his strikes, it's Malakai Black.
While Bryan against any of Jungle Boy, Miro, Jon Moxley, Cody Rhodes or PAC among many others would get wrestling purists salivating, we mustn't forget one man who just joined the promotion: CM Punk.
Both stars had a WrestleMania main event-worthy feud in 2012. Their matches at Over the Limit and Money in the Bank were bonafide classics. AEW should revisit this rivalry at least once.
Ex WWE writer blasts Liv Morgan HERE
