Last week, a rumor that WWE was planning to release Daniel Bryan began to pick up some steam, but it’s become obvious that WWE has no intention of releasing Bryan, and letting him go wrestle for someone else.
It did seem unlikely that the Daniel Bryan release rumor would turn out to be true, as Bryan is one of WWE’s biggest stars, and if WWE decided to part ways with the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion, they’d almost certainly face some major backlash from their fans. Furthermore, if Bryan was no longer a part of WWE, a good portion of his fans would follow him to wherever he went next, which would likely be Ring of Honor.
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It was reported on Tuesday that Daniel Bryan is going to meet with WWE’s head of medical – Dr. Joseph Maroon – in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania this week. The purpose of the meeting is to get the latest on Bryan’s condition, and if all goes well, there’s a chance that he could be a surprise entrant in Sunday’s Royal Rumble match.
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Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer – while responding to a fan question on Twitter – said that Bryan appearing in the Royal Rumble depends on whether or not he gets cleared this week.
If Bryan ends up getting cleared, him appearing in the Royal Rumble isn’t exactly a guarantee. There is a chance that WWE would want to keep him away from the Royal Rumble match because he won’t be winning it, and they want to avoid the backlash they’ve faced over the last two years, when Bryan didn’t emerge as the winner of the Rumble match.
Bryan posted a tweet on Tuesday afternoon that said he’s still working hard to return to the ring. So, at this point, he’s still hopeful that WWE’s head of medical will clear him.
In the past, Bryan has expressed some frustration about not being cleared, saying that he saw another doctor, who works with the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals, and that doctor told him that WWE should allow him to return to the ring.
But, up until this point, WWE’s head of medical has advised WWE to never let Bryan return to the ring due to the amount of concussions he’s suffered throughout his professional wrestling career.
Sunday’s Royal Rumble should be nothing short of spectacular – we may end seeing the debut of AJ Styles, and the long-awaited return of Daniel Bryan.
