Interview: WWE's Q&A with Daniel Bryan

Daniel Bryan’s Q&A with WWE

Daniel Bryan recently spoke with The Masked Man of Grantland.com for a Q&A. Here are the highlights;

What went right for him in 2013:

I think teaming with Kane in Team Hell No was really entertaining for the fans. I think WWE fans have always appreciated my wrestling, but they wanted something more as far as personality goes, and Team Hell No really gave them that. And just being given the opportunity to be seen as a main-event guy. For John Cena to pick me as his opponent for the SummerSlam main event was huge for me. That was the biggest opportunity I’ve ever had. Very few people are given that kind of opportunity.

If he has “made it” after headlining four pay-per-views in a row in 2013 and being one of WWE’s biggest stars:

To be honest, I don’t feel like I’ve made it. But “making it” is different than being satisfied with what you’ve done. If I got hurt today, I’d be very satisfied with what I’ve done, but I would have said that before I even made it to WWE. I was happy with what I accomplished on the independent scene and internationally — it was already much more than what people ever thought I could do and what even I thought I could do. But one of the things that keeps me going is the pursuit of constantly being better, and I haven’t “made it” like I’m at a point where I’m happy to stay at this level. I was actually talking to John Cena about this. He told me Steve Austin talked to him at one show and asked him how things were going, and John said, “The show’s going pretty well.” And Austin looked up at a part of the arena that was tarped off — the building was maybe 90 percent sold out — and he said, “Back when I was here, these arenas were full.” And that motivated John. There’s always something to strive for. So what do I need to do to feel like I’ve made it? I need to be the main-event guy, the top guy, and we need to be selling out every arena every night. Maybe then I’ll feel like I’ve done what I need to do.

If he is a different person with the beard:

Wrestling is so weird. There are a lot of things you need to set yourself apart. I’m not the guy who’s the biggest, or the guy with six-pack abs, but in the mainstream you need a unique appearance. Especially for kids. I didn’t think about that when I started growing it, but now WWE is selling fake beards, and I see kids wearing them all the time. It’s borderline cartoonish, but they get to be like me, and they love that.

On watching old matches and whether it is embarrasing:

Oh god, yes. When WWE showed footage of me wrestling at Shawn Michaels‘s old promotion, I was like, “Please don’t show this.” It was cool for the story because they had some stuff with me and Shawn, but anybody who goes back and watches their first matches is going to be embarrassed. To put your 18-year-old self on national television — well, it lightens up your ego a little bit. But you know, I didn’t just start out like this. I had to work hard to get good.

Daniel Bryan also discussed the type of hero he is, the one legend he would most like to face, how Daniel Bryan is different than Bryan Danielson and much more. The full interview is available at the above link.