WWE veteran agrees with Bryan Danielson's comments about Cody Rhodes and CM Punk (Exclusive)

Former WWE star Bryan Danielson has been a vocal advocate for AEW ever since he joined the promotion. The American Dragon speaks highly of the Jacksonville-based promotion and is always ready to defend his place of work. Recently, Bryan addressed the exits of Cody Rhodes and CM Punk, who left AEW to rejoin World Wrestling Entertainment.

Bryan claimed that they have a megastar in Cody Rhodes because of AEW and even questioned if CM Punk would've returned to the promotion if AEW hadn't existed. Wrestling veteran Vince Russo reacted to Danielson's statement and agreed with his opinion.

During an episode of Writing with Russo on Sportskeeda WrestleBinge, he said that the Stamford-based promotion can't develop new stars on its own, and that Cody had established himself as a top guy in AEW, which helped him get back to the global juggernaut.

"I think it is fair points with those two guys. I really believe so, because first of all, you know, Cody was the star of that company. And, you know, bro, let's face it. Cody's the star of that company. The WWE can't develop new stars, you know. Cody, you know, was already at the WWE. He had gone out now and brought himself to a higher level. So, yeah, I think that, without a shadow of a doubt, helped him get into the WWE," Russo said.

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He added that Punk's return to AEW boosted the promotion's viewership, and that got the TKO-owned company interested.

"Listen, man, everybody saw when Punk went to AEW, the numbers increased. Everybody saw it. So that tells the WWE, yeah, man, they still really care about CM Punk. So when they had that falling out. Yeah, I mean, I would agree with that statement 100%," Russo added.

Both Cody and Punk returned to the Stamford-based promotion in consecutive years. The American Nightmare debuted at WrestleMania 38, while Punk made his return at 2023's Survivor Series in his hometown of Chicago. They have since established themselves as two of the biggest stars in the company.

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About the author

Faiz is a WWE writer at Sportskeeda Wrestling. He is a BBA graduate who is passionate about sports and wants to make a career in that field. This passion led to a postgraduate degree in Journalism, which helped him pivot into becoming a sports writer. When writing, he puts the utmost importance on accuracy and thorough research.

Faiz has six years of work experience across four companies. He started his career with Zomato and then moved to Amazon. He shifted to becoming a football writer at TV9 Digital and is now with Sportskeeda. He covered the Wrestling Xtreme Mania event in Gurgaon in 2025, where he had the opportunity to interview Raj The Maharaja, fka Jinder Mahal. At the same event, he also got quick interviews with former WWE Superstar Dijak and Japanese Joshi legend Emi Sakura.

When it comes to his favourite wrestlers, Faiz has two names in mind. He loved to watch Triple H before the current WWE CCO retired, and he is a huge fan of Roman Reigns. Being a loyal fan since the Tribal Chief's SHIELD days, Faiz credits Roman's mic skills and unmatched in-ring storytelling for his mega success. When he was young, one in-ring story left a lasting impression on his mind and eventually got him hooked on WWE. That match was Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair at WrestleMania 24. Apart from that, he is also a fan of RAW.

When Faiz is not writing for Sportskeeda, he loves to keep up with other sports. He is an avid cricket and football fan, a huge gamer, and loves playing some RPGs on the PlayStation.

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Edited by Faiz Ahmed