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Daniel Bryan returned to wrestling in March this year after a career-threatening neck injury which kept him away from the ring for nearly three years.
It was a moment for celebration not only for the leader of the 'Yes' movement but also for his fans across the globe. Even though it took him some time to get the momentum, the impact of his return can be clearly felt now.
So much has happened with him after his return and he has made so much difference to other wrestler's storylines as well.
Let's look at such things that would have happened if Bryan would have never been cleared to wrestle again.
#4 He would have gone to NJPW
As reported by Whatculture earlier this year, before Byan got cleared to wrestle again, that he would have probably left WWE after his contract would have expired in August 2018 to wrestle in a different promotion.
Of course, he now has signed a new contract with the company after the WWE doctors cleared him to wrestle again, there was a huge question about it before.
They even reported that only WWE doctors have not cleared him to wrestle again as others doctors had no problem with him wrestling so he could have easily gone to other promotion to re-live his dream.
Reports also suggested that the first promotion on his list was New Japan (NJPW). He was even in the talks with the management there and had even started training again as a wrestler.
So, if he would have not been cleared to wrestle again by WWE's medical team, we would still be seeing him wrestle, but in a different promotion and country.
#3 Rey Mysterio would still have the record for spending the longest time in a Royal Rumble match
Just weeks after returning from a career-threatening injury, Bryan broke the record for spending the longest time in a Royal Rumble Match at Greatest Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia earlier this year.
He was in the match for one hour 16 minutes before finally getting eliminated by Big Cass which started their forgettable feud which took most of Bryan's summer.
This record was previously held by Rey Mysterio who was in a match for one hour and two minutes at Royal Rumble 2006.
It is quite commendable to see Bryan working on an hour-long match returning to wrestling after nearly three years.
This is how legends are made. If Bryan had never returned back from injury, this record would still have been with Mysterio.
#2 Owens and Zayn would still have been part of Smackdown's Roster
Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn were "fired" from Smackdown because they lost the tag team match against the team of Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon at Wrestlemania 34, earlier this year.
Transferring them to RAW was not much of a big deal as the Superstar shake-up was a couple of weeks away, in which many wrestlers get transferred anyway.
If they would have somehow managed to tackle the shake-up, they would still have been part of Smackdown's roster.
If Bryan would have not been cleared to wrestle again, then the team of Owens and Zayn would have probably just faced Shane in a handicap match and going by the storyline and momentum they had, there was no way that Shane O'Mac would have defeated them alone.
Both were the top heels of that time and brutalizing Shane would have just made them looked stronger.
Bryan had just returned from the injury and was having his first match in a year or so, so they needed him to win to sustain his return and that is why Ownes and Zayn lost.
I would have personally liked the duo to stay in Smackdown considering their current position in Raw, especially Kevin's.
#1 Miz would be the WWE Champion right now
As reported by Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observers Radio, Bryan became the WWE Champion because AJ Styles was in the middle of a contract negotiation as he wanted to reduce his workload.
So, he would have lost the WWE title before Survivor Series anyway. Since Bryan was already involved in the feud with Styles and also has the momentum with him, the management decided to go with him and also turned him heel in the process.
If Byan would not have been cleared to wrestle by the WWE's doctor, then Vince McMahon would have probably gone with The Miz, as he only seems to be the logical option. He is a great wrestler as a heel and has proved his worth as the top guy over the years.
I think WWE wanted to give the belt to a heel to continue the feud between him and Styles (a babyface).
There were other options as well like Samoa Joe, Rusev or Randy Orton. But, they have made it quite clear that they don't see either Samoa Joe or Rusev as a main eventer commodity.
Randy Orton is in the process of establishing himself as the sadistic heel and his time with the top championship is a little far away for now, and other wrestlers like Andrade Cien Almas and Shinsuke Nakamura are not yet that established among fans.
So, Miz seems like the only choice that would have made sense and is not even doing anything worthwhile at the moment.
