5 Reasons why Daniel Bryan turned heel against AJ Styles on SmackDown Live

#1 Making up for lost time

Bryan finally made up for lost time on SmackDown Live

The active life of any WWE Superstar is severely limited. Not every wrestler can compete well into their 50s.

At some point, the time comes to hang up their boots, and admit that all the punishment that their bodies endured for so long have made it impossible for them to continue inside the ring. Thus, missing out on a part of their career when they are in the prime of their life cannot feel good.

Daniel Bryan was forced to retire early when his injuries became too much for him. He was forced onto the sidelines and step out of the ring for what felt like the final time. He was not allowed to compete by the WWE and continued in a non-wrestling role.

For Bryan, this entire time was extremely painful, as he was not able to do what he loved the most. So, when he finally made his return to the ring, it was one of the greatest moments in life.

But along with his return came the idea and the burden of the amount of time he had lost while sitting on the sidelines. Unable to sit around and wait for an opportunity to present itself, Bryan tortured himself with the thought of how much time had gone by and how much more he wanted to achieve in his career.

So, when AJ Styles got in the way of precisely this, Bryan did the only thing that he could think of. He turned his back on the WWE audience, betrayed the trust AJ put in him as a fair competitor and turned heel.

None of that mattered to him. Daniel Bryan became the WWE Champion.

He was finally making up for lost time.