5 WWE Superstars who defeated their wrestling role models

#2. Former WWE Champion Bryan Danielson

In 2000, Bryan Danielson signed a developmental contract with Vince McMahon's company. The American Dragon then reported to WWE's developmental promotion at the time, Memphis Championship Wrestling, where he was trained by William Regal.

Danielson developed a special bond with the English wrestling legend. In his book "Yes! My Improbable Journey To The Main Event Of WrestleMania," Danielson disclosed how Regal influenced his career.

"[Regal] ended up being the most influential person in my career (...) Since I was trying to switch to a less risky style, Regal was the perfect teacher for me. He would go into detail explaining the finer points of basic holds, and why certain counters make sense and others don€™t, given the intuitive visual intelligence people have about the human body... the way Regal thought and talked about wrestling transformed the way I thought and talked about it. It made sense to me... Even though we were only in Memphis a couple of months together, Regal became my mentor, and he has remained my mentor ever since," he wrote.

Danielson shared the ring with his mentor on multiple occasions. He even defeated Regal in singles action seven times and only went down in defeat twice.

The pair last went head-to-head in November 2008 when Danielson defeated Regal on WWE Superstars.

The American Dragon left World Wrestling Entertainment last year to join AEW. Meanwhile, WWE released Regal from his contract last month.