What’s the story?
SmackDown General Manager Daniel Bryan hinted at leaving the WWE in about a year and a half to wrestle outside the promotion in an interview with The Miz and Maryse on the latest episode of Talking Smack.
As The Miz and Bryan began to argue, The Miz brought up the fact that Bryan was unable to wrestle because of his multiple concussions. This prompted Bryan to correct The Miz and said the following:
“[Is it that] I can’t or they won’t let me? We’ll see in a year and a half and see what happens.”
In case you didn’t know...
Bryan was forced to retire from in-ring competition in the WWE after the test revealed that Bryan had concussion issues. He would be unable to wrestle for the remainder of his time with the WWE but would remain an onscreen character after being announced by Commissioner Shane McMahon as the General Manager for SmackDown Live.
This isn’t the first time that Bryan has aired his frustration about being forced to retire as he would voice similar concerns with The Miz on an episode of Talking Smack in 2016. This episode was viewed by many as a major catalyst for the great heel run The Miz has been on since then.
The heart of the matter
It’s quite clear that Bryan still has a desire to wrestle as he has mentioned wanting to return to the ring several times. After he was sidelined in 2015, Bryan spent the majority of his time tweeting and talking about wrestling other guys who were coming to WWE including NXT Superstar Shinsuke Nakamura.
Bryan’s claim about waiting a year and a half is a clear indicator that his contract with the WWE will expire in either the summer or spring of 2018 and that date could be the last time fans see Bryan on a WWE platform.
What’s next?
There a lot of time between now and when Daniel Bryan’s contract expires so there’s no telling if he intends to follow through on his promises or if the WWE will be able to persuade one of their most beloved wrestlers of the modern era to stay with the company.
Sportskeeda’s take
Talking Smack is no stranger to controversy, but this may be the most controversial thing of all. Wrestlers and former wrestlers rarely make mention of wrestling for other places in the future unless it fits a storyline and this doesn’t look like one.
If Bryan’s claims are true, then he could be a major signing for whichever professional wrestling promotion he wishes to sign with. Bryan’s skills in the ring are highly regarded as top notch to the point where Pro Wrestling Illustrated and The Wrestling Observer Newsletter have both recognised him for his abilities.
Bryan has wrestled everywhere, from the most well-known American indy feds like Ring of Honor and Pro Wrestling Guerilla to major wrestling promotions of Japan like Pro Wrestling Noah and New Japan Pro Wrestling.
Bryan leaving the WWE after amassing such a massive fan following and a great connection with the fans is the absolute last thing the WWE would want to see, but what could they do to change that?
Tweet speak
Bryan’s comments are causing him to trend on twitter as more wrestling fans take notice:
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