Daniel Bryan has made no secret of his desire to wrestle outside of WWE, and the former WWE Champion believes he’s started to make “some headway” within the company on the issue.
Speaking to Robbie Fox on the My Mom’s Basement podcast, says that he’s spoken about wrestling for other promotions to a “lot of people” inside WWE.
“I brought it up to a lot of people. I don’t think [a hair vs. hair match in Mexico] would happen. I also think that now, more than ever, it a time when people are open to new ideas,”
The Number One Contender for the Universal Title went on to say that people don’t realise how good many WWE Superstars really are. Bryan explained that if fans saw the likes of Cesaro perform in a different setting, it would be easier to appreciate how good he is.
“I think I have made some headway. Whether any of it actually happens, who knows. I don’t think people truly understand how great a lot of WWE superstars are because we don’t necessarily put on a pure wrestling product, we put on a sports entertainment product. If all of a sudden you saw Cesaro in New Japan, people would be like, ‘This guy is the greatest.’ If you put Otis in New Japan, people would be like, ‘Holy cow, this guy is amazing.’ Like, Vader from the 90s type vibe. It’s just a different presentation. I think it would be a cool and unique contribution in wrestling, as far as giving back.”
Daniel Bryan continued, revealing how he believes that it would help not only WWE but wrestling in general, if Superstars learned their trade in different promotions around the world. The multi-time world champion added that he wouldn’t be the performer he is if he hadn’t wrestled in Japan or the the UK.
“I also think it’d be good for WWE and wrestling in general for them to go and learn at other places. I wouldn’t be the performer that I am today if I hadn’t wrestled in Japan or the UK, where it was all comedy. All of those things add to your depth and when it’s time to put you in a top position, you can do a number of things.”
Bryan who is set to face Roman Reigns on SmackDown, has recently questioned how much longer he’ll wrestle full-time. Following his appearance at WrestleMania 37, he said that he felt an “odd detachment” heading to the ring.
When Daniel Bryan meets Reigns on SmackDown there will be more than just silverware on the line. Leading up to the clash, Reigns said that if Bryan loses, he never wants to see him on SmackDown again.
H/t to Fightful for the transcription.