Kenny Omega Vs Daniel Bryan may sound like a dream match and something far beyond the realms of possibility, but years before the pair moved on to bigger and better things the match actually happened. Speaking in a new interview, Excalibur has recalled the night the two men crossed paths, explaining how the match didn’t quite down as you might expect.
Excalibur who is one of the founding fathers of the PWG promotion, explained how the company became a place to experiment and a young Omega and Bryan, known as Brian Danielson at the time, did just that.
Speaking to Robbie Fox of My Mom’s Basement AEW announcer Excalibur detailed how instead of a five-star match of the year candidate, fans were treated to a rendition of John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt.
“Everybody was expecting this hard-hitting, fast-paced, Match of the Year. It’s literally two of the top wrestlers in the world. About six minutes in, Kenny Omega says ‘stop, what’s your name?’ They do this whole John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt routine and they’re dancing around the ring. I’m on commentary like, ‘What…is going on?’ The crowd enjoyed it and was very happy, but it wasn’t the match I think anybody was expecting and there was a lot of conversation around that. That’s the great thing about pro wrestling and PWG in general. It was a place for guys to experiment and do these concept style matches.”
Elsewhere in the interview Excalibur revealed what advice Jim Ross had given him on an early episode of Dynamite, commenting that the broadcasting legend told him “we don’t get paid by the word.”
Excalibur, who is one of the founders of Pro Wrestling Guerrilla, joined AEW in 2019 where he appears on Dynamite and alongside Schiavone on AEW: Dark.
H/t to Fightful for the transcription.