It has been a year to the day since Daniel Bryan officially announced his retirement from WWE and all in-ring wrestling competition. That was not just a hard day for him but for the entire wrestling world – performers and fans. After becoming the general manager of SmackDown Live and still working with WWE, he has been a prominent staple on television for months, but is he ever going to be able to step into the ring and wrestle again?
Time and time again, everyone has questioned if Bryan would be able to get back into the ring and be able to compete once more. The guy is only 35-years-old, but neck injuries, concussions, and other problems have forced him to stop taking the hits and bumps that come with being a professional wrestler.
Bryan spoke with Gorilla Position about a number of things , and as always, the subject of him wrestling again became the primary focus. When he was asked if getting back into the ring was an option, he first answered from the perspective of his employer.
“So, if you were to ask the WWE, the answer would be ‘no’ (laughs).”
For months now, Daniel Bryan has had a number of interactions with different superstars, but the most heated moments have come with The Miz.
They have argued, gotten in each other’s face, and almost come to blows at times, but nothing ever actually happened. There is no doubt that it would be a great feud and provide a number of fantastic matches if Bryan could ever get back in the ring.
When asked if there would ever be any kind of a physical confrontation in his feud with The Miz, Bryan understood his position.
“As far as I know…no. You know the one thing about this, in any form of entertainment or fighting, or sport, is ‘never say, never,’ right? I keep going to different things and I keep working on the doctor standpoint of it, ‘Okay, is there anything that I can do more to get cleared?’ and right now I’ve done everything I can possibly do, and so…but I still look at different things and still look at this and that.”
“You know, It’s…I dunno, it’s an unfortunate scenario to me, but at the same time, I’m very grateful for the amount of time I that had being able to do this.”
Obviously, Bryan was not ready to stop wrestling and he isn’t ready to totally give up on it now. As many have seen in the past, “retirement” doesn’t always mean the end of a career as fans have seen with Ric Flair, Mick Foley, and dozens of other superstars.
He went on to say that WWE gave him the chance to wrestle in front of more than 70,000 people for a single match. In 2013, he recalls wrestling 227 matches and almost every single one of them was in front of just three or four thousand people.
Bryan also realizes that having that many matches in one year is probably why he had neck surgery in 2014.
Cageside Seats takes notice of the “never say never” line from Bryan , but also points out that he is showing just how grateful he is for the opportunities he has been given by WWE. He has enjoyed his career and everyone truly misses seeing him in the ring, but they love being able to still see him on television.
Right now, his focus is on becoming a father soon as Brie Bella is soon to give birth, and maybe he has wrestled his last match. If that is the case, the world is lucky to have had the time they did with him in the ring, but there is always that chance for just one more.
WWE is not going to allow Daniel Bryan back into the ring to compete and wrestle if he is not fully cleared by one doctor and another and another. Yes, he has made it clear that he would love to be an in-ring competitor again and it seems as if the company has kept possible storylines alive, just in case. If there ever comes a day when the SmackDown Live general manager can return for a match or two, The Miz had better watch his back.
[Featured Image by WWE]
