Why Bryan Danielson Was Nervous Before Huge AEW Match

Bryan Danielson admitted he didn’t get nervous before matches very often, but it happened leading up to one of his biggest AEW matches.

The in-ring career of the great Bryan Danielson appears to be over. The former WWE, AEW, and ROH World Champion last wrestled over a year ago and has settled into an announcer’s role in AEW.

Unfortunately for Danielson, he has been dealing with serious neck injuries for a long time, and while he wants to avoid surgery, he may need it down the road.

Earlier in his career, Bryan Danielson’s WWE run as Daniel Bryan was paused for three years (from 2015 to 2018) due to concussion-related issues. Bryan did all he could to get cleared, then he was cleared prior to WrestleMania in 2018, and he went on to wrestle for another six years.

In an interview with Insight’s Chris Van Vliet, Bryan Danielson talked about his return to the ring at WrestleMania 34 in 2018 when he teamed up with Shane McMahon to beat Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn. In talking about that match, Danielson revealed that he didn’t get nervous.

“When I came back in 2018, it was really weird. Because I was trained by Shawn Michaels, he told the whole class, ‘The day that you stop being nervous before you go out there is the day that you need to retire, right?’

When I came back from being forced to retire, I thought that first match I’d be nervous, and I wasn’t. I was just happy, and I never really got nervous before a match again.”

Bryan Danielson Admits He Was Nervous At AEW-NJPW Forbidden Door 2023

Returning to the ring after three years didn’t make Bryan Danielson, but the future WWE Hall of Famer did get nervous while main eventing AEW/NJPW Forbidden Door 2023 against Kazuchika Okada because of a match that took place earlier in the show.

“There was one match that I was nervous for, and that was the match I had with Okada at Forbidden Door in 2023. The only reason why I was nervous is because it was a five-hour show, we were on last and we had to follow Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay.

I watched that match and I was like, Oh no. Then there’s still two more matches, and then me and Okada have to go out there. Then I was just stressed, and I was like, ah, but that’s the only time I remember being nervous before a match.”

Make TJR Wrestling your choice for news by clicking here.