Ex-WWE & AEW Champion Teases In-Ring Return After 16 Months

A former champion in both WWE and AEW has dropped the biggest hint yet that they want an in-ring return after 16 months out.

The last time wrestling fans had the delight of seeing Bryan Danielson compete in the ring was all the way back at WrestleDream in October 2024, when he lost the AEW World Championship to Jon Moxley.

Injuries have racked up over Danielson’s career, forcing him into a hiatus. When he was in WWE, Danielson was forced to retire from the ring for several years before he made his comeback in 2018, going on to win another WWE Championship and headlining another WrestleMania.

But with his in-ring career looking bleak, Danielson has not ruled out a return to action.

Bryan Danielson Teases AEW Comeback?

Speaking to Justin Barrasso of Undisputed, Bryan Danielson addressed his in-ring status head-on and said he won’t rule out getting back in the ring one day:

I don’t close it off. Maybe. In April of 2025, Adam Copeland sent me to his physical therapist. He said the guy was a miracle worker. This guy worked on me for two days in a row, six hours each day. After the first night, I slept nine hours straight. After the second night, I slept eight hours straight. After that, I was sleeping seven or eight hours almost every night. That’s a game changer for how you feel.

Danielson had taken up a commentary role with AEW, but it seems the rigours of travelling have also put that on ice for now:

The travelling is so hard on my neck. Once I started travelling again, I went back to sleeping four-and-a-half hours a night. There was a point around Forbidden Door that I had delusions of wrestling a couple of nights a year. After travelling for commentary, I don’t see how it would be possible. And that’s without bumps.