Bryan Danielson had the wrestling community on the edge of their seats with a retirement hint on last week’s AEW Collision, but now he has clarified his future plans.
In a recent in-depth interview with Sports Illustrated, Bryan Danielson spoke about his announcement from AEW Collision. On Collision, he mentioned that he promised his daughter that he would finish his career before she turns seven. Danielson’s daughter is currently six years old.
This heartfelt revelation sparked speculation that the next twelve months may be wrestling fans’ final chance to witness Danielson’s in-ring performances. However, in the interview, he expressed that he doesn’t believe he’ll ever be “absolutely done” with wrestling.
“I don’t think I’ll ever reach a point where I declare I’m absolutely done. I want the ability to show up when I want to show up. Terry Funk is someone I always admired. He retired a million times, but he loved it so much he couldn’t help but keep doing it. And he did it when he wanted. For me, it might be a couple times a year, or it might be years between matches.”
“I didn’t get a chance to do All In this year. I would like that chance next year. We have a show, WrestleDream, this October 1 in Seattle where I’m wrestling Zack Sabre Jr. If we have another next year in Seattle? Maybe it will be then. My daughter turns seven in May, so it’s a good time to close down the shop.”
He then tentatively marked August 2024 as when he thinks he will conclude his full-time in-ring career.
“In my mind, it’s around August of next year. My daughter will say, ‘Daddy, are you going to be done wrestling when I turn seven?’ And I’ll respond, ‘Well, not exactly when you turn seven, but I’ll be on the home stretch.'”
Why Did Bryan Danielson Leave WWE?
Bryan Danielson left WWE in May of 2021 and debuted for AEW the following September. When asked about why he left WWE, Danielson cited AEW’s schedule and creative freedom as driving factors for the switch.
“So people think that I had 2 options between WWE and AEW. And the reality was that I was considering 3 options, which were WWE, AEW, or just not being a full-time wrestler anymore and just being a full-time dad. When I told that to Brie with the money that each company was offering me, she might have wanted to kill me. But really it came down to a little bit of schedule, a little bit of creative freedom, and also just this idea of I had been there for so long, maybe something new would be a little bit fun. But then also I kind of wanted to bleed, which is a weird thing to say.”
Danielson has certainly followed his wish to bleed in AEW, as evidenced by his chaotic battle with Ricky Starks at last week’s All Out.
Yet to make an appearance outside of AEW, Bryan Danielson was scheduled to compete at an International event before getting injured.