Bryan Danielson Reflects on the “YES!” Movement and WrestleMania 30
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During a recent interview with Insight With Chris Van Vliet, Bryan Danielson spoke about the “YES!” Movement that led to fans hijacking WWE events and WWE changing course for the main event at wrestlemania 30. Danielson shared his thoughts on why fans were resisting WWE’s creative choices, propelling his push to the WrestleMania main event.
Bryan Danielson on Why He Thinks Fans Started Hijacking WWE Shows With Their Chants
“But even in the sense of like, then when Batista won that Royal Rumble.I feel bad for Batista because he worked hard to come back and all that kind of stuff. You do that with Batista now; he gets a great reaction, or any other year. I don’t think it was necessarily me. It was okay. The crowd had gotten behind a dolph Ziggler, the crowd had gotten behind a Kofi Kingston, and they got up to a certain level, and then they were during that era, it was like, okay, then they would always kind of be pushed back down, or whatever it is indeed. I think fans were starting to get upset by it. Even Punk, me, and Punk had wrestled a match on a pay-per-view, must have been 2012 for the title. We were in the middle of the show, and the main event was John Laurinaitis and John Cena. I think the fans were ready for something new, or whatever it is. I mean, that’s just time and place; there’s a lot of my career that’s been like that. I’m of the firm belief that you could have [anyone]. I was in a very fortunate position, even winning the title. I wasn’t even supposed to. I wasn’t even supposed to be there that day.”
On Winning Money in the Bank in 2011
“The thing that whole led to me Yes-ing was I had won the Money in the Bank, and the only reason I won the money in the Bank is because they had two Money in the Banks. They had one for Raw and one for SmackDown. They knew for sure they wanted Alberto Del rio to win the Raw one. The SmackDown one, they thought they wanted Wade, barrett, Cody Rhodes, or me on the day of the show; they all decided it was me as they didn’t want a bad guy to win the Money in the Bank on the SmackDown side, because they had a bad guy winning it on the Raw side. But the most crucial thing was the Alberto Del Rio thing. But then they gave me the Money in the bank, and they’re like, oh no.Now,Daniel Bryan has the Money in the Bank,and nobody at that point had cashed in and lost. And so, you know, we did a couple things with it for a couple weeks, and then it was off TV for like six weeks, or whatever it is indeed. Then they inserted me in a story with Big Show and Mark Henry, wich got me on TV or whatever it is. But it was great. It put me in a story, but then Mark Henry got hurt. This was at the TLC pay-per-view in 2011. Mark Henry gets hurt. I wasn’t scheduled to be at the pay-per-view. I had a Walmart signing that same day in Baltimore with Kelly Kelly, and came over to the building because Brie was there; I think Brie had a match on the show.”
On Cashing in to Win His First World Heavyweight Title
“So I was there, and then Vince found out that I wa
Daniel Bryan Reflects on hazy WrestleMania 30 Experience Amidst Personal and Health Struggles
Daniel Bryan (Bryan Danielson) has revealed a deeply personal and troubling account of the period surrounding his WrestleMania 30 victory, detailing a confluence of health issues, personal tragedy, and emotional turmoil that left the entire experience a “blur.”
In a recent discussion, Bryan recounted concealing a serious concussion while continuing to fulfill his wrestling commitments leading up to WrestleMania. He described experiencing debilitating symptoms,including being unable to stand after a match and requiring assistance to travel. Despite these issues, he continued performing, fearing the consequences of revealing his condition.
“I had to hide [the concussion]. But I realized I was in this thing, this trajectory of going to WrestleMania 30. I had gotten a bad concussion, but I had to hide it, and was doing live events with the concussion,” Bryan explained.He further detailed the severity of his condition, stating, “Then I was wrestling one match. After the match, I was in the shower, and I couldn’t even stand. I was riding by myself,and I had to ask a friend to drive me to the next town.”
Adding to the complexity of the situation, Bryan married his wife on the Friday before WrestleMania and embarked on a honeymoon to Maui, Hawaii. While he described the eco-retreat as “awesome,” he continued to suffer from post-concussion symptoms, experiencing persistent dizziness.”I was looking up, and you had this portal to the moon, but the room just wouldn’t stop spinning,” he said.He also acknowledged belatedly recognizing the seriousness of his repeated head injuries after reading Chris nowinski’s book on concussions, admitting he had previously downplayed their severity.
The emotional strain intensified upon his return from the honeymoon. On Saturday, he and his wife flew to baltimore – the city where he previously won the World Heavyweight Championship by cashing in his Money in the Bank contract – only to receive the devastating news the following morning of his father’s unexpected death.
“So people ask me about WrestleMania 30. Honestly, that whole thing was a blur,” Bryan confessed. “So I don’t remember them telling me.”
At WrestleMania 30, Bryan defeated Triple H in the opening match. He then went on to win the Undisputed WWE Championship in the main event, overcoming Randy Orton and Batista in a Triple Threat Match. https://411mania.com/wrestling/bryan-danielson-said-main-eventing-wrestlemania-30-didnt-mean-a-lot-to-him/
Bryan’s account provides a stark and honest look behind the spectacle of professional wrestling, highlighting the physical and emotional toll it can take on performers.His story underscores the importance of concussion awareness and the need for athletes to prioritize their health and well-being.