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WWE: Should Daniel Bryan Leave, Fans and Wrestlers Alike Will Follow

By John Brown

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With his contract set to expire in September, Daniel Bryan is looking to get back to performing in the ring.  WWE needs to prepare for the fact that the eyes that following his new landing place may see an alternative to their product.

In a not-so-cryptic tweet this past June, Daniel Bryan provided speculation as to when his WWE contract might be coming to an end.

He gave further insight into his intentions to return to the ring when appearing on Edge and Christian’s podcast.

There are two things that even the most casual wrestling fans can take from the information provided: Daniel Bryan wants to wrestle again, and the WWE most likely will not let him do it in their ring.

If Bryan leaves, he will serve as the kingpin of a movement in which both former WWE and never-WWE (That’s a phrase, right?) professional wrestlers have discovered potential career success and longevity that rivals what the McMahons can provide.  Many wrestlers have made careers for themselves outside of the WWE,  and other major companies such as WCW, ECW, and TNA.

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However, the emergence of The Bullet Club in New Japan Pro Wrestling, which spawned a partnership between Bullet Club members and Hot Topic resulting in massive t-shirt sales, has provided the wrestling industry with the realization that options are out there that are equally or more financially lucrative than  what the WWE offers – and can come with more autonomy and a working schedule that is a bit more docile.

Two former WWE wrestlers have recently invested in what a cultivating over in Japan.  After multiple Intercontinental Championship runs and a proven body of work, Cody Rhodes was stuck in the WWE in his role as Stardust.

Upon leaving the WWE, he has been showcased as a main event talent in every organization he was worked for, has just completed an incredibly successful run as Ring of Honor Heavyweight Champion, and is currently cashing as a member of the Bullet Club and its deal with Hot Topic.

Future first-ballot WWE Hall-of-Famer Chris Jericho just competed in a classic match with Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 12 that was arguably the most-anticipated match in the history of NJPW.  Not only was the match anticipated by the NJPW faithful, but it also resulted in a fresh batch of eyes being placed on NJPW’s product thanks to the presence of the legendary Jericho and resulted in thousands of purchases of the NJPW World streaming service.

Credit WWE.com:

Cody Rhodes and Chris Jericho have brought new eyes to non-WWE pro wrestling products.

Cody Rhodes had a great run in WWE, and Chris Jericho’s career is one matched by few others.  However, neither had a singular storyline approach the impact of Daniel Bryan’s “Yes! Movement” leading into WrestleMania 30.  Coincidentally, the demand to see Bryan at the top of the professional wrestling mountain is stemmed from the legend he became as “The American Dragon” Bryan Danielson on the indies and in Japan.

This demand saw him in successful storylines upon entering WWE, but the genesis of a movement began at WrestleMania 28 as the fans Miami’s Sun Life Stadium chanted “YES!” in unison, only to have Bryan get Brogue Kick-ed by Sheamus and lose the World Heavyweight Championship.

For the first time, the WWE audience was robbed of seeing Daniel Bryan have his moment.  Thankfully, WWE was listening.

His loss to Sheamus sparked a two-year odyssey that formulated into the “Yes! Movement”.  This storyline was built around the idea that Vince McMahon and his merry band of yes men could not fathom the sight of seeing Daniel Bryan as WWE Champion, a storyline built on the perceived reality of McMahon’s true opinion of Bryan’s appropriate position within his company.  This storyline culminated in Daniel Bryan winning the main event of WrestleMania 30 and becoming the biggest and most universally-supported babyface in the company.

Credit: WWE.com.  Bryan’s “Yes! Movement” provided a storyline that made him the biggest babyface in the world.

Reality is playing a part in the supposed present-day issues between Daniel Bryan and WWE. Since “retiring” due to injury in 2016, Bryan has stated on numerous occasions that his own doctors have cleared him to compete in the ring again, but it is the WWE doctors that have yet to clear him to do so.  WWE is undoubtedly protecting their global enterprise here.

Unfortunately for WWE, Bryan’s contract expires in September of this year.  Should WWE not allow him to wrestle, which is exactly what Bryan wants to do, they could be looking at him becoming the biggest non-WWE star in the world, and the catalyst of the movement that Bullet Club started, and Rhodes and Jericho have brought to a broader audience.

Daniel Bryan is the poster boy of the notion, justified for not, that the WWE has its own agenda regardless of who really should be the face(s) of the company, a notion that began with the rise and departure of CM Punk and overlapped into Bryan’s situation.

That very notion is not only on full display as Bryan inches towards the final months of his contract, but is the notion held and hated by the very diehard fans who follow other wrestling products other than WWE.  Should the symbol of WWE’s assumed oppression leave, his fans will follow in droves.  They won’t immediately leave the WWE product all together, but they will be exposed to other options for professional wrestling….

…and so will members of the WWE roster.

There is a reason so many dream of one day becoming a WWE superstar, and now they are featured on five hours or more of cable television per week, and are forever archived on the WWE Network.  Millions of fans love you, a love formed thanks to the fact you are a member of the current by-far number one wrestling promotion in the world.

WWE provides these performers with a worldwide platform that requires a very demanding schedule and set of requirements.  What the company asks of its employees does not always correlate with what the employee sees for his/her career.

The Young Bucks, who have spearheaded the Bullet Club merchandise campaign, have said that they have no interest in joining the WWE because they currently have creative say in the development of their characters, and also have a softer schedule than that of WWE.

Despite never being under contract with WWE, the Young Bucks have become one of the top tag teams on the planet, and their shirts (along with other Bullet Club shirts) can be seen worn by multiple members of the WWE audience at every show.

The aforementioned Cody Rhodes found that the restrictions that the WWE contained did not agree with what he had planned for his own career, thus his success since leaving in 2016. The Young Bucks and Rhodes are proof that there is fame to be sought in professional wrestling without being cultivated by WWE, and should be seen as such by both those who have yet to make it to WWE, and those who are currently there but are afraid to seek life elsewhere.

The floodgates are already open to seek life elsewhere.  Should Bryan depart, those floodgates will turn to full-blown canyons.

Bryan still wants to wrestle and is a new father.  Life as an independent wrestler, especially considering the pay day he could now request, is a glove-fit for him.  Wherever he goes, eyes of millions of wrestling fans will follow, and the movement of seeking alternative wrestling fame outside of WWE will become a norm.  Some legitimate competition could be good for WWE, whose programming has been described as being lazy at times.

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When WCW once threatened their existence, they stepped their game up to the highest level.  If they wish to remain on top without a close second place company, they may want to consider letting Bryan wrestle.  That seems highly unlikely, however.  In that case, WWE, and the entire wrestling industry, needs to prepare for the next evolution of the business the second Daniel Bryan’s contract expires.

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