Inside Pulse Wrestling | EXCLUSIVE: Daniel Bryan/Bryan Danielson Really Released by WWE: Not a Work

EXCLUSIVE: Daniel Bryan/Bryan Danielson Really Released by WWE: Not a Work

by Aaron Glazer on June 12, 2010

Numerous independent sources close to Bryan Danielson himself have confirmed, the Daniel Bryan/Bryan Danielson release is NOT a work.

Dave Meltzer earlier stated that several higher up WWE sources are insisting that this is legitimate and due to Danielson choking out Justin Roberts with his own tie. While we cannot confirm the cause, we can confirm that this is not a work- he really is released. You can view video of the Justin Roberts incident and the rest of the NXT Rookie Invasion here.

Former ROH and Current DG USA and Evolve Booker Gabe Sapolsky has added “If it is a work, they are going through a lot of elaborate stuff to work me, which would be bizarre because I don’t work for WWE nor can I ever do anything to get one of their angles over” to his facebook page. Sapolsky is a long time Danielson confidant.

Aaron Glazer is a Senior Staff Writer at www.PulseWrestling.com and Editor at www.ComicsNexus.com. You can follow him on twitter/pulseglazer for updates on all of his News and Columns, or e-mail hbk826@gmail.com with any questions or comments.

Tags: Bryan Danielson, Daniel Bryan, justin roberts, NXT, nxt rookie invasion, Raw, WWE, WWE Release

Aaron Glazer

view profile »

Aaron Glazer is senior editor at Pulse Wrestling and editor and reviewer at The Comics Nexus. Follow him on twitter right here for all the updated news and columns.

Follow on Twitter · Follow on Facebook · Email Aaron Glazer

Recent Posts »

http://majestyofwrestling.blogspot.com Okori

CRAP.
Vincent

Then the director should be cut along with him. He took the shot and kept it there for a while.
http://twitter.com/pulseglazer Aaron Glazer

For the record, I think this is legit and he’ll be back within 2 months.
Chris

Anyone know the WWE e-mail address that I can send a rant and complain to? I’m aware it will do no good, but this is just stupid.
Limodriver

Fuck them. That was an awesome visual. He should be getting a bigger push, not future endeavored.
PlanBFromOuterSpace

“If it is a work, they are going through a lot of elaborate stuff to work me, which would be bizarre because I don’t work for WWE nor can I ever do anything to get one of their angles over”

Wouldn’t the fact that he’s talking about it at all be considered getting the angle over, whether it’s an angle or not, and whether or not he is intentionally doing it? The incident is being discussed outside of WWE-related sources is free advertising for the ‘E, which is a win for them, regardless of what’s actually going on.
Walter Kovacs

It may be a legitimate release that happens to also be a work. Releasing Danielson would let them bring him back in later without him getting lost in the crowd of the NXT Rookie stable.

If nothing else, the reason behind the firing seems like a worked excuse, even if he release isn’t. In whic case it’s like when Matt Hardy was fired during the whole Edge/Lita thing … the whole Internet complainig, rehiring and feud, etc … smacked of work in hindsight.
http://wrestling.insidepulse.com/author/reneke2/ Charlie Reneke

I smell bullshit.
http://comicsnexus.insidepulse.com/author/gmguity/ Greg Manuel

It’s gotta be; wielding a sledgehammer never raised any eyebrows, but this does?
danny b

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jason

I think that, if this is legit, it would have happened one or 2 days after the show, not almost a week later. This fits with my theory that Danielson will join a Cena-led stable of smaller guys against a Cole-led NXT faction. This is 2010 for crying out loud, the internet is going to be used in getting angles over.
battlebowl’92

strange, since until now the talk was of how happy the company was with how it turned out.

pro-wrestling can’t be so sissy now that choking someone with a tie, on the floor, is too violent…
Jim

Vince is just a big Popeye fan, that’s all.

(Think about it, I’ll give you time)
MJ

Horsecrap. One of the best angles I’ve seen in a long time, and to get rid of, IMO, the main player, because an angle was to violent? Kicking an old man in the head, a sledgehammer (good point, BTW), heck, a hammerlock, isn’t too violent? Boy, I miss the real ECW.
Heyman, start a new friggin’ company, pronto!
ICY HOT

If this is a work, what point does it serve? I thought the WWE could care less what us relatively small number of internet folks think anyway. This is just stupid enough to be real.
http://pulsewrestling.com Matthew Michaels

WrestlingObserver.com’s latest on this: “Daniel Bryan was fired after pressure was put on Vince McMahon from an outside source based on the angle on Monday night where Bryan choked out Justin Roberts with his tie.”

http://www.f4wonline.com/content/view/13700/

I kinda hope they’re working everyone, but whatever happens, I really hope Danielson is back on TV eventually. Ugh.
Jamal

We can now confirm that our earlier info on Triple H being responsible for the firing of Bryan Danielson is indeed correct. Our source tells us that while watching Justin Roberts being choked by his own tie Triple H’s children became frightened and burst into tears.

Despite the incident being planned as part of the NXT rookie invasion, the sight of his children’s tears drove Triple H to action. The next day, Triple H confronted Danielson during the Smackdown! tapings and the two had to be torn away from each other. Triple H put a stop to another invasion that was planned for SD for fear of further scaring his kids and them having sleepless nights which would “ruin his weekend” in the words of our source. Triple H then told our source that he wanted Danielson out of the company as soon as possible and convinced Vince to finally terminate his contract.
Tony

So Vince sends the NXT rookies out there without telling the ringside crew what was going to happen because he wanted everyone’s reactions to be genuine. Maybe Vince shouldn’t have kept things so hush-hush and he has no one to blame but himself if things got a little “too real”.

Also I seem to remember at the Breaking Point PPV last year, John Cena handcuffed himself to Randy Orton, which he then used to choke Randy out. Seems as Vince and his “outside source” are hypocrits if Cena is still with the company. I guess Undertaker & Kane better watch out now because they won’t be able to use the chokeslam.
Hamish McKinney

Doesn’t any of this seem a bit like the Brian Pillman firing from WCW in ’96?
Simon

I gotta say that if this truly is Levesque at his worst then he’s an out and out disgrace to wrestling and a hypocrite. If it is not, then this angle is just getting better and better.
http://comicsnexus.insidepulse.com/author/gmguity/ Greg Manuel

For the first time in over twenty years, I’m gonna go with what Simon says. ;)
Roadrunner23

Vince Fucking McMahon fires one of his wrestlers because an outside source put pressure on him? Sounds like WCW run by restaurant managers. Way to go there Vince!

Picture the conversation between McMahon and the NXT Rookies before the assault:
“Make it real…make it damn real”

Then shortly after the assault:
“You were doing great, really great out there. First I didn’t think you could do it…but you did it. Congrats Kids”

Then one day later:
“Bryan, how could you do that? Choking our announcer with his own tie, do you have no decency? Now I have to fire you”

Earnestly, I’m utterly disgusted by this travesty
skeeter

This is clearly due to Linda MacMahon’s run for US Senate. She’s headed to the general election, so the stakes just got much, much higher, and her opponents will be looking for any reason to slam the WWE and, by extension, her.
Firing Danielson was a pre-emptive move to avoid any criticism she’d receive for the violence of that angle (which, ironically, was a big part of the reason it got over so well).
Michael O’Mahony

This is a political move designed to placate an ‘outside source’ over the perceived violence of that particular part of the angle. Danielson is essentially being the fall guy here, which is – in the end – a decent move (he’s the only rookie who really doesn’t need the WWE to make a good living). Danielson made a good impression backstage and with the right people during this run, and word is that he’ll be back sometime shortly after the election. In the meanwhile, we get to see him back on the indie circuit doing what he does best for a while.

It has nothing whatsoever to do with Triple H.

Considering the circumstances and the political situation they were placed in, I’d say WWE management have acted quickly and smartly. The over-reaction to this is ludicrous.
Owangotang

I’m not even a huge Danielson fan (I mean come on, Cattle Mutilation is a glorified pec stretch) but this whole thing is crap.

Allowing an AWESOME angle like the NXT invasion to happen and then firing someone involved in the angle because it may have made a 5 year old cry makes me less of a fan. When I was little WWE had Jake’s cobra biting the Macho Man and Macho injuring Steamboat’s throat to the point of Steamboat losing his voice. The Ultimate Warrior vomited pea soup everywhere because of a voodoo curse. Over in NWA my adolescent self though Magnum T.A. was legitimately going to drive a piece of wood through Tully Blanchard’s skull. Does Danielson’s choking out of an announcer with a tie even remotely compare?

If this is because of a toy deal then Vince needs to try and find those “grapefruits” of his and realize how pathetic that is. If this happened because of Linda’s political aspirations then…well, same answer. What’s worse, the WWE thinking it needs to PG-up in order to get Linda elected or sticking by its’ guns and explaining how WWE television is no more violent or sexual than anything else on tv, movies, or elsewhere today?

This is why I am more interested in UFC these days than WWE…at least until Dana White runs for Congress and decides all UFC bouts will be stopped for first aid whenever someone is busted open.
beezknees

I gotta agree w skeeter. The visual of ‘they’re even going after him’ is part of what sold this and made it work. If this is true, it is just plain stupid. In this case the WWE is biting the hand that fed them for this angle.the truth will lie in if Cole talks shit about him still
mrbuchannan

Well, they managed to kill the hottest angle in wrestling less than one week into it. . .it was nice while it lasted, what a stupid move.
dave

don’t forget he spit in Cena’s face
John Gugie

I did not know who Daniel Bryen was until I started watching nxt season 2 due to the invasion and, even then, I didn’t know any of these guys from season everyone, so I failed to recognize Daniel the 1st time.

I went back and watched season 1 and now watched the 1st invasion attack again to see exactly what Daniel did that was so bad. after seeing the whole Justin tie incident,it’s actually quite funny. Justin’s expression while being choked is just too funny to take seriously.

Triple H’s must be a bunch of sissies if they are the reason for Daniel’s dismissal. If they are, why is he letting them watch wrestling at all? when I was a little kid, I was watching all sorts of horror, action movies, wrestling, etc., so this would not have even phased me.

however, maybe this is a good thing because the controversy made me and probably other wrestling fans, who did not previously know Daniel, recognize his name. I’m definitely a fan now.