Backstage details on Bryan Danielson wrapping up his full-time career with AEW WrestleDream

Details of Bryan Danielson’s final full-time run have reportedly emerged following his loss to Jon Moxley at AEW WrestleDream.

Moxley won his fourth AEW World Championship in the main event, ending Danielson’s full-time wrestling career via a referee stoppage before making it all clear after the match alongside the reunited Blackpool Combat Club. Fightful Select has since reported that Danielson specifically wanted Moxley to be the one to end his farewell title run. According to Fightful, “The American Dragon” entered the fight with a number of legitimate injuries that caused him to change his decision to play the three matches prior to the Tacoma event – a tag match alongside Wheeler Yuta against the BCC, a title – to be questioned vs. title fight with Kazuchika Okada and a non-title fight with Nigel McGuinness.

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The report also notes that Danielson has legitimately been working without a contract for the past few months, something Danielson mentioned before challenging Swerve Strickland for the title at All In, and that he is effectively a free agent. However, Fightful said AEW hopes Danielson will stay with the company, wrestle regularly and take on other duties when he’s ready; Danielson himself said he would have to have his neck treated first, probably through surgery.

Although there were doubts about his condition, AEW reportedly planned for Danielson to win the title from Strickland earlier this year, and that remained the plan after Strickland’s own title victory over Samoa Joe at Dynasty in April. Fightful claims Strickland insisted on tapping Danielson in that fight rather than getting knocked out or something similar in order to jump-start Danielson’s first and final world title run in AEW.

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