Why AEW's Bryan Danielson Tried To Get WWE To Fire Him On Talking Smack

In 2017, not long after Bryan Danielson (AKA Daniel Bryan in WWE) first retired from wrestling due to injuries, the former ROH star was chosen to co-host "Talking Smack" alongside Renee Young. The "WWE SmackDown" post-show was exclusive to the WWE Network, and many fans at the time noticed Danielson seemingly pushing boundaries further than his employer might normally allow. During a recent interview with Fightful, Danielson confirmed that he was trying to get fired at the time.

"I had been forced to retire, but I thought I could come back to wrestling," Danielson said. "For a long time, they weren't letting me come back to wrestling, and so I was like, 'Oh, maybe if I do this, I can get fired.'"

Danielson's plan was to go wrestle elsewhere, even though AEW wouldn't come into existence until 2019. That likely would've meant Danielson would travel to Japan, along with a possible return to Ring of Honor in the United States. As it turned out, though, Danielson did not get fired, and WWE cleared him to return to the ring in 2018. He wrestled there for several more years before joining AEW in 2022, once his contract expired.

Along with his run on "Talking Smack," the interview featured Danielson fondly recalling some of his time doing commentary for WWE while he was unable to wrestle. Now that he's again retired from wrestling full-time, it was recently announced that Danielson will join commentary for "AEW Dynamite" on a regular basis, stepping in for Tony Schiavone after nearly six years.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Fightful and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.