Minutes to Bell Time

                    5 Dream Opponents for Daniel Bryan

                    Image Credit: WWE

                    5 Dream Opponents for Daniel Bryan

                    Fightful, Wrestling Observer, and PW Insider have all confirmed that Daniel Bryan’s WWE contract has expired. This explains the “banished from Smackdown” stipulation and WWE’s actions in moving Bryan to the alumni section of their website.

                    While PW Insider has reported that both Bryan and WWE are talking, it’s fun to stop and think about what the future might hold if Bryan decides to leave WWE or take dates with other companies.

                    Here are the Minutes To Bell Time Top 5 Matches for Daniel Bryan. I’ll preface this list by saying that I didn’t look for the most obvious opponents. I tried to look at the situation and suggest matches where I think Daniel could do the most good for pro wrestling while still giving us a variety of can’t miss matches.

                    Number 5 – Jonathan Gresham from Ring of Honor

                    Image Credit: Reality of Wrestling Twitter

                    Jonathan Gresham is the current ROH Pure Champion and one of the best technical wrestlers competing today. Gresham won the Pure title in a tournament last year when ROH returned following their pandemic shut down.

                    The Pure Championship was vacated 14 years ago when Nigel McGuinness lost a title unification bout to . . . Bryan Danielson. It makes perfect sense that Daniel Bryan would return to Ring of Honor and request a title match for a championship that he won and truly never lost.

                    Number 4 – TJP from Impact Wrestling

                    Image Credit: TJP’s Twitter

                    When TJP won WWE’s cruiserweight classic, Daniel Bryan was not an active competitor. In fact, Bryan was inactive for the majority of TJP’s WWE run. Bryan’s commentary during the Cruiserweight Classic was magical as he sung the praises of TJP. We celebrated TJP’s victory because it seemingly meant as much to Bryan as it did to TJP himself.

                    TJP’s days after WWE were much more successful than his days within WWE. We have seen him wrestle in New Japan and MLW, but TJP’s most consistent work has been within an Impact ring. Daniel Bryan and TJP match up well against each other as both rely on submissions. Bryan can at times be more of a striker while TJP mixes in a bit more high flying offense. Given the right platform and plenty of time, these two could have a match of the year.

                    Number 3 – Zack Sabre Junior from New Japan Pro Wrestling

                    Image Credit: New Japan Pro Wrestling

                    My research shows that Zack Sabre Jr. and Daniel Bryan had a pair of matches in 2008 and 2009. The 2008 match is pretty easy to find in your google machine. These matches took place 12 and 13 years ago respectively, and it was largely way before either man became a household name. Zack has perfected his unique submission style of wrestling, while Bryan has gone on to wrestle in the biggest arenas and stadiums around the world. If Daniel Bryan were to do limited matches or a retirement tour, let’s make sure that these two cross paths. If they do get together, let’s lobby for wrestling’s biggest stage outside of WWE: New Japan Pro Wrestling’s Wrestle Kingdom!

                    Number 2 – Hangman Page from All Elite Wrestling

                    Image Credit: Hangman Page’s Twitter

                    Adam Page is young, and it’s only a matter of time before he holds the top prize in All Elite Wrestling. He competed against Chris Jericho and lost in the first ever AEW World Championship match, and he lost in the finals of the All Elite Wrestling World Championship Eliminator Tournament. Aside from those two losses and a recent loss on Dynamite to Brian Cage, Adam Page rarely loses a match.

                    Page is now and has been a star just waiting to break out! What he (and every break out star) needs is to have excellent matches that cause everyone to take notice. We know the anxious millennial cowboy is capable of high quality matches. When you combine the rising star potential of Adam Page with Daniel Bryan’s experience and notoriety, this match could be all that’s needed to blast Adam Page into absolute super stardom.

                    Number 1 – Nick Aldis from the National Wrestling Alliance

                    Image Credit: NWA's Twitter Account

                    Image Credit: NWA Twitter

                    The National Wrestling Alliance is like the little engine that could in pro wrestling. President Billy Corgan pulled the brand out of obscurity, and the company has battled to stay relevant amid a variety of challenges including both the speaking out movement and the pandemic.

                    Aldis toured the world defending the 10 Pounds of Gold on the Independent scene, and he and the NWA quickly and effectively established Aldis as a true World’s Champion.

                    Aldis wrestles, talks, and dresses like a star, but he has a major problem. He needs high caliber and respected opponents! Bryan would bring the NWA all the attention they deserve, create new subscribers to the NWA FITE program, and most importantly Daniel Bryan v. Nick Aldis would be a killer match!

                    There Are Others

                    Of course, Will Ospreay, Kenny Omega, MJF, and dozens of other wrestlers would make great opponents for Daniel Bryan. In fact, those would all be big money matches. In this list, I focused on thinking about where Daniel could have the biggest impact. These are all cases where Bryan could raise the profile of the promotion, create new stars, and have a killer match.

                    Hope you enjoyed the list.

                    Share this: