Bryan Danielson's dream match in AEW didn't impress WWE Hall of Famer
Reigning AEW World Champion Bryan Danielson had a dream match against Nigel McGuinness at Dynamite: Grand Slam 2024. He defeated the former ROH World Champion in a singles match last week. However, the match didn't live up to the expectations of WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray.
Danielson and McGuinness were bitter rivals during their time in ROH in the 2000s. Therefore, when the opportunity presented itself, the latter didn't let it slide and challenged The American Dragon to a match at Dynamite: Grand Slam 2024.
Danielson was initially supposed to defend his AEW World Title against Darby Allin at Dynamite: Grand Slam, but a brutal assault from Jon Moxley at All Out sent him on a brief hiatus, thereby canceling the bout.
The reigning champion returned at Dynamite: Grand Slam and defeated McGuinness in the latter's first singles match since December 2011. In a recent episode of the Busted Open After Dark podcast, Bully Ray discussed whether Bryan Danielson and Nigel McGuinness' dream match lived up to the hype.
"Did it meet the expectations of the buildup? No, I did not think so. I would've gone about this completely differently. There was an opportunity to tell a story throughout the thread of the show and pay it off in the end. Not only did we get the match, we got it right off the bat," he said. [H/T: Wrestling Inc.]
Tommy Dreamer comments on the Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness match
Former ECW World Champion Tommy Dreamer also gave his views on the Bryan Danielson vs. Nigel McGuinness encounter. The veteran said that he enjoyed the match and its storyline very much.
"I enjoyed it! I enjoyed the story and got the magnitude of the match just by the two of them standing in front of each other. More impressed with Nigel McGuinness that he has, like I said, not had a match in a long, long time, went the distance; I enjoyed the end. At the end of the day, I really truly feel if I could quadruple down on my original thought, this is to get the match down before we say goodbye to Bryan Danielson," Tommy said.
Meanwhile, Danielson will defend his title against his friend-turned-rival Jon Moxley at WrestleDream 2024. This rivalry started when The Purveyor of Violence turned his back on The American Dragon and attacked him at All Out 2024. Moxley earned a shot at Bryan's title after defeating Darby Allin last Wednesday.