How long has Bryan Danielson wanted to face Zack Sabre Jr.? It might have been one of the reasons he left WWE - Reports
AEW fans will be treated to a technical dream match at WrestleDream on October 1 when Bryan Danielson goes one-on-one with Zack Sabre Jr., but was this match a reason why the American Dragon left WWE in 2021?
Danielson joined AEW in 2021 after his WWE contract expired, leading to the American Dragon wrestling a whole host of dream matches in the two years since his debut.
One match that everyone wanted was Bryan against current NJPW World Television Champion Zack Sabre Jr., a man who, over the past 10 years, has established himself as one of the best technical wrestlers in the world. But if you ask the man himself, he has already surpassed the former WWE Champion.
In the most recent edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer gave some background on the upcoming dream match and stated that the bout was high on Bryan Danielson's list of priorities.
"The Sabre match is something he’s wanted dating back to when he studied Sabre’s matches and felt he was an in-ring genius going back many years. When he made the call to leave WWE, the idea of a match with Sabre was high on his priorities. But tithe ming of his injuries and COVID shutting down the world delayed it by several years," said Dave Meltzer.
The NJPW star has called out Bryan on TV numerous times, with the most notable example being on the debut episode of ROH on HonorClub, where Zack looked right down the lens of the camera and told Danielson that he was the best technical wrestler in the world.
Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr. will actually be a rubber match
The idea of the two best technical wrestlers in the world facing each other for the first time sounds mouthwatering for modern wrestling fans, but did you know that Bryan and Zack have actually faced each other twice before?
The first match took place back in March 2008, when Danielson and Sabre Jr. faced each other in a two-out-of-three falls match in Coventry, England. Bryan eventually walked away as the winner with two falls over Zack's one.
They would eventually cross paths again a year later in wXw's annual 16 Carat Gold Tournament in Germany. Zack and Bryan would meet in the quarter-finals, where the NJPW star would get the better of the American Dragon to advance in the tournament.
However, Bryan Danielson would eventually get the last laugh over Zack Sabre Jr. as he would go on to win the wXw World Heavyweight Championship on the same night, while Zack would end up getting eliminated from the tournament the following day by eventual winner Shingo Takagi.
Are you excited for Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre Jr.? Let us know in the comments section below!
Please credit the Wrestling Observer Newsletter and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling when using quotes from this article.