WWE: Kip Up – Daniel Bryan’s journey
When you talk about some of the greatest performers in the history of the business, you talk about those people who, against the odds have proved their worth. From humble beginnings to bearing with the hardships, to overcoming the obstacles in their path, there are very few ‘wrestlers’ who have won the hearts of their peers and fans alike. It’s important to note the term ‘wrestlers’, and not ‘superstars’. For many people in the business, being a ‘wrestler’ gives more meaning to their dreams and ambitions than being a ‘superstar’ or a ‘performer’. Many of these guys have grown up watching the old school wrestlers, from Ric Flairs to Stan Hansens to Giant Babas, and they fell in love with the wrestling industry as they learned more. For them, wrestling in front of 200 people was the same as wrestling in front of thousands, and these are the guys who make a name for themselves in the independent scene. These guys are known as the ‘indy darlings’, those who don’t care about the big league, but perform because they love the fans and the business. Colt Cabana, Nigel McGuinness are a few of those names, and there is one more person who gave everything he had for a decade for the fans, traveling all over the world and made a name for himself as the best technical wrestler. He is known to the more passionate fans as ‘The American Dragon’, Bryan Danielson a.k.a Daniel Bryan.
Not going too much into the history of Daniel Bryan (Which I will do in due time), the fans around the world rejoiced when they heard he had signed with WWE in ’09. Daniel Bryan performed in the very first season of NXT, and although he didn’t emerge as the winner as all the fans had hoped for, he was a part of the Nexus group that attacked John Cena on RAW. After the tie-gate incident, Bryan returned to the WWE as a fan favourite, taking on Nexus. Since then, it has been a difficult ride for Bryan, and he has witnessed the ups and downs in the WWE within just three years of signing with the biggest organization in the world.
Vince McMahon has trouble pushing guys he doesn’t make. You have the Ric Flairs and Goldbergs who were huge names in professional wrestling business, one who carried NWA on his shoulders and the other who was arguably the biggest name in WCW, but both of them weren’t given their due credit in the WWE. Vince likes making his own stars, and that is where everyone thought Bryan would suffer. Add to that the fact that Bryan isn’t exactly a ‘big guy’ by any means made the fans pessimistic about his chances in the WWE. But Bryan put all those doubts to rest when he won the WWE United States championship, and later the World Heavyweight championship, which received great response from the fans and his peers.