The Official WWE / NXT Discussion Thread *May Contain Spoilers*

[K-Nection]

My cable cut out during the middle of the speech so now I have to wait until it's up on Hulu tomorrow to watch it.

 

It was heart wrenching....I could barely watch it. He tried to stay positive but it was killing me to see it.

[AfRoMaN36]

Yeah I was really holding onto some faint hope that it's some work. I'm glad I at least got to see his farewell address. But I've got to say I feel deflated. Bryan was really the only reason I followed wrestling since Punk left.

[MrSelfDestruct]

I still think its dumb WWE is forcing him to retire two doctors cleared him. To hell with safety concerns.

 

I doubt they are forcing him and honestly even if they are, in their positioin with the Benoit situation I don't think they have a choice. The guy started wrestling so young and hes wrestled at a higher pace conisistently than just about anyone. In his 16 year career I guarentee hes faced more concussions than Cena.. why? because the guy is the best at what he does and puts his heart into it and happens to be very good and knows how to excite the fans despite his obvious limiations in size.. sound familiar?

 

You only have one brain, and he can't just tone it down and hope not to get another one and see how many before he gets hurt permanently, he may ALREADY end up with some damage if pro football and concussions have shown us anything. I'd bet my left nut Benoit had CTE, and I'm sorry it scares me to even think about that happening again. I respect this man for knowing when to give it up before he can't have the potential of getting better.

[Warhawk8492]

I doubt they are forcing him and honestly even if they are, in their positioin with the Benoit situation I don't think they have a choice. The guy started wrestling so young and hes wrestled at a higher pace conisistently than just about anyone. In his 16 year career I guarentee hes faced more concussions than Cena.. why? because the guy is the best at what he does and puts his heart into it and happens to be very good and knows how to excite the fans despite his obvious limiations in size.. sound familiar?

 

You only have one brain, and he can't just tone it down and hope not to get another one and see how many before he gets hurt permanently, he may ALREADY end up with some damage if pro football and concussions have shown us anything. I'd bet my left nut Benoit had CTE, and I'm sorry it scares me to even think about that happening again. I respect this man for knowing when to give it up before he can't have the potential of getting better.

 

He should not be forced to retire, which I think WWE is forcing him to because they are paranoid.

[MrSelfDestruct]

He should not be forced to retire, which I think WWE is forcing him to because they are paranoid.

 

or logical..

[Crychon]

He should not be forced to retire, which I think WWE is forcing him to because they are paranoid.

 

I only saw the first half of the speech *shakes fist at the internet gods*, but early on he said that another test was run last week that showed things not being as healthy as the other tests showed.

 

I loved the guy as a performer, but I don't want to see anyone completely destroy their health for my amusement.

 

If this means he gets to live a healthy life after wrestling, then good for him!

[The Final Countdown]

I only saw the first half of the speech *shakes fist at the internet gods*, but early on he said that another test was run last week that showed things not being as healthy as the other tests showed.

 

I loved the guy as a performer, but I don't want to see anyone completely destroy their health for my amusement.

 

If this means he gets to live a healthy life after wrestling, then good for him!

I saw most of it, but my DVR cut out right as he started talking about his dad.

 

Yeah, it sounded like he was still bound and determined to come back, and probably would have even if he had to leave WWE to do it, but his recent test changed his mind. If that can be taken at face value, and I feel like it can given how genuine and heartfelt everything else he said was, it makes me feel better to know that this wasn't simply WWE playing it safe even though he'd been cleared by everyone else.

 

I can truthfully say that I might not be on this board without Bryan's work in ROH. At a time where I was pretty well checked out of WWE and wrestling in general, guys like Punk, Samoa Joe, AJ, Christopher Daniels and especially Bryan Danielson drew me back in. Without that era, I may very well have tuned out of wrestling for good, especially after the Benoit tragedy.

 

I'd have to say that he and Bret Hart rank as my two all-time favorites. I'm going to miss seeing him in the ring, especially considering all of the potential opponents that would have either been fresh matchups or guys he hadn't worked with since his indy days: Zayn, Owens, Joe, Balor, Lesnar, AJ...heck, even the dream match he'd wanted for years with Shinsuke Nakamura suddenly looked possible.

 

But above all, I want him to have a long and happy life. It sucks that he had to retire far earlier than anyone expected or he wanted, but I can say with absolute certainty that if he had become the next wrestling tragedy, I would have walked away from my lifelong wrestling fandom and never looked back.

[lr10540]

I was already crying by the 3 minute mark. Seeing his facial expressions and hearing the agony in his voice was so difficult to bear through.

 

I was real late to join the DB bandwagon. I initially thought the yes (and no) chants were stupid and incredibly annoying. However, the more I watched him wrestle, the more of a fan I became. He put everything into his performances. The way he flew around and used his body like he had a thousand more at his disposal was very captivating. Unfortunately, just like Edge, it has come with a steep cost. His career is now over. The fan in me is mad and disappointed and heartbroken that I won't get to see him wrestle Brock Lesnar or Shinsuke or maybe Angle at next year's Mania. The human in me is very troubled to hear about that mpst recent test. More than anything I want him to be okay in life.

 

I haven't felt this sad since Edge retired. The last year has sucked with all the deaths, the injuries crippling the card the last number of months and now this news.

 

I'd love to see him as an announcer. He has a charm about him that I feel would resonate well. That coupled with his knowledge of wrestling, I think he'd be money with a headset.

[Jaysin]

Not gonna lie, I cried my eyes out.

[K-Nection]

I was already crying by the 3 minute mark. Seeing his facial expressions and hearing the agony in his voice was so difficult to bear through.

 

I was real late to join the DB bandwagon. I initially thought the yes (and no) chants were stupid and incredibly annoying. However, the more I watched him wrestle, the more of a fan I became. He put everything into his performances. The way he flew around and used his body like he had a thousand more at his disposal was very captivating. Unfortunately, just like Edge, it has come with a steep cost. His career is now over. The fan in me is mad and disappointed and heartbroken that I won't get to see him wrestle Brock Lesnar or Shinsuke or maybe Angle at next year's Mania. The human in me is very troubled to hear about that mpst recent test. More than anything I want him to be okay in life.

 

I haven't felt this sad since Edge retired. The last year has sucked with all the deaths, the injuries crippling the card the last number of months and now this news.

 

I'd love to see him as an announcer. He has a charm about him that I feel would resonate well. That coupled with his knowledge of wrestling, I think he'd be money with a headset.

 

Yea I wasn't a true fan of his until I seen that Money in the bank match where he won. That was the night that got me behind him. CM Punk is a guy that resparked my interest in WWE but Daniel Bryan was the other half of the reason I watched. It's going to be hard for me to tune in knowing for sure that both of them are not coming back.

[milamber]

[TheCrippler]

He should not be forced to retire, which I think WWE is forcing him to because they are paranoid.

 

With all the players retiring from the NFL early and all the news about concussions causing CTE, I think he and his wife made the decision together. Bryan said they want to start a family and he wants to be around to see his kids grow up. I was hoping it was a work, but after watching the speech it was clear to me he made this decision after getting some news that while yes he could continue to wrestle, but knew there was a huge risk. I don't think the WWE played much of a role in his decision....they just looked like an NFL team keeping a player out another week because of a concussion.

[Mootinie]

I started welling up when he first mentioned how grateful he was and then I well and truly lost it when he bought up his Dad.

 

What a wonderful human being.

[crownsy]

I hope they find a way to involve him in the show, be it as a manager, authority figure, commentator, or otherwise. I also wonder if this is the matter coming to a head between WWE and DB.

 

As others have posted, and I understand it, WWE "Stopped the clock" on Bryan's contract for long term injury, and would not give him his release. Retirement would start the clock running again.

 

Hopefully it was truly mutual, and not just "well fine, I'll retire then, and in a few years when my contract is up, I'm walking and going back to NJPW."

[eayragt]

Yea I wasn't a true fan of his until I seen that Money in the bank match where he won. That was the night that got me behind him. CM Punk is a guy that resparked my interest in WWE but Daniel Bryan was the other half of the reason I watched. It's going to be hard for me to tune in knowing for sure that both of them are not coming back.

 

That match... that night, goodness it was awesome. I've always like him, but never thought he would make it in WWE. And then he won an awesome match and the crowd went bananas. That was emotional enough, but nothing compared to this.

 

Sure, he barely won a match in the next 6 months, but once he cashed in he built a momentum not even the company could stop. Try as they might.

[Rone Rivendale]

I'm lucky, I got to watch Bryan way back when he was in ROH through the weekly YouTube videos that ROH itself would produce. Back then, Byran, Nigel, The Briscoes, and The Kings of Wrestling were on top and involved in something every week. All of them managed to have brilliant careers (outside of Nigel, due to injuries)

 

I was surprised USA allowed them to take 25 minutes of over time this week. Sure as heck glad they did though. It was one of those epic moments in wrestling like the day Shane bought WCW, or the first time Scott Hall showed up on Nitro. You never forget those moments.

[Greylocke]

Yikes, apparently, according to Bryan's interview on ESPN, the guy has had like 10 documented concussions and seizures over the years. Whatever WWE's motivation might have been, selfish or altruistic, I'm pretty sure they just did Bryan a favour. Let the poor guy retire while he can still enjoy life.

 

Chris Benoit would probably wish the WWE had "forced him to retire".

[lr10540]

So Titus has been suspended for upwards on 90 days due to playfully pushing Vince (something along those lines) after Raw went off air.

 

 

So much for his push!

[milamber]

Yikes, apparently, according to Bryan's interview on ESPN, the guy has had like 10 documented concussions and seizures over the years. Whatever WWE's motivation might have been, selfish or altruistic, I'm pretty sure they just did Bryan a favour. Let the poor guy retire while he can still enjoy life.

 

Chris Benoit would probably wish the WWE had "forced him to retire".

 

http://www.cagesideseats.com/wwe/2016/2/9/10956608/daniel-bryan-concussion-seizures-wrestling-wwe

[K-Nection]

So Titus has been suspended for upwards on 90 days due to playfully pushing Vince (something along those lines) after Raw went off air.

 

 

So much for his push!

 

Vince gave him a push alright!

 

http://whatculture.com/wwe/wwe-suspends-titus-oneil-for-grabbing-vince-mcmahon-on-raw.php

 

I think that might be a little ridiculous on both of their parts. Vince wants his talent to be more outgoing and the second somebody shows him there personality they are reprimanded....yea and you wondered why nobody wants to reach for the brass ring? Because they get shoved back down and suspended.

 

Well Titus and Darren will be forming a new tag team called the Pre Show Jobbers.

[crownsy]

Vince gave him a push alright!

 

http://whatculture.com/wwe/wwe-suspends-titus-oneil-for-grabbing-vince-mcmahon-on-raw.php

 

I think that might be a little ridiculous on both of their parts. Vince wants his talent to be more outgoing and the second somebody shows him there personality they are reprimanded....yea and you wondered why nobody wants to reach for the brass ring? Because they get shoved back down and suspended.

 

Well Titus and Darren will be forming a new tag team called the Pre Show Jobbers.

 

I know this is the popular IWC take, but I cannot WAIT until Vince retires. He is so out of touch with what his audience actually wants to see, and his constant rewrites of the M/E scene have been cited by numerous ex-writers as why the storylines seem to change week to week with no buildup.

 

I mean, you can almost feel what story lines Vince is involved in and those he isn't by how out of touch they are.

 

for example Chances Vince is involved in the cringe worthy "zany Rtruth keeps mistaking Golddust asking him to be his tag team partner for wanting to bang him! Those silly gays, can't trust em to not try to get at that stright man's dick, amiright???" are 99.9999999%

 

Meanwhile, I feel like AJ's story line is all triple H's baby, because it's proceeding so much like a well booked, NXT storyline. It is playing to AJ's strengths (presence, ring ability, short and sweet statements), and playing down his weaknesses (long Promo's).

 

Give me Steph and Hunter booking ASAP please. It might suck, but at least it won't be this out of touch garbage where a guy joking around gets 90 days for touching the boss and everyone is (rumored) to be afraid to try to embrace creative's storylines or go to creative with anything because they know once Vince get's his hands on it, it will be spit back to them as something else.

[KeyserSoze]

About Bryan Danielson, one of my favourites quotes

"The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long - and you have burned so very, very brightly, Roy."

[Mootinie]

Vince handles AJ Styles' booking personally.

[crownsy]

Vince handles AJ Styles' booking personally.

 

Doubt it. hes a "small guy" from another company. Doubt Vince gives a darn about what i'm sure he would admit in private he thinks is a "mid carder at best"

 

You know how I know? he hasn't been booked in a 10 minute talking segment about tater tots yet, ala roman.

 

At this point, if your a guy getting the Vince rub because of your size and look, you have to be thinking "please god no" based on how he's booked reigns right? I mean sure, you get the big checks, but not sure your really benefiting from Vince's idea of a rocket push in 2016.

[guyver3]

Vince is paying AJ a half million a year if reports are true which is also the reason Vince is personally handling AJ.