Daniel Bryan’s WWE contract legitimately expired last week after his title-versus-career match against Roman Reigns on Friday’s Smackdown. The news was first reported by Fightful and has been independently confirmed.
The nature of Bryan’s sendoff, without any fanfare, indicates that WWE is still optimistic they can keep him in the fold. It would be a lackluster way for Daniel Bryan to leave WWE, despite strong booking in his final matches.
The Return of Bryan Danielson?
Daniel Bryan has been talking about his contract expiring in recent interviews. The former WWE Champion told TV Line last week,
“It’s funny that people gravitate towards the date ‘September,’ and I think it’s because that’s when my last contract ended, but it doesn’t end in September,”
Bryan also made some very interesting comments later in the interview about what his wrestling plans could entail. Making a big point about being an independent contractor.
“One of the coolest things about wrestling, and just be being an independent contractor in general, is that you can say, ‘Well, I really only want to do this amount of work.’”
Either way, it looks as if Daniel Bryan is planning on taking a break to spend time with family and give his neck a rest. However, his words definitely speak of a man who is not yet completely done with in-ring competition.
