By Holden McNeil
As the ROH faithful are well aware, Bryan Danielson will be taking his leave from Ring of Honor very shortly after seven-plus years as part of the ROH roster. From being in the main event of the inaugural show in 2002 to the main event of the most recent “ROH on HDNet” TV tapings, “The American Dragon” has almost done it all during his tenure with ROH. He’s been World Champion, Pure Champion, won the Survival of The Fittest tournament, and faced pretty much everyone who has ever competed in the company. With all he’s accomplished inside the Ring of Honor ring, let’s take a look back at the ROH career of Bryan Danielson.
Danielson has been part of Ring of Honor since day one. Competing in the main event of “The Era of Honor Begins” back in 2002, Danielson battled with Low Ki and Christopher Daniels in a match that truly set the tone for the fledgling company. It was a hard-hitting, intensely athletic, innovative contest where Low Ki picked up the victory and told the wrestling world that ROH was a force to be reckoned with. For Danielson, it was a showcase of his skills and pure wrestling talent as he went toe-to-toe with two of the best wrestlers of the day.
That cold February night was just the beginning for Bryan Danielson. One month later at “Round Robin Challenge”, the future ROH World Champion engaged in two stellar singles matches with Low Ki and Christopher Daniels. The mini-tournament ended in a three way tie after Bryan defeated Low Ki in the main event with Ken Shamrock serving as the special guest referee. “A Night of Appreciation” saw Danielson compete against his fellow TWA Wrestling Academy graduates in a gauntlet challenge where he lost to Spanky. That same night it was also announced that Danielson would compete as part of the ROH Title tournament starting in June of 2002.
At “Road to the Title”, Bryan’s title aspirations came to an abrupt halt in his second match of the night when Doug Williams defeated Dragon to advance to the four man Iron Man match at “Crowning a Champion”. Then at “Honor Invades Boston”, Danielson had his first ROH encounter with Donovan Morgan that ended in a draw. Their second encounter would come at “Unscripted” as part of the ROH Tag Title tournament. That evening Danielson united with Michael Modest as they worked to be crowned the first ROH Tag Team Champions. After beating Divine Storm in the first round, Danielson & Modest ended up getting a bye into the finals after the scheduled Hit Squad/Natural Born Sinners match never took place when The Carnage Crew attacked DHS in the ring and NBS backstage. Ultimately it didn’t matter because Danielson’s first shot at becoming a Tag Team Champion ended in defeat when Chris Daniels & Donovan Morgan came out victorious in the finals.
Undaunted, Danielson focused himself on the ROH Title then held by Xavier, and at “All Star Extravaganza” he and AJ Styles competed in a match to be named the first #1 Contender to the title. Unfortunately it wasn’t Danielson’s night as AJ Styles came out of the contest with his hand raised. He bounced back at “Scramble Madness” with a victory over Doug Williams, but came up short once again at “Night of the Butcher” in a #1 Contender’s match with Paul London. A Four Corner Match at “Final Battle 2002” came to an inconclusive finish, but then at “Revenge on the Prophecy” Danielson faced a man with whom he would spend the next several years battling with: Samoa Joe. This was their first ROH meeting, and it would prove to be a hard hitting fight in which Joe picked up the victory. An immediate rematch was signed for the “One Year Anniversary Show”, and on that night, Danielson picked up the win in Queens, NY.
Danielson returned to Ring of Honor on April 12, 2003 and engaged in a match that would become known as “The Epic Encounter”. Bryan and Paul London went at it for 45 minutes in a 2 out of 3 falls match where Paul managed to pick up the victory amongst a divided crowd. This match, just like the 3-way from the first show, is one that must be seen by every wrestling fan. It is truly epic. After that night, Danielson was away from ROH for several months but returned at “Main Event Spectacles” to face AJ Styles in a #1 Contender’s Match nearly a year after their first ROH encounter for that same spot. This match was every bit as classic as the match with London, and it’s clear in matches like this how Danielson earned the moniker of “Best In The World”.
At “Final Battle 2003”, Danielson continued his run of great matches as he beat Jay Briscoe in one of the best opening matches in ROH history. At “Battle Lines Are Drawn”, Bryan took another stab at the ROH Tag Team Championship, this time with Samoa Joe as his partner, but this title match went the way of his previous one, and The Briscoes retained. At “Reborn: Stage One”, Danielson had his first ROH encounter with CM Punk, and the seeds of a future rivalry were planted at “Reborn: Stage Two” when Homicide defeated Danielson. “Survival of the Fittest” is where Danielson and Austin Aries first faced off with one another en route to Bryan winning the inaugural tournament. “Testing The Limit” was the night Aries really broke out as he defeated Danielson in a 75-minute, 2/3 Falls Match.
“Glory by Honor III” highlighted the technical prowess of the American Dragon as he bested Alex Shelley, and at “Midnight Express Reunion”, Danielson got his first ever shot at the ROH World Title when he faced off with Samoa Joe. Many fans felt Bryan would be the man to finally defeat Joe and put an end to his historic title run, but that was not to be, and Danielson would have to wait another year before he finally became champion. Danielson faced off with the legendary Jushin Thunder Lyger at “Weekend of Thunder Night 1”, and teamed with Low Ki at “Night 2” where they fell in defeat to Lyger & Samoa Joe. Danielson got a measure of revenge when he beat Homicide at “All Star Extravaganza II”, but it would just be the beginning of a feud that would consume Bryan’s life throughout the first part of 2005. At “Final Battle 2004”, Bryan and Low Ki went one-on-one for the first time in years in match where Ki ended up getting disqualified.
2005 started with Homicide and Danielson entering into a Best of 5 series of matches with each match contested under a different stipulation. The first match at “It All Begins” was fought under Tap Out rules and Homicide shocked the world when he beat Danielson. The second match at “3rd Anniversary Pt. 1” was fought under Taped Fist Rules and Homicide again picked up the victory. At “Pt. 3”, Danielson picked up his first victory in a crazy Falls Count Anywhere battle, and again was victorious at “Stalemate” in a Lumberjack Match. The final bout was fought within the confines of the Steel Cage with the victor also receiving a shot at the ROH World Title held by Austin Aries. Danielson would emerge the victor after an incredible number of rotations on his airplane spin, but would not be as successful at “Nowhere to Run” in his title match with Aries. After his loss Danielson shockingly declared that he was leaving Ring of Honor.
Jump ahead four months. James Gibson is now ROH World Champion, and ROH officials have negotiated with Danielson for his return. His only provision: his first match back be a World Title Match. ROH officials were quick to agree, but little did they know that their decision would lead to one of the most successful title reigns in ROH’s history. After defeating Gibson in a classic match, Danielson would go one to hold the title for 462 days and successfully defend the belt 38 times against 24 different opponents. The name of defeated challengers reads like a who’s who: Aries, Corino, Storm, Strong, Marufuji, Sabin, Shelley, KENTA, McGuinness, Samoa Joe, Homicide, and more.
During his lengthy title reign, Danielson developed intense rivalries with several of his challengers, most notably Nigel McGuinness. Starting with a Title vs. Title match at “Weekend of Champions, Night 1” where a countout enabled McGuinness to pick up the win but not the World Title and culminating in an epic 60-minute draw at “Epic Encounter II”, McGuinness would prove to be Danielson’s strongest nemesis during his title reign, and has persisted in that role ever since. Their match at “Unified” is but one of many classic title defenses during Danielson’s title run.
The battles with Roderick Strong made fans worldwide open up their eyes regarding Strong as he proved he could go head-to-head with “The Best In The World” and give as good as he got. Bryan’s title defense against KENTA at “Glory By Honor V, N. 2” is still regarded as one of the best matches in ROH history, and its lasting impact has left fans constantly begging for rematches between these two competitors. As champion, Danielson forced his opponents to really step up their game as evidenced with his matches against Delirious or Cabana. The masked man became a whole new wrestler when faced with the opportunity to become champion, and after a shockingly brief first title match, Cabana came back with renewed vigor that saw him nearly capture the belt on two occasions. Unfortunately one of those matches with Cabana saw Danielson suffer a serious pectoral/shoulder injury that would trouble him for the last few months of his title reign.
After losing the ROH World Title to Homicide at “Final Battle 2006”, Danielson took some time away from ROH to heal his injuries but finally returned at “Reborn Again” looking better than ever. As part of the main event of ROH’s 1st PPV, “Respect Is Earned”, Danielson found himself right back in the middle of a fight with McGuinness when the American Dragon teamed with Morishima to face Nigel & KENTA. “Domination” was the setting for another epic fight between Nigel & Bryan that aired as part of the “Driven” PPV. The night “Driven” was taped Danielson & KENTA renewed their rivalry as well with a top-shelf battle in Chicago Ridge.
A new enemy for Danielson emerged at “Manhattan Mayhem II” when he faced Morishima for the ROH World Title. Danielson wasn’t victorious that day, in fact he ended up in the hospital that night with a detached retina courtesy of Morishima. Now accidents happen, but when Morishima when after the eye during the rematch at “Man Up”, this rivalry elevated into something more personal. It was obvious that Morishima was trying to permanently injure Bryan, and Danielson returned the favor at “Glory by Honor VI, N.2” when Danielson went after Morishima’s eye. The feud reached a whole new level of violence at “Rising Above” when Morishima got disqualified, and it took an entire year, until “Final Battle 2008”, for one last match to get signed, this time under “Fight Without Honor” stipulations. That December night, a bloody Danielson finally slew his dragon in a match that ranks as one of the best of ’08.
In the midst of the war with Morishima, Danielson engaged in a Best of 3 series with Aries at “Honor Nation”, “Chaos at Cow Palace, and “Glory by Honor VI, N. 1”. Aries ultimately won the series, but a tag team was born out of this athletic competition and they would challenge The Age of The Fall on multiple occasions for the ROH World Tag Titles. Danielson’s rivalry with Tyler Black was born in this time as well, really kicking off at “Breakout” with a classic match. “6th Anniversary Show” saw the rivalry with Nigel come to the forefront again as Bryan lost in an ROH World Title match. A rematch with Marufuji at “A New Level” stole the show, and a new rivalry was born with Claudio Castagnoli after a match at “Vendetta II”. That conflict was kicked into high gear at “Death Before Dishonor VI”, and culminated at “Southern Hostility” in a bloody No DQ Match.
Danielson also captured the GHC Jr. Heavyweight Title at “Tokyo Summit” when he beat Kanemaru, and defended it successfully at “Glory by Honor VII” against Nakajima. “Bound By Hate” featured Danielson defeating Tyler Black & Kenny Omega in an show-stealing Three Way and “Rising Above 2008” once again saw Bryan come up short in his bid to take the ROH World Title from Nigel McGuinness. “All Star Extravaganza IV” played host to a top-notch Danielson victory over Jerry Lynn while “Final Battle 2008” featured the aforementioned war with Morishima.
2009 started off on a sour note for the former ROH World Champ as he dropped two straight matches at “Full Circle” and “Injustice II”, the former to Jimmy Jacobs and the latter in another great bout with Jerry Lynn. The “Caged Collision” PPV saw Tyler Black earn a ROH World Title shot over Danielson, Aries, and Jacobs, and “Proving Ground ’09, N.2” was the site of a tremendous match between Generico & Bryan. At the “7th Anniversary Show” Danielson reintroduced Colt Cabana to the ROH faithful when he selected him as his partner in a match opposite The Embassy’s Bison Smith & the returning Jimmy Rave.
2009 also saw ROH make its national television debut and Bryan has been a large part of that with a series of three classic matches teaming with and wrestling against Tyler Black. These matches served to really put Tyler Black at the top of the heap in ROH. Together they faced The American Wolves. Speaking of The Wolves, at “Tag Title Classic” Danielson united with Black to challenge for the ROH World Tag Titles in an absolute classic match that can be seen on “Double Feature II”. At “Validation” Danielson continued his quest to become the only Triple Crown winner in ROH history as he teamed with Kevin Steen to unsuccessfully challenge The American Wolves as well. Danielson was scheduled to team with KENTA at “Violent Tendencies” to challenge The Wolves again but an unfortunate staph infection forced him off the cards, and Roderick Strong took his place.
Most recently at the “ROH on HDNet” TV tapings, Bryan allied with KENTA & Roderick to take on Chris Hero & The American Wolves in an excellent contest. The following night, Danielson took it upon himself to take a stand against Austin Aries and the disrespect the former champion felt Aries was heaping on the ROH World Title. The resulting World Title Match ended up going in Aries’ favor, albeit through the use of some nefarious tactics, but a rematch was quickly signed for New York City on September 26th. Little did ROH officials know that this match would turn out to be the last one of Bryan Danielson’s legendary career in Ring of Honor.
It was officially announced on the night of Sunday, August 23rd that the former ROH World Champion had agreed in principle to a contract with World Wrestling Entertainment and the month of September would herald his last here in the land of Honor. With six events left, Danielson has one heck of a “Final Countdown” Tour ahead of him.
His “ROH on HDNet” TV taping matches are a hell of a way to kick things off as tonight, Sept. 10th, he will team with Roderick Strong to face The American Wolves in a non-title bout. Last time in Philly, these two (along with KENTA) handed The Wolves a hard fought loss, now they're looking to do it one more time. Then tomorrow night, Sept. 11th, Danielson will go one-on-one with Roderick Strong. They've had some brutal wars in the past, and you can bet this will be another one of those fights.
On 9/18 in Dayton it’s Chris Hero, a man who has developed into a striker nearly on the level of Danielson and who has taken Bryan to his limit many times in the past. Then in Chicago on 9/19 “American Dragon” is currently scheduled to go head-to-head one last time with the man who has spent much of 2009 battling with: Tyler Black. In their most recent meeting, Black finally picked up a victory over the ROH veteran, and would love nothing more than to make that two in a row at the Frontier Fieldhouse. Unfortunately it is uncertain whether or not Black will be able to compete in Chicago, so this match may end up changing.
When ROH rolls into Boston on 9/25, Danielson will face a man he has never faced before here in ROH, a man he requested to fight: Davey Richards. Davey has had arguably the best year of his wrestling career in 2009, and a decisive victory over Danielson would cement Richards’ status in the upper echelon of ROH. Then in his final night in ROH on 9/26 in NYC, Danielson will do battle one last time with his most ardent opponent, Nigel McGuinness. Their battles have been legendary, and this won’t be any different. Considering the circumstances that brought the two fighters here, this may be their most intense match-up to date. Add in that "Glory by Honor VIII" will also mark Nigel's last night with the company, and you have a scenario in which both fighters will do whatever it takes to be the one leaving ROH with their hand raised.
It’s hard to sum up Bryan Danielson in one word, even harder to say what he’s meant to Ring of Honor that succinctly. But if I was forced to choose one word it would have to be RESPECT. Over the past seven and a half years Bryan has earned it, commanded it, and shown it to the fans, the wrestlers, and to Ring of Honor as a whole. He will be sorely missed, but we hope for nothing but the best in Bryan’s future. He has given so much of himself to Ring of Honor and its fans, and we will be forever grateful for that. Best of luck to you Bryan, and thanks for the memories…
