– During a recent interview with Inside The Ropes, AEW star Bryan Danielson discussed his talks with WWE and Vince McMahon before leaving the company in 2021. Danielson revealed in his last conversation with Vince McMahon before his contract expired, that he informed McMahon that he wanted to work in NJPW and the G1 Climax tournament. Danielson stated that McMahon told that he’d allow him to do it if he wanted. Below are some highlights (via Fightful):
On if WWE would’ve let him compete in New Japan’s G1 Climax: “So, I don’t know for sure if he would’ve let me. The last conversation we had where I told him I was gonna go to AEW. I told him, once I make my decision, i’ll tell you. It was around August of that year, my contract expired the last day of April in 2021. It was early August is when I finally decided and called him and told him. He kind of asked me why and I said, well, this that and the other, one of the things I want to do is I want to work with New Japan and do the G1. He did say in that moment, I don’t know if it would have actually ever come to fruition, ‘I’d let you do that’ or whatever it is. So, yeah. I think maybe.”
On if Vince McMahon even knows what the G1 Climax is: “I don’t know. I’m not sure. He definitely knows what New Japan is and all of that kind of stuff. I had told him of my desire to do the G1 before cause I kept pitching G1 style tournaments in WWE. I said, I’d really like to be able to do this thing, so yeah.”
Ultimately, Bryan Danielson departed from WWE in 2021, signing with AEW later that year and debuting at AEW All Out in September. Danielson would eventually return to NJPW for the first time since 2004 to wrestle at Wrestle Kingdom 18 earlier this year, where he competed against Kazuchika Okada.
