“I feel bad” — Bryan Danielson breaks his silence on WWE legend being booed following a major victory.
Current AEW star Bryan Danielson has reflected on a former WWE World Champion being booed after a major victory years ago—and clarified that the reaction wasn’t because of him.
Danielson looked back on the moment WWE legend Batista was loudly booed after winning the 2014 Men’s Royal Rumble. Although The Animal had just made his return, the crowd turned on him because they wanted Danielson—who wasn’t even part of the 30-man match—to headline WrestleMania 30.
The boos continued for months. Speaking with Chris Van Vliet on Insight, the man formerly known as Daniel Bryan said he actually felt sorry for Batista, who found himself in an impossible situation despite working hard to come back. Danielson added that the backlash wasn’t really about him, pointing to similar fan momentum behind stars like Dolph Ziggler and Kofi Kingston at the time.
“When Batista won that Royal Rumble, I felt bad for him. He worked hard to come back and everything. If that happened now, or really any other year, he’d get a great reaction. I don’t think it was necessarily about me,” Danielson said. “The crowd had gotten behind Dolph Ziggler and behind Kofi Kingston. They got to a certain level, and during that era, they were always kind of pushed back down.” [H/T: ewrestlingnews]
Bryan Danielson’s Role in AEW Today
After a decorated run in both WWE and AEW, Bryan Danielson retired from full-time competition following his match against Jon Moxley at WrestleDream 2024. He has yet to return to the ring on television.
In the meantime, The American Dragon now serves as a commentator on AEW Dynamite every Wednesday and at special events. Fans will have to wait to see whether he eventually steps back into the ring.
