Bryan Danielson details former WWE CEO Vince McMahon's attempt to re-sign him before AEW All Out 2021

Bryan Danielson left the WWE in early 2021!

AEW Star Bryan Danielson, better known as Daniel Bryan among WWE fans, parted ways with the Stamford-based promotion after his final match against Roman Reigns on April 30, 2021, episode of Friday Night SmackDown.

Danielson joined All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and made his debut in September at AEW All Out PPV. He went on to have a decorated career in the promotion event, capturing the AEW World title.

However, in a recent interview, Danielson revealed how former WWE CEO Vince McMahon tried to re-sign him before the PPV. The PPV feature shocking back-to-back debuts of Adam Cole and Danielson.

Bryan Danielson signed with AEW just a few days before the 2021 PPV

In a recent conversation with Nick Stav, Danielson revealed that his AEW debut wasn’t something that had been in the works for months, as many fans believed. He actually didn’t finalize his contract with AEW until just two or three days before the pay-per-view. He also noted that Adam Cole likely didn’t sign until the very day of the show.

“I hadn’t actually signed my contract until two or three days before that,” Danielson said. “‘Always the plan,’ was Tony (Khan) thinking it? Did he have it in the back of his mind? I want to say Adam Cole didn’t sign until that day.

Maybe he agreed to come, but you never know what’s going to happen. When WWE found out I hadn’t signed yet, they said, ‘Is there anything we can do?’”

This indecisiveness resulted in one final conversation between Bryan and then-WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon. Danielson recalled McMahon making a last effort to convince him to stay in the company, but ultimately respecting his choice to honor his commitment to Tony Khan.

“I called Vince (McMahon) in early August because I was going back and forth. I called Vince in early August and let him know, ‘I made my decision. I’m going to do this.’ He called me one time in the meantime and said, ‘What if we offered you this instead?’ I hadn’t signed my contract yet, it was maybe five days before the pay-per-view, and he called me,” Danielson recalled.

I told him, ‘Sir, I already agreed to this thing. If I were to go back on this, I feel you have a decent amount of respect for me. One of the things you respect me for is that I honor my word.’ It was a great conversation. He said, ‘Damnit, you’re right.’”

Danielson, as promised, made his debut at the All Out PPV, which took place during Labor Day weekend on September 5, 2021, at the Now Arena in the Chicago suburb of Hoffman Estates, Illinois.

Danielson is now gearing up to kick off his next chapter in his decorated career as a full-time commentator for AEW Dynamite, starting this Wednesday.

The 2025 edition of All Out will emanate from Toronto

The seventh annual edition of All Out will take place on Saturday, September 20, 2025, at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The 2025 edition from Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and will mark the first time the show will be held outside the United States.

This will mark AEW’s first pay-per-view to stream on HBO Max, with a special start time of 3 PM ET. The show is set to go head-to-head with WWE’s Wrestlepalooza PLE, which will emanate from Indianapolis on the same day from 6:30 PM ET. The promotion has announced multiple matches for the PPV.

Also Read: All matches announced for AEW All Out 2025 so far; Adam Copeland, Toni Storm & Jon Moxley in action & more

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