4. Daniel Bryan Was One Of The First Breakout Stars From WWE's NXT Program...
Even though he had been the World Champion of ROH, Bryan Danielson was cast as a 'rookie' in the WWE. To some, it would have been humiliating, to others, infuriating, to D-Bry? It was just another challenge, an opportunity cleverly disguised as a setback. At his own request, Danielson headed down to another WWE developmental territory, Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW) in order to sharpen his skills. Upon his return, he was re-named 'Daniel Bryan' by WWE marketing and re-packaged as a prodigious young talent who was anxiously trying to make a name for himself. NXT is, in some respects, a more considered (and infinitely less stupid) version of WWE's 'Tough Enough', the reality TV talent show that gave us The Miz, John Morrison and Josh Matthews (amongst a couple of others). In the first ever episode of NXT, World Heavyweight Champion Chris Jericho roundly defeated the precocious young upstart. Following the match, Jericho spoke very highly of Bryan's abilities to Vince McMahon. McMahon, however, was apparently not impressed, reportedly saying "Who's gonna buy somebody who doesn't even eat meat? Yuck!" Um...Vegetarians, Vince? Just a thought. In the storyline, Bryan was given The Miz as his on-screen mentor and the two began an entertaining rivalry that boosted Bryan's stock (as well as his confidence). The NXT gig was going pretty well for Bryan, until he was fired for going 'too far' during a scripted TV segment. WWE sponsors were upset with the segment and Bryan (who had 'strangled' a ring announcer with his own tie) shouldered an unfair majority of the blame. So, D-Bry was kicked out of the WWE once again, but this time he had a gilded reputation in the industry that enabled him to get relatively high paying work on the indy circuit. Apparently, Vince McMahon was still unimpressed with Daniel Bryan. The same man who signed off on championship runs for Batista, Goldberg, Kevin Nash and The Great Khali simply wasn't having any of it. Or maybe he just felt that Bryan was too vegan... Here's Bryan, interviewed last year, not helping his case with Vinny 'The Big' Mac at all... "I'm big into local foods, like foods that are locally grown and stuff like that. Anyway, we stopped at this cafe, I had like the best salad I have ever had in my entire life, and it was just awesome". Actually, I think I'm starting to see where VKM was coming from...Seriously Bryan, who the heck gets excited over a salad!? ...You've got to be violating that wellness policy.