Why Daniel Bryan Winning Royal Rumble 2018 Would Be WWE's Biggest Ever Pop
Yep.
Rumours persist that Daniel Bryan’s medical status is not definitively clear. According to the man himself, every last doctor, of some repute, has declared Bryan fit to wrestle following the experimental hyperbaric oxygen treatment he has undergone in an attempt to repair his damaged brain tissue.
It’s the experimental nature of the treatment, the long-term ramifications of which aren’t yet known, that has precluded WWE Medical Director Dr. Joseph Maroon from giving Bryan the all-clear. Consequently, Bryan is marooned in a General Managerial role the likes of which, as his flippant no-f*cks disposition suggests, offers him no creative gratification whatsoever. He wants to wrestle.
This great unknown is a far greater threat to WWE than any boring Batista Vs. Randy Orton main event, which, realistically, would not have altered the landscape in any meaningful way. If the worst were to happen - if WWE cleared Bryan, and he died in the middle of the ring - this would be catastrophic. Perhaps even more so than the Chris Benoit double murder-suicide. WWE in 2007 were forced to alter their entire business ethos under accusation of indirect responsibility. Direct legal responsibility, especially in this age of increased concussion awareness, smears the blood all over WWE’s hands - and repels virtually any corporate sponsor of any repute. WWE’s stance might not be popular. It might not be, and gauging by its past likely isn’t, altruistic. But it is entirely understandable. The cause-and-effect is both disastrous and precipitous.
That said: as long as Bryan inspires hope, we will feel it. That is the foundation on which his WWE career was built - and the foundation of what would perhaps be the greatest, loudest reaction ever in the rowdy history of the company.
Competition is fierce. CONT'D...