It's true that WWE felt their hands were tied by Daniel Bryan's injury woes. In the Spring months, it became clear that the talented Bryan would have to step away from the ring, possibly for good. Various injuries had swallowed him up, spitting him out callously and leaving his wrestling career in tatters. Forfeiting the WWE Intercontinental Title, Bryan disappeared from screens. The man chosen as his replacement for the Intercontinental Title was none other than Ryback. This was a poor move by WWE, because the man could never live up to his predecessor. When Bryan won the belt at WrestleMania 31, there were high hopes that he could help the secondary title regain some traction in the company. That was forgotten about when Ryback bagged the gold. At Elimination Chamber, he was crowned the new champ. Even booking Daniel Bryan to endorse the new titleholder didn't work, fans just weren't buying it. A much better decision would have been to transfer the title onto someone else fans considered an in-ring work horse. Limited as a power-move wrestler, Ryback can't hold a candle to Bryan, and he was doomed to fail from the get go.
Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.
