10 Reasons To Believe WWE Really Do See Daniel Bryan As A Major Star

3. He Beat John Cena Clean For The WWE Title At Summerslam

The enormity of Daniel Bryan actually beating John Cena clean, for the title, on the 2nd biggest pay-per-view of the year is not to be underestimated. It's such a rare occurrence. Even when CM Punk was running hot in 2011, at Money In The Bank in Chicago, he did not beat John Cena clean. He won, but it was portrayed that it was because Cena was busy doing the right thing, when he stopped John Laurinaitis from prematurely ringing the bell. This Summerslam moment is often overlooked because of what happened afterwards, but this was a huge moment and showed the faith that WWE have in Daniel Bryan. It really isn't very often that John Cena is beat, 1-2-3, in the middle of the ring without any distractions or tom foolery at all, never mind on pay-per-view, in which he notoriously doesn't lose very often! Daniel Bryan accomplished just that, after clocking Cena with his running knee finisher, and this was all a part of building his credibility, building for some point in the future in which Daniel Bryan would finally break out as WWE's major star.