10 Wrestlers BANNED From Getting Over

6. WWE Tried To Kill Off Daniel Bryan Well Before That

Daniel Bryan
WWE

Some optimists or fantasists might have you believe that, in pairing Daniel Bryan with the Miz on NXT in 2010, the idea all along was to depict the indie legend as a "rookie" in a sophisticated meta bit to get him over in front of the hardcore subgroup of fans. If WWE withheld the gratification, and portrayed Miz in a transgressive role, the fans would want to see Bryan succeed against an out-of-touch machine.

The thing is, this machine doesn't think they're out of touch.

When they toyed with the fan-driven notion that they were out of touch in 2013, as part of the overarching Authority storyline, they pivoted, buried Bryan as a B+ player, and, in a very out-of-touch development, tried to book a Batista Vs. Randy Orton main event at WrestleMania XXX before a seismic fan revolt.

Daniel Bryan knew he wasn't getting a bold, experimental push; speaking on the Network special 'Journey To WrestleMania', he lamented the fact that he was made to dumb sh*t on the NXT game show as WWE, for whatever reason, decided to tell the audience that the next generation of talent was a laughing stock.

Vince said "he doesn't even eat meat" when Chris Jericho championed Bryan to him backstage. Michael Cole cut shoot promos on him constantly. WWE in general treated Bryan with scorn, and whether or not it was some deranged Vince "test", he was banned from getting over in 2010.

And again in 2013, when they tried to give the Yes! chant to the Big Show because he is large.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!