Bryan Danielson Recalls "Deflating" CM Punk Moment
AEW megastars CM Punk and Bryan Danielson have a...depressing in-ring past?
Bryan Danielson doesn't have fond memories of an early match opposite CM Punk.
The AEW newcomer told Philadelphia's ABC6 program that he and Punk worked a 45-minute bout "at this little promotion in Florida" somewhere between 2004 or 2005; that'd be Full Impact Pro. Bryan and Punk worked a '2 Out Of 3 Falls' match for the company on 26 March '05. Other encounters they had around the same time were much shorter than that.
Danielson recalled that there were only "75 people" in the crowd that night. Everybody was really quiet too, which made the epic feel a bit awkward. At one point, both workers heard one fan turn to his friend and say, "These guys aren't very good, are they?". Said mate replied, "No, not really".
Wow.
Bryan described the moment as totally "deflating", but it's why he remains so grateful today whenever wrestling fans respond positively to one of his matches. He remembers what it's like to sweat his arse off before silence and criticism, so he'll never take great reactions for granted.
Maybe Danielson and Punk should make up for that lingering memory in front of a packed AEW house sometime soon.