Bryan Danielson: Sometimes I Get The Sense WWE Don't Want To Be Professional Wrestling

Vince McMahon and WWE have tried to distance themselves from professional wrestling during the company's history, going so far as to refer to their product as sports entertainment. 'Wrestling' and 'wrestlers' are also included on a list of banned words and something WWE considered a problem with 2point0 before their releases was their promos were "too pro-wrestling." 

This animosity to professional wrestling is something Bryan Danielson seemingly recognised during his 11-year run with WWE and The American Dragon noted on The Masked Man Show that WWE would like to portray themselves as "something else entirely."

"I just think they [AEW] embrace the idea of being professional wrestling is the real difference. And WWE is trying to be more generalised entertainment. Try to get it as, try to get it like, the masses involved in, 'How do we get the masses involved in whatever this is?' Right, to this thing. It's weird. Sometimes I would get the sense that they, people wouldn't, they don't want to be professional wrestling," Danielson began.

"They would like to be something else entirely, you know, that's kind of the switch away from, pro wrestling is this other thing, this dirty thing, this low rent thing, and what we do is something completely different, whereas AEW embraces the history of professional wrestling."

Danielson ultimately departed WWE at the end of April 2021. He then debuted in All Elite Wrestling a few months later at All Out and he has been presented as one of the promotion's top stars, facing the likes of Eddie Kingston, Minoru Suzuki, and Miro. He has also twice unsuccessfully challenged for the AEW World Championship.

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