Bryan Danielson vs Kurt Angle is a dream match for many wrestling fans. In the 1990s 2000s, Kurt Angle established himself as a top WWE star and one of the best wrestlers in the world. After winning the gold medal at the 1996 Olympics in amateur wrestling, Angle moved on to WWE and became a multi-time WWE Champion and a WWE Hall of Famer.
He left WWE in 2006 due to drug issues. He said to Vince McMahon that he would either get his release or he would die, to which McMahon agreed to release him from his contract. Then he signed for TNA, the Jeff Jarrett run promotion, and took select dates on the independent scene.
Bryan Danielson was one of the top independent wrestlers of the day. He was the top star in ROH, holding their world championship for over a year and wrestled some incredible matches against the likes of Samoa Joe, AJ Styles and KENTA.
He was also booked for one of the biggest independent promotions, called Pro-Wrestling Guerrilla. PWG was known as the place where top wrestlers of the day would flock for some of the most incredible matches and brilliant match-ups from stars across the world.
Bryan Danielson vs Kurt Angle almost took place at one of their events, but due to outside forces, the match was cancelled and we never saw the pair face each other one-on-one. The only time they tangled in the ring was the 2018 Greatest Royal Rumble match in Saudi Arabia, but it was a disappointing reminder of what could have been,
Bryan Danielson vs Kurt Angle
Bryan Danielson was booked to face Kurt Angle in a match at PWG some time in 2006. Angle was newly released from WWE after a pain killer addiction had left him miserable and close to death. Leaving WWE and it’s crazy schedule allowed him to heal up and help beat his addiction.
Kurt Angle had already signed for TNA, and was immediately proposed as one of their top stars. He quickly defeated the undefeated Samoa Joe in TNA, and soon in his career became the TNA World Champion, the first of many in his 10 year run with the company.
Bryan Danielson was the Ring of Honor Champion, and had established himself as one of the best wrestlers in the world. He was already acknowledged as the best technical wrestler in the world, rivalling even Angle himself. The Wrestling Observers “Technical wrestler of the year” award would be renamed the “Bryan Danielson Award” after his retirement in 2015.
A match between the pair was booked for PWG in 2006, and was one that was highly anticipated by fans across the United States. The opportunity to see these two lock horns was one that was a once-in-a-lifetime event, and one that people could not miss.
Well, they missed it. Everyone did. Because, as revealed by PWG Booker Super Dragon on the “prowrestlingguerrilla.com” forums, TNA signed Kurt Angle to a deal after the match was booked, and pulled him from the card. They forbade Angle from doing any independent dates, and that meant that the Bryan Danielson vs Kurt Angle match would not go ahead.
SuperDragon also revealed that PWG were looking into running a bigger venue for the blockbuster match, but that also never came to fruition.
I really wanted to do Kurt Angle vs Danielson when Angle got released. I had him booked and everything. Then TNA pulled cancelled it, and said he is not taking indy bookings in the end. Was looking into running a bigger venue for that one as well.
Super Dragon, on the cancelled Bryan Danielson vs Kurt Angle match
Sadly, that match never came to be, and the Daniel Bryan vs Kurt Angle confrontation in the Greatest Royal Rumble 2018, well past Angle’s prime, was the only time these two shared a ring together.
Kurt Angle even revealed that he asked for a match with Daniel Bryan in WWE, but was shot down by Vince McMahon after his return to the ring in 2017.
“I think I had him in the Rumble or the Battle Royal in Saudi Arabia, but he was the number one guy that I wanted. He was my dream match of current wrestlers that were wrestling today. I asked for him, but I, unfortunately, didn’t get him. I believe he was on the other show at that time, and so they didn’t have any plans of trading him over or letting him wrestler one match with me.”
Kurt Angle on a potential Kurt Angle vs Daniel Bryan
Would you have liked to see Bryan Danielson vs Kurt Angle in PWG? Or Kurt Angle vs Daniel Bryan in WWE? Let us know in the comments or click below to keep reading.