The Piledriver Report 08.02.13: The Best in the World

On July 29th, the “Bleacher Report” posted an article titled “Daniel Bryan Will Surpass CM Punk in the Hierarchy of the WWE Universe.” While the article seemed a little light, it got me thinking. John Cena is the WWE’s clear cut top star. Whether the diehard fans like it or not, the WWE put John Cena in the position as the face of the company, and they aren’t about to have him relinquish the throne. That leave us with the question of who is the number two man in the WWE. At one point, it was Batista. After Batista, Randy Orton took over the mantle of number two. Following his “pipe bomb” in the summer of 2011, CM Punk took Randy Orton’s spot. It’s a position that CM Punk has held onto for the last two years, both in his face and heel runs. While CM Punk seems to be only getting stronger in his position as one of the top two guys in the company, it appears he may have a challenger to his spot on the card.

IT’S ALL ABOUT MOMENTUM

Daniel Bryan has been a favorite of the fans of the WWE ever since he debuted on the WWE’s NXT television show. The WWE had Bryan drop his first ten matches on the show. It was a sign that, although the fans loved him, the WWE didn’t believe in the undersized former Ring of Honor standout. Even though the WWE didn’t seem too enthused regarding the wrestler known throughout the independent circuit as the “best in the world,” they seemed to treat him better than the standard mid-card wrestler (even if they jobbed him out at times). After being fired following the Nexus attack when the group invaded RAW, Daniel Bryan was hired back a few months later where he was immediately inserted into the Summer Slam seven on seven tag team elimination match where he eliminated two wrestlers and was the final WWE representative eliminated from the bout.

At the Night of Champions pay per view, Daniel Bryan captured his first WWE championship when he beat the Miz for the United States title. He held the title until March 14th, 2011 when he dropped the title to Sheamus. The two were scheduled for a rematch at WrestleMania XXVII, only to have the rug pulled out from them when they were moved to the event’s pre-show position. It was a bitter disappointment for the wrestlers and fans alike, as Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan had the potential to be one of the best worked matches on the show. At this point, all of the positive momentum that Bryan had built up since entering the WWE appeared to have disappeared. Daniel Bryan looked to be headed to the land of the mid-cards.

That all changed at the 2011 Money in the Bank pay per view, where Daniel Bryan captured the World Heavyweight title shot briefcase. Despite holding the briefcase, Bryan was not booked as a future World champion. Instead, he was jobbing on a regular basis. That all changed at the December Tables, Ladders, and Chairs pay per view where Daniel Bryan cashed in the briefcase and won the World championship.

At that point, something changed in Daniel Bryan. I’m not talking about his character’s heel turn. I’m talking about Bryan’s ascension in the WWE. With his heel turn, Daniel Bryan showed a personality that he wasn’t able to display on the WWE stage. Combining his personality with his unquestioned technical ability, Daniel Bryan was starting to be seen as one of the best performers in the WWE by the hardcore and casual fans. At WrestleMania XXVIII, Daniel Bryan was scheduled to defend the World Heavyweight championship against Sheamus. For the second year in a row, the WWE screwed the fans out of seeing Bryan and Sheamus battle on the biggest stage of the year when the WWE had Bryan drop the title in eighteen seconds.

Unlike when he lost the United States championship, this time Daniel Bryan wasn’t about to get pushed back down into the mid-cards again. The fans were irate over his WrestleMania loss that they let their voices be heard during the following night’s RAW telecast. Daniel Bryan no longer had just a hardcore following. Everybody loved Bryan. The WWE started to show their faith in Daniel Bryan as well. They gave him a long two out of three falls match against Sheamus at Extreme Rules. The next month, he fought CM Punk for the WWE title at Over the Limit. Their feud lasted until the 2012 Money in the Bank pay per view when he lost to CM Punk.

Instead of dropping down the card the WWE inserted him into a storyline with Kane, where they would eventually win the WWE World Tag Team championships. During their run together, Daniel Bryan proved that he had a gift for comedy. Not since Kurt Angle in his WWE prime has the WWE had a wrestling machine, who could also be entertaining in a comedic sense. The Hell No tag team combination showed the WWE that Daniel Bryan is more than just a five star wrestler. He could also deliver for the WWE in the personality department. Daniel Bryan was becoming one of the most popular wrestlers in the company.

A funny thing happened after the Extreme Rules pay per view in May where Bryan and Kane dropped the tag straps to Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns. Daniel Bryan became the most popular wrestler in the company. When Bryan enters the ring, the fans scream “YES! YES! YES!” as he gets ready for his match or promo. The fans have been singing the chant ever since Bryan started the “YES!” chant during his World Heavyweight championship run. However, this is different. The chants seem louder, and Daniel Bryan seems more over. It was at this time, the WWE started to build up Daniel Bryan as a main event level wrestler, as he was the first wrestler to pin one of the Shield members. He followed that up with the biggest win of his career when he beat Randy Orton. Daniel Bryan has more momentum going for him than any other wrestler since CM Punk in the summer of 2011. This momentum is leading to a WWE title match against John Cena at SummerSlam.

DARE TO COMPARE

While the stories of CM Punk and Daniel Bryan’s WWE careers may be vastly different, the two wrestlers can helped but to be compared due to their similarities. It started out with the path to get to the WWE. CM Punk and Bryan Danielson received their first major national exposure in the independent promotion Ring of Honor. Both men captured the Ring of Honor title during their ROH careers. First, was CM Punk where he won the ROH title during the Summer of Punk before he left Ring of Honor for the WWE. Bryan Danielson captured the ROH title one day short of three months after Punk dropped the ROH title to James Gibson.

Both men had to deal with issues in their rise in the WWE. For CM Punk, he had several detractors in the WWE’s front office. Only Paul Heyman seemed to believe that CM Punk would one day be the “best in the world at what he does.” If CM Punk was going to break through the WWE’s glass ceiling, he would have to kick the door down on his own. No matter how much the WWE tried to keep him down, the fans were always behind CM Punk, thus forcing the WWE to take Punk more seriously.

Daniel Bryan had a handicap that was just as imposing. While CM Punk, through hard work and dedication, was able to get the office to change their minds about him, Bryan had an issue that he would not be able to change. Due to Bryan’s reputation as the best technical wrestler in the world, every WWE wrestler couldn’t wait to work with him. His problem was that he was a five foot ten inch performer in the land of the giants. No matter how good Bryan was in the ring, he couldn’t shake the fact that he was under six feet tall. In the WWE, it is hard to break through the glass ceiling if you aren’t over six feet tall. Bryan would have to prove that he was an all-around performer in order for the WWE to ignore his height and treat him with the same respect as they did to Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio.

Both Bryan and Punk began their quest in the WWE by first plying their trade in the WWE’s “C” show at the time. For CM Punk, it was a run with the WWE’s version of Extreme Championship Wrestling. For Daniel Bryan, it was his short stint on NXT.

Each received their first “main event” break by winning the Money in the Bank briefcase. CM Punk won back-to-back briefcases. It was his second run with the briefcase that showed that he could be a major player in the company. When he cashed in the second briefcase, Punk did something that he never did before in the WWE. He turned heel. It was during this run where CM Punk proved to the WWE that he was one of the best in the business. His interviews as the leader of the Straight Edge Society were some of the most innovative and entertaining promos during that time.

Daniel Bryan’s singular Money in the Bank cash in had similar results as Punk’s second cash in. Bryan also turned heel following his cash in. Like Punk, Daniel showed that he had a different side to him that was worthy of moving up the WWE’s chain of command.

Both Punk and Bryan proved their detractors wrong. Through hard work, both men have shown that they deserve the spot they each currently hold. The question remains, who should hold the top spot below John Cena?

PUNK OR D-BRY

Both CM Punk and Daniel Bryan put on terrific matches. Punk has had classic battles with John Cena, Chris Jericho, and more recently the Undertaker. Daniel Bryan has had fantastic matches with Seth Rollins, Randy Orton, Sheamus, and most recently Antonio Caesaro. Even though both can deliver in the ring, Daniel Bryan is the better technician between the two.

While Bryan may have a slight edge on the mat against Punk, CM Punk has a decisive edge when it comes to the promo department. CM Punk has delivered some of the best promos in the WWE over the last couple of years. Daniel Bryan, while entertaining, hasn’t delivered his version of the “pipe bomb” or “Austin 3:16” memorable promo that fans will remember and talk about for years.