Bryan Danielson’s wrestling career faces uncertainty due to a severe neck injury. Following his loss of the World Championship to Jon Moxley at Wrestle Dynasty, Danielson has been undergoing stem cell therapy in an effort to avoid potentially career-altering surgery.

Despite stepping back from full-time wrestling, he remains hopeful of maintaining a part-time in-ring schedule, contingent on his neck’s recovery. Last year, Danielson’s appearance at the AEW All In Texas on-sale countdown event, sporting a shorter hairstyle reminiscent of his WWE SmackDown General Manager days.

He jokingly suggested he had “75 more matches” left in him, while also expressing his intention to attend All In this coming summer, though he remained uncertain about his ability to compete at the event. Neck surgeries, depending on their complexity, can sideline athletes for extended periods, often a year or more.

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Fightful recently released an interview with Danielson, conducted in December 2024, where he assessed his chances of returning to the ring as “50/50.” He also hopes to avoid surgery.

“My priority is my health. I think the odds of me wrestling again, ever, are probably 50/50 at this point. My desire is to not get neck surgery. If I can live comfortably without neck surgery, but it means that I wouldn’t get to wrestle again, I think I’d be ok with that.”

“I had neck surgery before and it wasn’t a good experience. It kinda messed up my spine in the upper area for the rest of my life. Now my spine is altered. If we can get to a point where I’m a little bit more comfortable without needing neck surgery, but they say ‘you can’t wrestle anymore,’ I think that’s a fair trade off. I’ve had a good run kid.”

Danielson’s return to the ring is obviously far from guaranteed. However, as the world of professional wrestling has shown the resilience of athletes and the unpredictable nature of business that leads to comebacks. Hopefully, Danielson will be one of those.

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