PWInsider - WWE News, Wrestling News, WWE

GREAT WAY TO HONOR BRYAN DANIELSON'S RETIREMENT, BRYAN ON ESPN, WWE PRODUCTION SCRAMBLING TODAY, WHAT LED TO TODAY'S RETIREMENT ANNOUNCEMENT AND MORE

For those who didn't see his retirement speech at the end of Raw, Bryan Danielson noted that he cut his shaggy hair off for a charitable organization titled "Wigs for Kids", who create and donate wigs to children who have lost their hair while battling cancer. The short hair led to him cutting off his beard, because he said he looked so silly having it without the shaggy hair. To donate to the charity, visit www.WigsforKids.org.  It would be a great way to honor Danielson's contributions to pro wrestling.

During his farewell speech, Danielson mentioned taking tests that made him change his belief it would be safe for him to wrestle.  We are told that Thursday before the Royal Rumble, Bryan took another set of tests in New York City before flying to Pittsburgh, PA the next day.  It was the results of those tests, when they came in, that led to Bryan finally acquiescing to WWE's decision that he should no longer wrestle.  Around the same time, I wrote a long piece about how it appeared WWE and Bryan might soon have the conclusion to the standoff they were in, as at the time we had heard he was going to Pittsburgh for medical reasons.  As it turns out, we were wrong about where the tests were taking place.

Daniel Bryan's interview with Jonathan Coachman (which I believe was taped tonight backstage at Raw) will air tomorrow at 9 PM Eastern.

#ThankYouDanielBryan was the #1 trend on Twitter at the end of Raw, WWE announced.

WWE Production was scrambling this afternoon to film video tributes to Bryan, many of which are now on Youtube and edit together the video package that aired close to the end of Raw.  The announcement was so closely guarded that we are told no one knew within WWE beyond a very small inner circle until after Danielson Tweeted it.

I reached out to Gabe Sapolsky, who booked the majority of Bryan Danielson's run in Ring of Honor for comment on his retirement.  Sapolsky responded, "Bryan is a true artist. He is a creator, fearless of taking risks and experimenting, an innovator and an influencer. His work ethic is exemplary and unrivaled. His body of work will pass the test of time. It will be studied and revered for generations."

WWE has released a "Thank you Daniel Bryan" t-shirt. 

FIP released the following match for free on Youtube in honor of Danielson's retirement:

If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here!

• Tweet