Why did the WWE sabotage DB's push?

[DietPepsiRocks]

They could have really had something there, and they left a lot of money on the table there with not putting the title on him for a reign. Imagine the high profile feuds he could have had for the title and the great matches as well. Why would the WWE not take advantage of his overness and make him more than he is now? If they booked him amazingly he could have been something huge. Instead, they had him get beaten up every week and belittled verbally. Was that really necessary? why would the WWE do that? Now the fans will never get to see that revenge because that ship has sailed. Unfortunate to the extreme. At the moment, no big WM matches booked for him or even planned for him. It doesn't make any sense that they would not take full advantage of it.

 

[tomorugby20]

It comes down to Vince McMahons obsession with bodybuilder physiques like your Hulk Hogans etc. Hence the belittling of his size and stuff in the build up the PPVs

I think WWE has shot themselves in the foot, because the crowds are still well into Bryan and they are trying to ignore it, hence why on WWE's youtube channel the announcement of the Unification match hasn't been uploaded.......too many Bryan chats when they should be Cena or Orton.

WWE cant stand someone who is popular when they don't want them. Bury the decent talent, build the guys you are bored of

 

[WarroBODFan]

I'm not a huge Daniel Bryan fan, but I like him. I've felt a bit short-changed regarding what has happened with him between Battleground PPV and now. Whether the Wyatt Family storyline will tie in with getting DB back into the major title picture remains to be seen, but if he's really not going to be a feature at Wrestlemania, how are they going to bring him into play?

I refuse to believe the WWE would simply leave the Daniel Bryan V Shawn Michaels thing with DB putting him in the yes lock and then sweep it all under the rug. Though it feels like that's exactly what they've done, at least to this point. I agree with you OP, I fear they've missed a trick considering how over with the crowd DB was during his Randy Orton feud. I also fear the moment is passing considering how much attention the title unification match will be getting over the next few weeks.

Perhaps it's a good thing long-term. Perhaps it's deliberate. But right now I haven't got a damn clue what they're going to do with Daniel Bryan.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

Because the WWE is a business ran by individuals who pay more attention to the stock of their wrestlers and crowd reactions better than anyone sitting by a computer who continuously bitches that they think their favorites aren't getting the good end of the deal when in reality Daniel Bryan is bigger than ever and doesn't need the WWE Championship to elicit a response from the crowd.

That was one sentence. Holy shit.

But yeah, Daniel Bryan is a megastar and doesn't have to be in the Main Event for anyone to realize that.

 

[MCMG]

Originally, I thought this was the point. They keep belittling him and making it out that he is a B-grade superstar and then he eventually wins the title, proving them all wrong. With the Title Unification upcoming, I am doubtful that this will be the case.

That effectively means they have messed up a decent opportunity with Bryan. To be honest, I'm not sure how planned out the title unification was and perhaps the original plan was for him to win the title. Who knows. Indeed, there is still a small chance that come Wrestlemania Bryan is walking out as WWE champ. I'm extremely doubtful.

The Yes chants and Bryan were over. He had become organically popular and everything seemed set for him to win the title. Extending the chase makes sense as it increases the anticipation/drama as well as making that actual title victory more memorable.

The WWE have gone down a different route. To be honest, I'm not overly fussed that Bryan isn't WWE Champion but I think, with hindsight, it would have been smart to give Bryan a title run before the Yes chants die down.

Also, I don't think it has anything to do with Bryan's size. CM Punk held the WWE title for 434 days and you could hardly say he has the "look". If anything, Cena and Orton are simply better choices at the moment. I really don't need to explain why Cena is and Orton is a fantastic all round superstar. Yes he has the "look" but he is also a better all-round superstar than Bryan as well as having a tremendous history with Cena.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

How has his push been sabotaged? He is still arguably the most over guy on the roster, he is in a team with Punk, and involved in a feud with The Wyatt Family, one of the hottest acts on the roster. Just because he isn't going out and squashing guys in three minutes and winning the title doesn't mean his push is sabotaged. This isn't Zack Ryder 2.0.

Yeah, he was on the poor end of The Authority story a lot, but that is what is supposed to happen. The heels are supposed to be booked strong so it looks great when the face finally gets one over on them. I will admit that Bryan's triumph was short lived(much to my own dismay), but I'd argue that him constantly being on the losing end just made people like him even more. Fans turn on the top guy, they always do. When DBry was wearing the big gold belt, people hated it, when Punk was running 400+ days with the strap people were becoming bored. Cena even mentions a title shot and people send death threats to WWE corporate. As dull as The Authority storyline currently is, I'd say Bryan is in a much better position feuding with the Wyatts then challenging for the belt.

 

[Bizzzrad]

I feel like the WWE just wanted to have him out of the main event for a while so they can give him a bigger push around Wrestlemania time. I think they're doing the same with CM Punk.

From what I hear, and from what makes sense to me... I think either Daniel Bryan or CM Punk will win the Royal Rumble. That way, they can give other stars who need the spotlight to gain momentum the time to do that before the road to Wrestlemania (Although they are doing a terrible job with that... Big Show, Randy Orton, etc.... have gained nothing from their recent pushes)

 

[Aquaman6686]

Daniel Bryan isn't a permanent main eventer. He's going to have a Jericho-esque career, where he can be used in the main event when they need someone, and then sent back down to midcard where he is better suited. All WWE needs to do to keep Bryan strong is have him and Punk DECISIVELY beat The Wyatts and end their feud on top, and he'll be good to go again in 2014. If The Wyatts win the feud in the end, then and only then can you make the argument that Bryan's push is sabotaged.

 

[Blade]

Because the WWE is a business ran by individuals who pay more attention to the stock of their wrestlers and crowd reactions better than anyone sitting by a computer who continuously bitches that they think their favorites aren't getting the good end of the deal when in reality Daniel Bryan is bigger than ever and doesn't need the WWE Championship to elicit a response from the crowd.

That was one sentence. Holy shit.

But yeah, Daniel Bryan is a megastar and doesn't have to be in the Main Event for anyone to realize that.

Woah, hold up.

Now, I'll admit that I'm a Daniel Bryan mark, and that side of me wanted him to win the title and have a good reign. But the side of me that's a logical wrestling fan thinks his overness and momentum hasn't been harmed like, say, CM Punk's after his feud with Triple H and Nash. I think, overall, Bryan will be fine and will be back in the title picture within the next 6-12 months.

But calling Daniel Bryan a "megastar" is a bit much. He's super over, sure. But that does not a star make. Cena is a megastar to an extent. CM Punk could've been but isn't. Bryan could be, someday perhaps, but he's certainly not yet.

As for the question of this thread, I don't think Bryan's push was sabotaged so much as he simply ended up in a crappy angle, and WWE had no idea where to go with it. It's like they thought to themselves "Austin vs. the Corporation was a big deal, you say? Hmm, let's do that for a new generation," forgetting that 1) Daniel Bryan is not Steve Austin and 2) Triple H is not Vince McMahon and it all kind of went to shit.

WWE panicked without John Cena, and they through together an angle that was supposed to make Bryan his instant replacement, and instead they rushed it and booked themselves into a bit of a corner. To be honest, Bryan seems to be in the same place he was in 5 months ago, but with two pointless WWE title reigns in the history books.

 

[Chococat]

Because the WWE is a business ran by individuals who pay more attention to the stock of their wrestlers and crowd reactions better than anyone sitting by a computer who continuously bitches that they think their favorites aren't getting the good end of the deal when in reality Daniel Bryan is bigger than ever and doesn't need the WWE Championship to elicit a response from the crowd.

That was one sentence. Holy shit.

But yeah, Daniel Bryan is a megastar and doesn't have to be in the Main Event for anyone to realize that.

Thank you a million thanks.

EVERYONE NEEDS TO STOP CRYING BECAUSE YOUR FAVORITE WRESTLER IS NOT WHERE YOU THINK THEY SHOULD BE.

Daniel's push wasn't sabotaged. His feud ended with Orton and Triple H and he was attacked by the Wyatts. What's so hard to understand??

One story was finished so they started a new one.

I like Daniel Bryan just as much as the next guy, i love the yes bit, i loved the no bit, I love his moveset, I love his enthusiasm, I love his work ethic. but for fuck sake, stop crying every fucking time he isn't shoved into a main event.

He's been at the top for quite some time and now he is helping the Wyatts get there, just like many helped Bryan get to his spot.

Stop crying, watch the show and let it play before you bitch about it

Also, this should be moved to the WWE General Complaints board. SMH every week someone gotta make a "DB getting screwed" topic

 

[DB-Fan]

Anyone who can't at least acknowledge that Bryan's push has been set aside just isn't watching. Period. The first 3 posters have it right - Vince and Co. are clearly pushing him back toward the mid-card, although I don't believe he'll fall that far back. And it really is a shame.

My honest belief is that what happened to Bryan last week on Raw was literally a last second change of plans (hence Brie not even responding appropriately to the angle until the next day) ordered by HHH himself because he got pissed that the crowd was doing the Yes chant and Daniel Bryan chant at the beginning of the show. I honestly believe his ego is so big that he decided to further bury Daniel by making a knee-jerk decision to have the Wyatts "kidnap" him. It was left open-ended so that they could either keep him off TV (which they did for Smackdown) or have him join the Wyatts in hopes it would cool off his organic babyface momentum coming from the crowd. There's really no other explanation for the way they've treated him over the last month or so. None whatsoever. It's just a way to bring his popularity back down to earth.

You can say my theory is crazy, but I think we all know HHH and Vince have egos that are more than capable of doing such a thing when they feel they are being upstaged. And that's what happened last Monday on Raw with the chants.

 

[Chococat]

Anyone who can't at least acknowledge that Bryan's push has been set aside just isn't watching. Period. The first 3 posters have it right - Vince and Co. are clearly pushing him back toward the mid-card, although I don't believe he'll fall that far back. And it really is a shame.

My honest belief is that what happened to Bryan last week on Raw was literally a last second change of plans (hence Brie not even responding appropriately to the angle until the next day) ordered by HHH himself because he got pissed that the crowd was doing the Yes chant and Daniel Bryan chant at the beginning of the show. I honestly believe his ego is so big that he decided to further bury Daniel by making a knee-jerk decision to have the Wyatts "kidnap" him. It was left open-ended so that they could either keep him off TV (which they did for Smackdown) or have him join the Wyatts in hopes it would cool off his organic babyface momentum coming from the crowd. There's really no other explanation for the way they've treated him over the last month or so. None whatsoever. It's just a way to bring his popularity back down to earth.

You can say my theory is crazy, but I think we all know HHH and Vince have egos that are more than capable of doing such a thing when they feel they are being upstaged. And that's what happened last Monday on Raw with the chants.

Or they milked Bryan for what he's worth and tossed him aside for something else that would generate more money.

Also, just to let you guys know, you're whining over a FICTIONAL CHARACTER on a CASTED, SCRIPTED, PRE-DETERMINED TELEVISION SHOW

 

[DB-Fan]

Or they milked Bryan for what he's worth and tossed him aside for something else that would generate more money

So they milked him to the zenith of his popularity and only after he started cooling off did they drop him? Sorry, but we both have seen that Daniel's still over like crazy. Not only that, but the fans have made it clear they didn't agree with Big Show taking Daniel's spot with chants both in the U.S. and abroad. They started an angle and dropped it midstream. And when that story included ridiculing the guy over and over and never allowing him to get his revenge, and at the same time taking him out of the title picture, it's called a de-push. Plain and simple.

 

[Chococat]

So they milked him to the zenith of his popularity and only after he started cooling off did they drop him? Sorry, but we both have seen that Daniel's still over like crazy. Not only that, but the fans have made it clear they didn't agree with Big Show taking Daniel's spot with chants both in the U.S. and abroad. They started an angle and dropped it midstream. And when that story included ridiculing the guy over and over and never allowing him to get his revenge, and at the same time taking him out of the title picture, it's called a de-push. Plain and simple.

Okay, let's say Daniel won against Orton and won the wwe title. Then what? He'd just lose it to John at TLC just like Orton's going to and then you, just like the majority here will bitch about that.

 

[Spidey Revivey]

It's funny when people clamor that Bryan isn't getting pushed or pushed hard enough but if Bryan had gone over Orton numerous threads would have been started about how The Authority wasn't allowed to shine.

 

[DB-Fan]

Okay, let's say Daniel won against Orton and won the wwe title. Then what? He'd just lose it to John at TLC just like Orton's going to and then you, just like the majority here will bitch about that.

I honestly couldn't have cared less whether Bryan beat Orton for the title or not. It was more about the larger angle with HHH and Steph (and Vince, for that matter) giving us the B+ angle and then just dropping it without allowing Bryan any chance for payback. I would have been fine with him moving out of the title picture if it had been to further an angle with The Authority. But neither happened and that's why it's logical to call what happened to him a de-push. That's clearly what has happened, even though he's still over. I just think this is really all about the big egos of Vince and HHH.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

As for the question of this thread, I don't think Bryan's push was sabotaged so much as he simply ended up in a crappy angle, and WWE had no idea where to go with it. It's like they thought to themselves "Austin vs. the Corporation was a big deal, you say? Hmm, let's do that for a new generation," forgetting that 1) Daniel Bryan is not Steve Austin and 2) Triple H is not Vince McMahon and it all kind of went to shit.

WWE panicked without John Cena, and they through together an angle that was supposed to make Bryan his instant replacement, and instead they rushed it and booked themselves into a bit of a corner. To be honest, Bryan seems to be in the same place he was in 5 months ago, but with two pointless WWE title reigns in the history books.

Its weird to agree with you on anything, but these two paragraphs are pretty spot on.

When you talk about the shitty go nowhere angle, you can possibly argue that WWE did Bryan a favor by pulling him out of the feud and putting in Big Show to take the beatings. Show is an established vet and due to his size he will always be relevant. Bryan is a guy who is still climbing his way up the ladder, an awful storyline could hurt him. So they pull him and place him in the Wyatt feud with Punk and have Show take the end of the shit Authority storyline, saving Bryan from being buried in a go nowhere angle.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

Daniel Bryan was pretty much buried in his main event run whether how you look at it. The moment he won the WWE Title the moment was taken from him when Orton cashed in his MITB. I was thinking ok that's fine since he will still be chasing for the title and coming out on top but each week Daniel Bryan was beaten up and each PPV he loses out on winning the title. It's also bad enough that when he did finally beat Bryan, WWE decided it would do a Dusty Finish on their own PPV, this does not help Bryan at all.

Ultimately the big problem was Bryan never came out on top on this feud and never would always end up on the losing side during a TV segment. The latter pretty much suggest a burial because this is the WWE. If you look back in WWE's history of pushing top faces the one thing they do is they always protect their faces during their push to the top. If you look at John Cena, Batista, Sheamus, and Austin they rarely end up on the losing side of a segment or match leading to their main event push. Why? Because in my view the WWE wants to project these guys as quality main event talents.

Not everyone was sold on Bryan as a main eventer, which is fine and natural since it always takes time for most fans to buy in a relative new comer as a top face. But the way WWE handled his push sure didn't help things either, heck they probably damaged it more. They made Daniel Bryan look like a loser so of course there will be fans who see him as a loser. Especially with the promos of Triple H, Orton, and Steph calling him a "weak link" or "marginal talent".

 

[Chococat]

Sigh, I'm just gonna stop replying. You guys will make any excuse other than the honest fact of you being mad because DB isn't in the Title Unification picture or "main event". Just curious, if the title picture isn't the main event picture, what is? Can you clarify this for me?

What declares his standing on the card? Is it how you perceive his standing? If that's all we're going by then just don't talk to me about it. LOL

I don't get how you guys don't see how you're contradicting yourselves

 

[DietPepsiRocks]

But just the fact that they didn't even give him the title for at least a month to satisfy the fanbase is ludicrous...Cena was gone, they could have at least given it to him for a month leading up to Battleground and then have it become vacant..why coudln't they at least have him hold it from NOC to BG? even if it was a month or less, at least its something and if they had stripped him of it then, at least he wouldn't have lost it in a match, he would have just gotten stripped keeping him strong..Instead, we get nothing and they just move on, and now we have to suffer through a Bryan/Wyatt match? *shakes head* I've never seen this before where a guy is so loved by everybody and management just refuses to reward him with a championship...don't they feel kind of silly? I read reports about how there was some second guessing..no crap! there totally should have been tons of second guessing....the ratings have gone majorly downhill since he was stripped in mid September...how come they're not correcting this? what happens when the Cena/Orton feud gets pooped on each week? what happens then? it'll be embarrassing for the company and they would have brought it upon themselves...are they going to fire DB for being loved by the fans? they might as well! I mean they've proven they don't think he has what it takes even though basically everyone in the US and abroad disagrees with them...and the most ridiculous thing about it, is that he never talks badly about the company, he keeps his nose clean, no drugs, no alcohol, good role model for kids, well spoken and classy, and yet they're treating him like he pulled a Ziggler and has a bad attitude....it doesn't make sense.

 

[ASKane]

The reason his push got sabotaged is because he is terrible. He is a generic technical wrestler with no mic skills and a terrible look, he is the exact same as Tyson Kidd if not worse but because he had an annoying chant and an underdog he got over and got Ryback syndrome. The medical definition for Ryback syndrome:

Not good enough to be a main eventer but John Cena got injured and the fans currently like you.

No Cena injury no Bryan push. Bryan is a midcard guy who was over at the time of a main eventer getting injured so WWE had to put him there. Vince doesn't like and theres a good reason for that he is undersized, average in the ring, has no mic skills and terrible look. The reason they sabotaged him was because him being over forced him into the position to replace Cena even though WWE wanted him nowhere near the main event. Vince just used an over guy for a few months to sell some merch and then put him back where he belongs in the midcard.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

Woah, hold up.

Now, I'll admit that I'm a Daniel Bryan mark, and that side of me wanted him to win the title and have a good reign. But the side of me that's a logical wrestling fan thinks his overness and momentum hasn't been harmed like, say, CM Punk's after his feud with Triple H and Nash. I think, overall, Bryan will be fine and will be back in the title picture within the next 6-12 months.

But calling Daniel Bryan a "megastar" is a bit much. He's super over, sure. But that does not a star make. Cena is a megastar to an extent. CM Punk could've been but isn't. Bryan could be, someday perhaps, but he's certainly not yet.

As for the question of this thread, I don't think Bryan's push was sabotaged so much as he simply ended up in a crappy angle, and WWE had no idea where to go with it. It's like they thought to themselves "Austin vs. the Corporation was a big deal, you say? Hmm, let's do that for a new generation," forgetting that 1) Daniel Bryan is not Steve Austin and 2) Triple H is not Vince McMahon and it all kind of went to shit.

WWE panicked without John Cena, and they through together an angle that was supposed to make Bryan his instant replacement, and instead they rushed it and booked themselves into a bit of a corner. To be honest, Bryan seems to be in the same place he was in 5 months ago, but with two pointless WWE title reigns in the history books.

This is pretty much what I think all in all. I see Bryan back in the title picture at some point next year. It might not be during WrestleMania, but I'll be pretty surprised if it doesn't happen sometime in the summer or fall. It's tempting to think that Bryan will be back in the title picture because there doesn't seem to be any logical reason not to. He's allegedly praised backstage by wrestlers & officials alike for the quality of his work and his work ethic itself, I've read nothing whatsoever to indicate he has any heat with anybody backstage and he's arguably the most over face on the roster at this point.

I'm a fan of Bryan, but I honestly never expect him to be "the face" of WWE in the same way as Cena. That's not to say that he couldn't do the job as he has the passion and dedication to the business, plus he conducts himself well during media interviews. But, in all honesty, Bryan isn't someone that you'd characteristically see as "the face" of a billion dollar corporation. For a long time, I've stated that my overall expectations of Bryan is that he's essentially going to be the next Chris Jericho. Jericho is someone that's known for being able to put on high quality matches, put others over without losing any real steam himself and can float in float in & out of the main event picture with no friction. I do believe that Bryan will get at least 1 or 2 significant runs as WWE Champion. Like Jericho, I think Bryan will ultimately be identified as an upper mid-carder who shows up sometimes in the main event.

As for WWE sabotaging him, I honestly don't believe they did. There are simply FAR too many guys in the history of WWE who don't fit the bodybuilder, Herculean physique type of look that've been huge stars. In character, Vince has sometimes said "It's all about the mooooooonnnneeeeyyyy" and that's true. Vince McMahon is someone who genuinely does, a good deal of the time at least, look at the long term picture. Maybe he wasn't sure about Daniel Bryan in the long run, although I'm not exactly sure why he wouldn't when you consider that he's gone from being a run of the mill babyface to one of the most over guys on the roster over the past 2 years whether a heel or babyface. Still, maybe he just wasn't sure at the time and could be using all this as a means of measuring fan interest in Bryan. You know, seeing if fans will still rally behind Bryan after this bump in the road.

 

[DietPepsiRocks]

I dont know..I just don't get it. Everyone is thinking he's nuts for not taking advantage of the moment. Justin Credible, Jim Ross amongst others. Stone Cold praises DB's work, Mick Foley praises DB"s work. Dolph Ziggler, Kane, most of his peers have said he's the best on the roster. The guys in the back are probably looking at this situation and are like, "if I work hard and get over, I guess it means I won't hold the title either" its very discouraging for everyone involved.

 

[DB-Fan]

I agree with you, Jack-Hammer, pretty much across the board about what type of WWE star DB will end up being. The Chris Jericho comparison seems very likely. As I've stated before, I'm not upset that Bryan didn't get or hold the title for any length of time - although I wouldn't have been against that either. The only thing that really gives me pause about whether or not Vince/HHH have semi-sabotaged (although I prefer the simpler wording of a de-push) is the way they allowed his angle with The Authority to play out. It was completely one-sided and he never got any revenge. They just moved on quietly by replacing his spot in the angle with Big Show. It was just very strange. I hope I'm proven wrong and Daniel isn't forced to go heel with the Wyatts through some brainwashing angle because I do believe that would hurt his popularity. Not because he'd be a heel, per se. But it just seems to me the Wyatts are not nearly as over as the Shield at this point and I just see this as a move down for DB. Tonight will tell us a lot about this bigger picture on Daniel Bryan and where the company is heading with him, imho.

 

[Alastor]

Maybe, just maybe, the reason for Daniel Bryan's being over with a section of his diehard fans is that he is overlooked constantly? Think about it, when did he explode in popularity? It was after that 18second Wrestlemania loss that made some think of the injustice of it all. Especially after being bumped off the card the previous year. Or maybe he just needed some time off schedule what with being engaged and all that.

WWE is playing the marks with all these decisions so that DB can remain as over as he is for a longer period of time. What happened to Benoit/Y2J/Eddie and the likes after they finally got their short reign as champion? They regressed because their fans had nothing to root for about them anymore once the chase is over. The whole underdog story ends after they win the prize. They prolonged DB's current run in the title picture by having the prize snatched away so they can keep the narrative of DB being the underdog chasing the ultimate prize in a 3 PPV long series with Orton.

A token one month title reign or a reign that had the title snatched away from him twice, which one will create a more lasting impression?