Bryan Danielson Gushes Over Young AEW Star: 'This Guy's Special'
Bryan Danielson previously stated that one of his goals in coming to AEW was to push himself, and in doing so, he has wrestled many young talents within the company. On this week's edition of "AEW Dynamite," Danielson faced off against Konosuke Takeshita in a back-and-forth, highly physical match. Danielson ultimately came out the victor, however, following the encounter, Danielson raised up Takeshita's hand, signaling he has respect for the 27-year-old.
AEW's Japanese Twitter account caught up with Danielson after his victory, and the "American Dragon" shared his thoughts on Takeshita. "I was really looking forward to it," Danielson said. "I'd heard a lot people who had wrestled all over the world when they wrestled Takeshita, they said, 'Oh man, that guy is great' ... He looks so good, it looks like he hits so hard, but I want to feel it. It's one of the things I love about wrestling is feeling it out there and when we got out there, and he hit me with the first forearm, I felt it. I felt this guy is special and I have been in the ring with some of the best wrestlers in the world, some of the best wrestlers of all time, and I think, by the end, we're going to be talking about Takeshita the same way."
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「竹下の評判は聞いていたから試合が楽しみだった。私がプロレスの好きなところは"感じる"ことなんだ。最初のエルボーで彼は特別だと感じた。
私は世界最高のレスラーと言われることがあるが、ゆくゆくは竹下もそう言われるだろうね」@bryandanielson#AEW https://t.co/0FdQcxAnZl pic.twitter.com/Q9fIUCJHo5— AEW ジャパン (@AEW_jp) January 13, 2023
This match was Takeshita's seventh singles bout on AEW TV to date. Despite only picking up one victory in those seven matches, Takeshita has impressed AEW fans across the globe with his performances against stars like Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, and Eddie Kingston. While Takeshita is still finding his footing in AEW, he has won multiple titles in Japanese promotion DDT — most notably winning the DDT Iron Man Heavy Metal Championship four times, and the KO-D Openweight Championship on five occasions.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "AEW Japan" with an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.