Dream matches for Daniel Bryan if he were to leave WWE

Fonseca: A healthy portion of Daniel Bryan fans learned of him during his days as the “American Dragon” Bryan Danielson, and while in Ring of Honor, in particular. It’s only natural to survey his old stomping grounds for desired challengers, starting with the current ROH World Champion, Rush El Toro Blanco, or simply, Rush.

Rush has been the World Titlist in ROH since February 29, 2020, and is currently in his second run with the championship. He also had a notable 10-year-tenure in Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre in Mexico between 2009-2019 before jumping to in-country competitor Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide in December of 2019. Rush, not only a World Champion in ROH but is also a former World Light Heavyweight, Tag Team, and Trios Titleholder in CMLL.

The resume alone places Rush among the top independent wrestlers in the world, and having thrived in both the USA and Mexico; it places him in the upper-echelon of talent worthy of a Daniel Bryan dream match. Rush is one of the most technically sound grapplers on the planet who could hang with Bryan on his best day and award fans a Match of the Year contender in any promotion this hypothetical were to take place. ROH obviously makes the most sense, but Bryan has expressed an interest in competing in Mexico as recently as 2019, even mentioning that Rush could “do well” in the WWE.

“I have a lot of respect for them,” Bryan said. “But thinking about who could do it now in WWE, someone like Rush could. I think Bandido would do well; Dragon Lee [Rush’s brother] could also succeed.”