Even if it hadn’t worked out that way, Danielson still seemed to indicate that the loss wouldn’t have bothered him too much. Though he admitted that he was confused by WWE’s decision at the time, he also admitted he didn’t fight the decision, partially because it wasn’t in his nature to begin with, and also because he feels that isn’t the best course. He then pointed to an AEW star and former rival of his as an example of how to handle situations like that.

“I’ve never been somebody who’s like ‘Wait a second, why would you beat me in 18 seconds?'” Danielson said. “Or ‘Why would you just beat me with one move?’ or whatever. I was like ‘Okay, that’s the creative direction. I’m going to do the best I can with it.’ I find that a lot of people put up stinks about a lot of things, whatever it is…You could put up a little resistance if you really don’t like something. 

“But then if this is what the boss wants, you’re better off to do your absolute best at what the boss wants, and then try to get over from that. I think a great example in AEW is Swerve Strickland. He came in and he lost a lot of matches. But it was always ‘Yes sir Tony. Whatever you need, I’ll go out there and do.’ And now look at him. He’s main evented PPV’s. He’s a World Champion. He’s fantastic.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Insight with Chris Van Vliet” and provide an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription