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The difference of opinion between Daniel Bryan & his doctors and WWE & theirs looks like it will drag on into at least 2016, and its inspiring many theories and debates among fans along the way.
While we may not know what exactly is going on between the former triple crown champ, who says he's consulted with multiple medical professionals who think he's ready to resume work following his latest concussion and its aftermath, and Vince McMahon, whose medical chief Dr. Joseph Maroon has not cleared Bryan to wrestle...we now know something about what DB's been doing in his downtime to stay active. And that information comes via former UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson.
In a conversation with The Sporting News about athletes and performers from other sports and athletic fields getting into mixed martial arts, Henderson doesn't just talk the usual suspects of Ken Shamrock, Brock Lesnar and CM Punk, but also reveals that Bryan has been working with his coach on Brazilian jiu-jitsu:
He came to our gym and moved up to blue belt in jiu-jitsu under my coach John Crouch. Every time I go in there, he's working his butt off. I heard he was pretty strong and actually surprised me with how technical he is. A lot of guys have a hard time learning all those techniques. I heard he was really great at being able to use his technique and not relying on his strength. He's smooth and does jiu-jitsu really well.
The YES! man has talked about how hard dealing with inactivity is for him, and has a history of studying shoot fighting techniques under masters like British catch legend Billy Robinson and acclaimed grappling coach Neil Melanson, so working out at Henderson's home base of MMA Lab in Glendale, Arizona (near where he and wife Brie Bella make their home in Phoenix) isn't shocking.
It's promising for fans that Bryan is engaging in and presumably feeling good after training such as this - and perhaps a good sign that when he's given the okay to come back he'll employ a less high-flying style than he utilized prior to and during his injury-plagued 2014-15.