AEW says Bryan Danielson needs surgery and is expected to miss the rest of the year

On tonight’s (Oct. 28) episode of AEW Collision, Claudio Castagnoli claimed that his tag team partner Bryan Danielson suffered a broken orbital bone on this past Wednesday’s Dynamite. Due to the nature of pro wrestling, it wasn’t 100% clear if this was a shoot.

Later in the broadcast, AEW commentator Tony Schiavone provided more details about Bryan’s situation. He said Danielson needs surgery and is expected to spend the rest of 2023 on the injured list. That would seem to put to rest any idea that Bryan’s injury is a work, because it doesn’t make sense for him to intentionally spend two months of the final year of his full-time pro wrestling career on the sidelines.

There has been a lot of speculation about Bryan Danielson having a rematch with NJPW star Kazuchika Okada at next year’s WrestleKingdom event in the Tokyo Dome. That show takes place on January 4; if Danielson is out for the rest of the year, it’s certainly possible that he won’t be back in time to compete on that card.

We’ll update you with more on Bryan’s timeline for recovery as we have it, Cagesiders.