Bryan Danielson has revealed he learned his new role as a permanent member of the AEW Dynamite commentary team was official only after seeing a public announcement made by Tony Khan. The former AEW World Champion discovered his new position when he received a text message referencing a tweet from the company’s president.
The move to the commentary desk follows Danielson’s announcement that he was retiring from full-time wrestling. His transition began with a well-received appearance at Forbidden Door 2025. A report from the Wrestling Observer Radio on September 12, 2025, noted that a neck injury, for which Danielson has opted against surgery, influenced his shift away from high-impact in-ring performance.
In a recent interview, Danielson detailed the sequence of events leading to the confirmation of his non-wrestling role.
“How it came about is that it had been mentioned, but I didn’t find out the same way everybody else found out on Sunday. I got a text message like, ‘hey man, so you’re gonna be at ‘Dynamite’ this week, right?’ And I was like, huh? And then they sent me the tweet that Tony Khan just sent out, and I was just like, oh, okay, yep. Tony and I had talked about the possibility of it, but I didn’t know it was a real thing until Sunday,” Danielson stated.
Danielson’s career shift is informed by a focus on his health and family, which he has established as his top priority. He clarified that any future decisions must allow him to remain healthy enough to play with his children.
This perspective stems from the physical toll of his career. Danielson cited his AEW World Championship match against Swerve Strickland at WrestleDream 2024, where he lost the title, as a benchmark for a style he can no longer physically sustain. The veteran had also previously considered ending his in-ring journey at Wembley Stadium during All In 2024.