Is Bryan Danielson Wrestling Nigel McGuiness At AEW Grand Slam?

Will Bryan Danielson be ready to go?
AEW Heavyweight Champion Bryan Danielson (left) and rival Nigel McGuiness (right)
AEW Heavyweight Champion Bryan Danielson (left) and rival Nigel McGuiness (right) / All Elite Wrestling

Will he or won't he? That is question on whether fans will see AEW Heavyweight Champion Bryan Danielson take on long time rival Nigel McGuiness at AEW Grand Slam on Sept. 25 from Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing, NY.

Danielson has been out of action since AEW All Out when he successfully defended the title against TNT titlist Jack Perry.

Standing in the ring alongside Danielson after helping him thwart a cash-in of an AEW title shot from Christian Cage, fellow Blackpool Combat Club member Claudio Castagnoli attacked him with a vicious uppercut. Danielson, befuddled at what just happened, stared at Castagnoli. Then, Jon Moxley came up from behind and choked Danielson endlessly with a plastic bag.

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On the 9/11 edition of AEW Dynamite, Danielson vs. McGuiness was formally announced with the caveat of "if Danielson is cleared to compete". McGuiness has been prodding Danielson to goad him into the ring for the event on the 25th. McGuiness began by narrating a highlight package of their story on this past Saturday's edition of AEW Collision.

The attacks by McGuiness continued this week as a "BRYAN FEARS NIGEL" shirt debuted on AEWShop.com.

Then we got to this Wednesday's edition of AEW Dynamite and McGuiness continued his assault on "The American Dragon", including starting a rumor about Danielson having to relinquish the title if he doesn't wrestle McGuiness.

"The American Coward yet to give any indication of if he'll face me at Arthur Ashe Stadium," McGuiness said. "Well, I did hear a rumor Bryan that if you don't show up, you might be stripped of the title. If that's the case, let me ask you: Is not losing to me and me proving I should have had all your success really more important than the AEW world title?"

McGuiness returned to the ring for the first time in 13 years at August's AEW All In as a surprise entrant in the Casino Gaunlet Match. Now, he's possibily on the verge of facing his biggest career rival in the United States' largest media market.

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Steven Muelhausen
STEVEN MUELHAUSEN

: Steven Muehlhausen is a veteran combat sports writer for various outlets including Sporting News and Yahoo Sports. He can be reached at stevemuehlhausen@yahoo.com and followed on Twitter @SMuehlhausenJr.