WWE King of the Ring 2013: Daniel Bryan

June 13, 2013 marked exactly 20 years since Bret Hart defeated 3 men in 1 night to win the 1993 WWE King of the Ring Tournament.   If you grew up in that era like I did, it was a monumental night in WWE history like nothing we had seen before.

Bret Hart was always known for being one of the best and most versatile wrestlers on the roster, he had superstar fan support, and with a strong 1993 Heel title run needed out of Yokozuna, the 1^st ever King of the Ring Pay Per View was the perfect time to show where Bret really stood in the ranks of WWE.

Fast forward 20 years and here we are.  John Cena is the “Top Guy” and WWE Champion, but nobody is hotter in pro wrestling right now than Daniel Bryan.  In my opinion, he’s the best in-ring performer in WWE and has the best crowd response weekly.  Those 2 traits combined have molded Daniel Bryan into something nobody in WWE thought possible; a Top-Tier Main Eventer.

Current reports state that WWE plans for July and August are to have Daniel Bryan feud with John Cena for the WWE Title.  The question is; how could WWE Creative insert Bryan into the title picture without turning him heel?  It’s real simple, have the best worker in the WWE prove it in a historical competition, the King of the Ring!

It has been a long time since WWE has highlighted a babyface’s ability by competing in multiple matches and winning a King of the Ring (specifically like Bret Hart).  Creative usually uses it to get a heel over and/or to bestow a terrible King gimmick on someone (King Sheamus was dropped rather quickly).  Daniel Bryan is that perfect babyface to do this with and the time is definitely now!

The first week on Raw should be 4 Quarter-Finals Matches.  I’d book Daniel Bryan to defeat Wade Barrett, Cody Rhodes, or Damien Sandow.  At this point, they are all completely expendable heels for Bryan and can obviously put on a worthy 1^st round match.

The next week on Raw, the King of the Ring Semi-Finals and Finals could be held in one night, getting your best performer Daniel Bryan, to wrestle 2 amazing singles matches in 1 episode.  In the Semi-Finals, I would have Daniel Bryan defeat Sheamus, Randy Orton, or Chris Jericho.  All of them are babyface, over with the crowd, are expendable to a loss to Bryan, and can put on an amazing back and forth match worthy of this spotlight.

In the final match of the night on Raw, Daniel Bryan should defeat Ryback to win the King of the Ring.  I know this is probably not a popular choice, but I think Ryback (who should defeat Alberto Del Rio in the Semi-Finals) has established himself and specifically, has done great work in his matches with Daniel Bryan.  Especially after facing John Cena on 2 Pay Per Views straight, Ryback would be a great heel for Bryan to beat in an underdog contest for the Final Match.

Smarks will be screaming at the screen in fear of Ryback actually winning, the whole audience will be rallying behind Bryan’s every move, and the WWE Universe will collectively cheer as Daniel Bryan claims his place in WWE History.

With that kind of exposure, it would make perfect sense for an authority figure to give Daniel Bryan a WWE Title shot against John Cena at the next Pay Per View.  By booking this way, Creative will have thrown the spotlight on Daniel Bryan before even having him win the WWE Title, therefore, making it seem more like 2 Superstars are facing each other for the Championship, as opposed to the lackluster Ryback vs John Cena feud (which Ryback never had a shot of winning).

With CM Punk well established and returning, Dolph Ziggler as World Heavyweight Champion, and Daniel Bryan now as King of the Ring Winner AND in a Main Event Feud with John Cena, WWE would have set up 3 true STARS to run with the future of the company.  Hopefully, Management will use them to establish the 2010’s “New Generation”, pretty similar to 1993.

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