Bryan Danielson Opens Up About Facing Issues In His AEW Commentary Role, Explains How He Prepares For It

Former AEW World Champion Bryan Danielson recently appeared on INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet, where he opened up about the issues that he has been facing currently as a full-time commentator.

The American Dragon returned to AEW television this past September as a full-time commentator, primarily working alongside Excalibur and Tony Schiavone on Dynamite. Speaking to Chris Van Vliet, Danielson revealed that he has been struggling with the weekly travel. He also explained the differences in his preparation for commentary as opposed to when he prepared for a match as a performer.

Below are the highlights:

Bryan Danielson on becoming a full-time commentator and struggling with weekly travel

“It’s been interesting because I wasn’t anticipating being a commentator. So I was at home, and then they asked me to come in because Taz was getting shoulder surgery and to come and help out a little bit. But traveling has been difficult for me. That’s one of the things I didn’t expect, because I’ve traveled my entire adult life. It’s no big deal. But with my neck as bad as it is, all of a sudden, it was almost, ‘Gosh!’ It was like eight or nine months where I was only traveling maybe once a month. I’d go to the pay-per-views and all that kind of stuff. But yeah, the weekly travel has been a lot, and it’s just been made [SIC] sleeping hard and that sort of thing.

“It’s also just lugging luggage around. So I typically just have a carry-on in a backpack, or whatever it is. But then it’s like being uncomfortable in the chair. I’ve made some adjustments, so I have a cervical pillow now that I travel with me, because for a while I was just sleeping with one of those hand towels underneath my neck, just so it’s not being pushed up or anything like that. But it’s impossible. I live on the West Coast, and then I also live an hour and a half to two hours from the airport, so it’s impossible for all these cross-country flights to stay in good posture the whole time, that kind of stuff. And then, heaven forbid, I fall asleep and I do this, and then I wake up like, ‘Oh no, I can’t feel my hand.’”

Bryan Danielson details the difference in his preparation for commentary as opposed to when he prepared for a match

“It’s way different. From a performer’s perspective, I really just need to know what my match is, what they’d like for a finish, and how much time you’ve got, and then it’s like, ‘Okay!’ Then you talk with your opponent, whatever it is, and then it’s the physical preparation. I would take 30 to 45 minutes to warm up for a match. I learned that from Randy Orton. Randy Orton was the best guy at warming up in WWE. He would do all these things, and if he had to do something on short notice, he’d get pi**ed. He’s like, ‘I don’t have time to do my shoulder routine,’ or whatever. Just think of how many matches Randy’s done. His entire career has been in WWE, and during that time, they’ve been doing tons of live events every year and all that kind of stuff, so his body’s been through a lot. So he prepared it, and I would see it, and I had my own 10- to 15-minute warm-up.

“But then as I’ve gotten older, it’s become much more like, ‘Okay, I need 30 to 45 minutes to warm up.’ So yeah. But now, from a commentator perspective, I tend to go around and talk to people about their matches. I tend to be in Tony’s office trying to understand what the main story is that we’re trying to tell throughout a match, or whatever it is, and then I write a bunch of notes. This is the thing: with most things, you write a bunch of notes; most of them you don’t ever use. But there have been times where I’ve sat there and Excalibur asked me a question, and I just go like this [blank face]. So I found out I was doing full-time commentary while I was doing a media tour of Australia. I found out it was like, ‘Okay, starting this Wednesday.’

“And I was like, ‘Oh, no, I have to get from Brisbane, Australia, all the way to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and then I have to do commentary and all this kind of stuff. I was so jet-lagged and tired when I got [there]; there were a couple times during that, [and] obviously Taz and Excalibur carried the bulk of the thing. There was one time Excalibur asked me a question, and I just went like this. I didn’t even say, ‘Er?’ And then Excalibur just goes, ‘Well, Taz?’ But it’s been good and fun. Commentary is a skill, so it’s something that you have to learn. I’ve been really lucky and grateful to have Taz and Excalibur and then Tony. I asked Tony Schiavone when he’s not busy backstage, and he’s super busy, and said, ‘Can you give me some tips? Because it’s not something that I’m naturally good at.'”

Check out the conversation below: