A WWE Hall of Famer has revealed that he lied to company executives in order to help secure Bryan Danielson a contract with WWE.
Speaking on The Undertaker’s Six Feet Under podcast, Mark Henry recalled how he deliberately exaggerated Danielson’s height to get him through the door at a time when the company was prioritising bigger, heavier talent.
Henry said he first became aware of Danielson after seeing him wrestle on television and immediately felt he was good enough to succeed at the highest level.
“I didn’t train Bryan Danielson, I just saw Bryan on TV and said, ‘Hey, y’all need to get this dude,’” Henry said. “I saw a match he had and thought, ‘This guy is as good as people we’ve already got in WWE.’”
Henry then admitted that he misrepresented Danielson’s size when speaking to company officials, knowing that the company was focused on signing wrestlers closer to 200 pounds.
“I lied. I told them he was like six feet tall because they wanted bigger guys,” Henry said. “Bryan’s maybe 5’11”, but to have somebody who’s a Hall of Fame-calibre wrestler that you can hang your hat on is pretty damn cool.”
Danielson, who later became known to WWE audiences as Daniel Bryan, initially signed with the company on a developmental deal and worked there from 2000 to 2003. He returned to the promotion in 2009, went on to become one of the most decorated performers of his era, and remained with the company until 2021, before moving on to AEW.
How Many WWE Titles Did Bryan Danielson Win?
Bryan Danielson won a total of nine titles in WWE, with his most prestigious title being the WWE Championship, which he won four times. The first title he won with the company was in 2010, when he captured the United States Championship from The Miz at Night of Champions.
The last title he won was the WWE Championship, which he won in 2018, in his fourth reign with the belt, by defeating AJ Styles on the November 13 episode of SmackDown. He lost the title to Kofi Kingston at WrestleMania 35 and never won another title until he left the promotion in 2021.
