Bryan Danielson Talks AEW Return, Rumors on Roman Reigns' WWE Schedule, Buddy Injury

Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe and All Elite Wrestling.

Danielson Talks Potential AEW In-Ring Return

Bryan Danielson isn't closing the door on an in-ring return, but he suggested it will only occur under certain conditions.

In an interview with Wide World of Sports' Liam O'Loughlin, Danielson said, "You never say never," when asked about getting back in the ring at some point.

However, Danielson also made it clear that if he does wrestle again, he won't be willing to put his body on the line in the same way he used to, saying:

"If I tried to do some of the things I did in my last year with AEW right now, I don't think I'd be able to go back and hold my kids. Anything that I would do moving forward has to be with that in mind, because that is now my No. 1 priority. Stay healthy, be at home and play with my kids and coach my son's tee-ball team."

Last year, Danielson had a retirement tour of sorts in AEW, beating Swerve Strickland for the AEW World Championship at All In before successfully defending it on a few occasions.

Danielson decreed at the time that he would keep wrestling until he lost the title, and that happened at WrestleDream when he lost to Jon Moxley, who viciously attacked him afterward.

The 44-year-old veteran has not wrestled since then, although he has gotten physically involved on a couple of occasions, including helping "Hangman" Adam Page beat Moxley for the AEW world title at All In this year.

Danielson is primarily focused on commentary now, as he was recently added to AEW's announce team on a full-time basis.

He has brought a high degree of excitement and expertise to the desk, adding legitimacy to AEW's weekly shows and pay-per-views.

Of course, fans most want to see the former AEW world champion and five-time WWE world champion in the ring more than anything else, and while Danielson isn't closed off to the idea, he clearly doesn't want to compromise his long-term health.

Details Surrounding Reigns' WWE Schedule

Roman Reigns' return on Monday night's episode of Raw has reportedly been in the cards for quite some time.

According to PWInsider.com (h/t Randall Ortman of Cageside Seats), Reigns was "always planned" to return to WWE programming shortly after he was done filming for the upcoming Street Fighter movie.

Reigns, who is playing the role of Akuma in the movie, which is scheduled for an October 2026 release, wrapped filming last week, per Fightful Select (h/t Ortman).

Last month at Clash in Paris, Reigns defeated Bronson Reed in the opening match of the show, but Reed and The Vision got the last laugh.

After taking the shoe-la-fala back from Reed, Reigns was speared by Bron Breakker, which set a calculated attack into motion.

Breakker and Reed brutally beat down the Tribal Chief, with Reed even hitting Reigns with a Tsunami while he was strapped to a stretcher.

Reigns was off WWE programming for about a month after that, but he resurfaced on Monday night's episode of Raw during the main event, which pitted The Usos against Reed and Breakker in a tornado tag team match.

Given that there were no disqualifications, Reigns was able to interfere on behalf of The Usos and help his cousins win.

With Crown Jewel about two weeks away, Reigns' return potentially could have set the stage for him to have a match at the premium live event, and it may have also foreshadowed a WarGames match at Survivor Series in November.

Reported Timetable for Buddy Matthews' Injury Return

Buddy Matthews' return from an ankle injury reportedly isn't yet on the horizon.

According to Fightful Select (h/t Subhojeet Mukherjee of Ringside News), Matthews is expected to be out of action through at least the rest of 2025.

The report comes after Matthews said on Instagram Live (h/t Mukherjee) back in June that he had suffered a setback in his recovery, and his ankle wasn't healing as quickly as hoped.

Matthews is trending toward having been on the shelf for eight months, as he last competed in a match back in February.

The 37-year-old Aussie's most recent bout took place in his home country when he lost an AEW Continental Championship match against Kazuchika Okada at Grand Slam Australia on Feb. 15.

Before the injury, Matthews was still aligned with House of Black stablemate Brody King, even after Malakai Black left AEW and returned to WWE under the Aleister Black character.

However, since Matthews has been out, King began teaming with Bandido, and they recently won the AEW World Tag Team Championships as Brodido.

When Matthews is finally able to return to the ring, it is fair to wonder if he may target Brodido, given his history with King.