Huge Surprise on WWE SmackDown: Major Raw Superstar Shows up to Take on Daniel Bryan

The Royal Rumble will be full of surprises, but no one expected SmackDown to kick off in such a fashion. AJ Styles interrupted Daniel Bryan mid-promo to remind him that he’s the one who will main event WrestleMania.

Styles’ return to SmackDown is his first appearance since getting drafted to Raw in October 2020, but his day on the blue brand is far from over.

Cross-brand dream match set for SmackDown

Daniel Bryan cut an impassioned promo about him not having enough WrestleMania moments left in him. He vowed to win the Royal Rumble, irrespective of what number he draws and head to the main event of WrestleMania.

AJ Styles‘ music hit, and the former WWE Champion walked out to the ring with his giant friend. He and Omos cited the ‘quarterly brand-to-brand invitational’ as their reason for being on SmackDown. Styles also reminded Bryan that he is the gatekeeper of Raw, crushing superstars’ hopes of competing in the Royal Rumble.

Insinuating that he’s going to crush Bryan’s dreams, AJ was challenged to a match by the ‘American Dragon.’ Styles accepted and shoved Bryan down. As Styles and Omos turned to leave, Bryan told him to face him without Omos if he was a real man.

The history between AJ Styles and Daniel Bryan

Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles are the best wrestlers in the WWE, which obviously makes them archrivals. The former is a WWE Grand Slam Champion, a WrestleMania main eventer and multi-time World Champion. Styles has been in WWE for five years, but has already held every title in the company.

The Superstars previously met in June 2020, when Styles beat Bryan to win the vacant Intercontinental Championship. That match was one of the best matches of 2020 and a true SmackDown classic. Their series of matches from 2018 are also quite incredible, including the match where Bryan turned heel and beat Styles for the WWE Championship.

Fans can trust whoever wins their match on SmackDown to head into the Royal Rumble with significant momentum. Styles beating a SmackDown superstar would be quite humiliating for the blue brand. However, Daniel Bryan might be prepared for the fight of his life after cutting that amazing promo at the start of the show.

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