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In an interview with Fansided, Ring of Honor COO Joe Koff made it very clear the promotion would be happy to welcome back former ROH champion Daniel Bryan, who was one of the pioneering stars of ROH as American Dragon Bryan Danielson before signing with World Wrestling Entertainment.
“Well I don’t think it’s any secret, and all the previous ROH wrestlers know, that they are always welcome back in Ring of Honor. This is their home, so to speak,” Koff said. “We never chided anybody for leaving for what they thought were greener pastures. And look, a lot of them have succeeded on a far greater platform than we could have provided them at the time. So if Bryan Danielson would love to come back, I didn’t work with him personally while he was here, but I would personally welcome him back.”
Bryan was retired as an active competitor by WWE in 2015 due to the effects of concussions. He has since made it very clear that he did not agree with the decision and when his WWE deal has expired next year, one way or another, he will be returning to the ring, as long as Danielson doesn't feel his health is at risk.
On WWE NXT utilizing so many ROH alumni, Joe commented, "“I think NXT is just another promotion that’s out there; I think we would be a little naive not to admit that they’re out there,” Koff said. “But you know, NXT is primarily their developmental brand, it’s for their network, it provides content and it provides very good competition. Interestingly enough, most of the competition on there are ROH, so to me it’s almost like ‘ROH NEXT,’ but we recognize it. Look, I’m a big believer that what’s good for the business is good for the business, and right now we’re all good for our own space and our own business. There have been, not many, nights documented where NXT is in town and Ring of Honor is in the same town and we’ve both had sellout shows. So it says a lot about the athleticism and competition, and what people want to see. I’m always flattered when other guys go to other places and succeed, it’s a compliment to us. But it’s gonna happen, that’s the nature of the business.”
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