Bryan Danielson would love to compete in NJPW’s G1 Climax but believes that the opportunity for him to work in the tournament has passed him by.
Speaking on a recent edition of the “Getting Over” podcast, Danielson was asked about possibly competing with a shot at the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship on the line. He said,
“So I don’t know. Sometimes I have delusions of doing the G1. But I think that’s what they are. I think they’re delusions in the sense of that’s something that I’ve wanted to do forever and ever and ever and have never been able to do it. And so, ‘Yeah. This year would be the year to do it.’ Except, is it? Because by the time the next G1 rolls around, I’ll be 43. And with how many injuries? I mean, because that’s a big part of why I want to step away from full-time wrestling too.”
“Right now, I feel like the injuries that I’ve had are manageable in the sense of long term. Like, I’m constantly doing stuff for my neck so that my neck isn’t bad when I’m 70. The concussion stuff, I do my best. But I mean all of us, we’re just hoping for the best. We don’t know. There’s no concrete science on it. So all of that said, I think now doing a G1 might be a little irresponsible of me in comparison to what my overall long-term goals are, which is being there for my kids and there for my family.”
Danielson’s most recent appearance in a NJPW tournament came in 2004 when he participated in that year’s Best of the Super Juniors, where he reached the semi-finals.
