All Elite Wrestling‘s Revolution pay-per-view isn’t until March 5, but Bryan Danielson and MJF are being positioned to main event that show. On the January 4 episode of Dynamite, the AEW World Champion told Danielson that if he could win every match he wrestles between now and Revolution, he’d be granted a title shot. The American Dragon agreed on the condition that he’d be allowed to pick the stipulation if he went on this winning streak. MJF relented after some goading, and to the delight of Danielson’s hometown Seattle crowd, a 60-minute Iron Man match was selected as the bout of choice. It seems unlikely that Bryan will lose before the pay-per-view, which all but locks in this fight between these two AEW stars.
However, putting on a high-end Iron Man match for AEW fans might be easier said than done. At least, that’s what Dave Meltzer opined in the most recent edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. “Going one hour today is a risk and one hour when fans know from the start it’s going an hour is very difficult, especially on a long PPV show.” After expressing these concerns, the longtime insider admitted that the “match itself will probably be great because Danielson’s matches usually are. The storyline is that Danielson will be wrestling the next five Dynamite shows and has to win all five matches top get his shot at the title under those stipulations.” Danielson’s first opponent has already been selected, as he’ll be squaring off with Konosuke Takeshita on the January 11 episode of Dynamite.
Iron Man Match Could Change The Perception Of MJF
At this stage of his career, MJF is renowned primarily for his character work. On the flip side, Danielson is typically regarded as one of the best professional wrestlers of this generation. The two performers couldn’t be any more dissimilar, yet the Iron Man match allows them to tell a unique story in the ring. As Meltzer stated, it’s safe to assume that the Revolution main event will deliver because Bryan almost always does. The same can’t be said for MJF, who doesn’t have the same body of work as his (presumed) opponent. It’s difficult to recall a bad match from the Salt of the Earth, but he doesn’t have a reputation like Danielson.
That’ll be one of the focal points of this feud, based on the promos the two exchanged on this week’s Dynamite. There’s no reason to believe that MJF can’t stand toe-to-toe with the veteran in this instance; however, his performance in this Iron Man match could shift the perception of him as an in-ring worker. Historically, Shawn Michaels, Brock Lesnar, and Triple H have all had their in-ring reputations boosted following stellar Iron Man matches. AEW went on all in this stipulation, deciding to do the full hour instead of a 30-minute fight. This match type will give Danielson and MJF all the time they need to tell their in-ring story, and Friedman could come out looking like a totally different wrestler when All Elite Wrestling‘s Revolution show is over.
Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter