There have been a lot of idiotic squash matches in the history of pro wrestling. Even the grandest stage of them all isn’t immune to them; one of the times I was most infuriated as a wrestling fan was way back at WrestleMania IX, when Hulk Hogan upstaged my favorite wrestler at the time and walked out with the WWF heavyweight title in the process.
While we’ll no doubt cover that at some point, we have another one that had me grinding my molars. This one took place at WrestleMania XXVIII and saw another of my top guys get jobbed out in spectacular fashion: none other than Bryan Danielson, known at the time under the stealthy moniker of Daniel Bryan. And just to pour more salt in the wounds, he was paired up at the time with yet another of my favorite performers.
But who could that be?
That’s right, AJ Lee!
These two together were absolute magic. Whenever I am asked who the greatest couple in wrestling is I will forever and a day say it’s AJ and Danielson. If you need evidence, look no further than this spectacular clip in which Danielson belittles poor AJ without her even knowing it.
Wiping away the kiss at the end after she left? That’s a master class in being a total bag. With the title strapped around his waist, they should have been a main event heel duo for years. Instead, they were split up in a matter of months. But not before they had a match at the biggest show of the year.
And yes, Daniel’s big gold belt was on the line.
But before the match can begin, a kiss was needed for good luck. And let’s face it – getting a smooch from AJ is always a win! So Daniel turns around and…
…and is immediately kicked in the face and pinned.
What, did you think we were lying about it being a SQUASH?
So Sheamus celebrates as Daniel looks on completely baffled. You know, like the rest of us. Did I mention that this was Danielson’s first WrestleMania ever? Not every SQUASH is a good one, kids!