5-Star Match Reviews: Bryan Danielson vs. Zack Sabre, Jr. – AEW WrestleDream 2023

This is a dream match that many wrestling fans, myself included, wanted to see for years. It was the perfect meeting between two stylistically equal wrestlers. Both of these men were known the world over for being smaller wrestlers that compensated for their small statures with incredible technical wizardry. Both men were known for putting on some of the most unpredictable yet realistic matches in modern times. Both of them were known for having unique personalities both on-screen and off.

And yet only one of them could claim the title of “best technical wrestler in the world?” So who would be, Bryan Danielson or Zack Sabre, Jr.? Read on to find out.

Previously I was writing for a site called TJR Wrestling and now this series is coming to Blog of Doom. For now you can check out the series in its entirety here.

The story

Most people reading this know who Bryan Danielson is so he needs no introduction here. But for those unfamiliar with Zack Sabre, Jr, let me explain who he is. ZSJ is basically Bryan Danielson with the obnoxious personality cranked up to eleven. Remember that brief period in WWE when Bryan acted like all holier-than-thou because he was a vegan? ZSJ is like that but for more reasons than his veganism. ZSJ believes he’s better than everyone else and both speaks and behaves with the haughty imperiousness that only a Brit could show. But what makes ZSJ dangerous is that he could back up his big boasts with the kind of technical wizardry that would leave anyone that swung at him tied up like a literal human pretzel. In many ways, ZSJ was and is Bryan Danielson without restrictions: a wiry and unimposing small fry on the surface that could stretch his opponent with ease and leave them begging for mercy in the blink of an eye.

It was obvious that this match was meant for the online wrestling fan more than any other. It was meant for those that follow wrestling news and read about wrestlers online, including various awards and distinctions. And say what you want about Dave Meltzer, his Observer, and its readership, but it does have some sway over wrestling and its fans.

It was that publication’s annual awards that served as the driving force behind this match. The “Best Technical Wrestler” Award was renamed the Bryan Danielson award after Danielson retired in 2016 and it was presumed he’d never return to the ring. While he was retired (and while he was working a more subdued style in WWE), Zack Sabre Jr. basically took over as the best active technical grappler. For reference, Bryan won it every year from 2005 to 2013, and then ZSJ won it from 2014 to 2020. Then when Danielson won it again in both 2021 and 2022, and now both men are in top competition for the award in 2023.

But while the fans had their opinions, there were also those that wondered what would happened if these two actually faced off. This match was originally supposed to take place a year earlier at the first Forbidden Door event Danielson was injured at the time. Going into this match, Danielson was six years older but he was far more broken down. Multiple injuries, a two-year retirement, and a recent quite a bit of recent bad luck made him into an underdog compared to ZSJ. But could ZSJ parlay his own background into a win over the most revered smaller wrestler in modern times?

The match

This match originally took place on October 1, 2023. It was rated *****1/2 by the Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer.

Both wrestlers approach each other cautiously and avoid getting entangled in each other in the opening seconds. Danielson goes for ZSJ’s arm but ZSJ holds him back by his face. ZSJ goes for Danielson’s arm and keeps control as Bryan tries a few quick counters of his own, only for Danielson to counter back with an overhead suplex, leading to a stalemate.

ZSJ takes Danielson’s arm again but Danielson shoots him off, only for ZSJ to counter back into an octopus hold. They trade holds some more until Danielson tries a school boy cover for a one-count and then rolls over into a heel hook. ZSJ rolls over into a cross armbreaker attempt but Danielson counters back into a sort of deathlock, only for ZSJ to break the pressure by sweeping Danielson’s hands. All the small things ZSJ do make him such a phenomenal wrestler. Danielson tries adding a neck crank but ZSJ counters into a bridge which leads to a double crab hold of sorts. ZSJ tries a double wristlock but Danielson counters into another cross armbreaker attempt, only for ZSJ to roll away, leading to yet another stalemate and more loud applause.

ZSJ takes Danielson’s leg and locks him into his own signature Romero Special hold, only for Danielson to do the same seconds later. ZSJ blocks a Romero dragon sleeper variant by bending Danielson’s surgically-repaired right arm and goes for a bow-and-arrow hold, only for Danielson to escape. They lock-up and ZSJ hits an uppercut against the ropes. This leads to a standing uppercut exchange with Danielson hitting with his left arm at first to less effect than normal. But then ZSJ goads Danielson into using his left arm which he then attacks with a shoulderblock, sending Danielson down.

ZSJ twists Danielson’s left arm and then stomps on the elbow. He applies a Fujiwara armbar of sorts, starts bending Danielson’s fingers, and then hits an arm twist. Then he does his best to make it look like he’s snapping Danielson’s fingers, or at least stretching them far beyond normal human flexibility, which gets a huge reaction from the crowd.

ZSJ lands mocking kicks but then Danielson flips out of a corner whip and counters a charging ZSJ with a single leg crab. But he can’t hold the move for long due to the damage to his hand so he switches to an Indian deathlock knee stomp. Danielson switches to kicking ZSJ’s calf and then hits two dragon screw leg whips, one of which looks exceptionally brutal as ZSJ barely spins with the torque. Danielson goes for a third dragon screw but this time ZSJ counters with a neck twist followed by a dropkick to the back of Danielson’s head. This guy’s counters are on another level.

ZSJ hobbles over towards a corner but Danielson ties him in the tree of woe and kicks his chest. Then he switches to collar elbow smashes but then ZSJ catches his left arm and hits a shoulder armbreaker. ZSJ locks in a standing armlock while still in the corner but Danielson escapes via head-butts and lands an avalanche butterfly suplex. He tries floating over into his crossface finisher but ZSJ blocks. Both men roll over into potential counters until Danielson attempts a scissored armbar. ZSJ resists so Danielson applies another half crab while trapping one of ZSJ’s arms, only for ZSJ to get a ropebreak with his free leg.

Danielson hits his trademark chest kick barrage, ZSJ ducks a wind-up kick, and Bryan counters with a successful spinkick to the side of ZSJ’s head. Danielson announces “IT’S TIME TO KICK HIS FUCKING HEAD IN!” and does his arm-trap stomps to the face. Danielson goes for the Busaiku Knee. ZSJ blocks and tries a European clutch for a two-count. Danielson counters with his own clutch for another two-count. ZSJ switches to a sleeper. Danielson does the Bret/Piper escape and tries a sleeper as well. ZSJ rolls out and completes the European clutch but only manages a two-count. That sequence leads to a standing ovation from the crowd. Can’t say I’m surprised.

Danielson hits one running dropkick into a corner and charges for a second but ZSJ hits first with a drop toehold. He goes for another European clutch but Danielson catches his arms and goes for Cattle Mutilation. ZSJ rolls over to block it, but finds himself eating more collar elbow smashes. But Danielson only gets two of those in before ZSJ counters once again. Both men continue rolling and reversing until ZSJ gets an omoplata hold/wristlock combo. He tries twisting Danielson’s bad arm some more but Danielson counters with a heel hook, only for ZSJ to wrestle into the same, leading to simultaneous heel hooks. ZSJ continues contorting both his and Danielson’s limbs into some additional hold or another. At this point I’ve lost track of what the hold is or whose limb is caught where; all I can see is that Danielson is in more pain due to his weaker arm. In response Danielson spits in ZSJ’s face, to which ZSJ responds with slaps. But he doesn’t hit as hard as Danielson, whose one slap drops ZSJ, releasing the combined human pretzel hold those two had become.

Both men hit sitting heel kicks until ZSJ goes down. They fight to their feet and then ZSJ uppercuts Danielson’s bad arm, only for Danielson to retaliate with calf kicks. ZSJ takes a few more kicks but blocks a big wind-up one and lands more uppercuts to the bad arm. But he tries one uppercut too many as Danielson goes for a backslide. A long elbow exchange and counter sequence ensues but it’s ZSJ who backslides Danielson for a two-count and then hits a Penalty Kick to the inside of Danielson’s arm. Danielson charges out of desperation and runs into a Michinoku Driver. ZSJ then floats over into an omoplata double wristlock, which he then worsens by adding a crossface. Danielson starts slipping out so ZSJ locks in a double armbar using his legs but Danielson eventually gets a ropebreak with his foot. ZSJ’s submission holds look like the kind of torture techniques interrogators would use at Gitmo.

ZSJ lands chest kicks of his own and stomps on the bad arm once again. He charges to the ropers but runs into two roundhouse kicks to the side of the head. Danielson starts with the armtrap stomps again but ZSJ does an amazing counter into a cross armbreaker and then a Fujiwara armbar. Danielson tries escaping but ZSJ keeps transitioning into a position of control until he counters with a Regal-plex. Danielson follows with a successful Busaiku Knee. One, two, ZSJ survives. Both guys fire up as ZSJ wants more. Danielson obliges him and connects with a second running knee. The referee counts one, two, three! Danielson beats ZSJ! What a classic!

Winner after 23:12: Bryan Danielson

Review

That was an outstanding wrestling match. It was the kind of competition that makes wrestling look like a serious and difficult endeavor that takes years of training and incredible personal grit. It was one of the smoothest contests in AEW history and a perfect example of a more realistic and amateur-inspired style being just as exciting as the wildest and wackiest of angles or gimmicks. These two put on a technical grappling clinic that reminded people that there’s more than one way to show off interesting and exciting pro-wrestling.

For 23 minutes these two men wrestled and counter-wrestled at such a smooth pace that it was impossible to skip ahead even five seconds because you’d miss something big if you did. Almost every sequence was grounded in a legitimate realism and gave this match more of a sport or MMA-like feel. It was akin to a Kurt Angle/Chris Benoit match or something from RINGS or Pancrase. Many jaded viewers might dismiss wrestling matches as phony and overly theatrical; this match had none of that, save for maybe the odd strike exchange. But even those served a purpose, at least when ZSJ was on offense as he used those moments to goad Danielson into making a mistake and lowering his guard. So even though this was, on the surface, a cold match without much story save “who’s the better grappler?”, these two made it into something significant by having ZSJ use his natural talents and go after Danielson’s known weaknesses.

Some might look at this match and see less of a competition and more of a showcase of the submission style. I can see that argument, what with all the counters and switches happening so smoothly and without as much of a sense of struggle. And yet, this match did have a sense of urgency and caution from the opening bell. Danielson went into this severely hampered by injury so he couldn’t afford to hit as hard lest he take recoil damage.

At the same time, though, I don’t think this was a perfect match, and for three reasons. First, ZSJ didn’t get to show his best here. Many of his matches in NJPW, on the British wrestling scene, and elsewhere, are filled with a genuine malice and a sense that he’s actually trying to maim his opponent to win. Here, he came across as a bit subdued, like a dangerous professional being reined in for the sake of a bigger payday. Sure he went after Danielson’s arm and acted all cocky, but he didn’t show everything that he could do. It was as if he was only giving 85-90% here instead of 100%, and as a result we didn’t get to see ZSJ at his absolute best.

The second reason, and tied to the first, is that there was never a genuine sense that Danielson would lose here. Even though he went into this match with one obvious recent injury and was in much worse shape overall compared to ZSJ, the action never really reached that next level where both guys were truly even. The closest it got to that point was when ZSJ had both of Danielson’s arms tied up and looked like he was trying to tear both of his arms out of their sockets. And yet Danielson never looked genuinely threatened. His facial expressions and body language never conveyed any sense of genuine concern or fear. Apprehension, yes, but not fear or worry. Even though ZSJ was faster, smoother, and more creative on the mat, he simply couldn’t translate all of his technical expertise into a win.

Thirdly, the finish was actually quite disappointing. It came out of nowhere and didn’t fit the story of the match. All this focus on submissions, grappling, and matwork and the match didn’t end with a sudden counter into a pin out of nowhere or a tap-out victory. Instead, the match ended with a shoehorned tease for a running knee that looked completely out of place in the moment. Considering how both men had spent the prior 22-and-a-half minutes landing last-minute counters and rolling into nearly-impossible predicaments, hitting a simple bump finish like that took the match too far into left field. Even a simple counter into a crucifix pin or a tap-out via either simple or complicated submission hold would’ve been more appropriate here, given the kind of match these two were having.

Final rating: ****3/4

Despite a few flaws, this is one of the best matches of the year and one of the best matches in many years, for that matter. It was filled with the kinds of twists and turns that made it impossible to look away even for a second. These two wrestled in a compelling style that demanded the fans’ attention. Everything they did had a surgical precision to it and most of it served a larger purpose. Even though the conclusion was never truly in doubt, these two put on a mesmerizing match that truly deserves its status as a MOTYC.

At the same time, this is still a cold match to most people. From the time this match was confirmed to the moment it took place three weeks had passed. Granted, that’s not a lot of time to promote a match, especially since one guy was still on a full touring schedule with another company. That said, it wouldn’t’ve been all that hard for AEW to put together a two-minute video package each week for three weeks showcasing what ZSJ can do and how he can pin/submit any opponent out of nowhere. And even if AEW didn’t have the resources to do this, it’s not like they couldn’t ask NJPW, whom they’re friendly with, to provide it instead. If Tony Khan has such deep pockets to afford signing so many wrestlers, the least he can do to make their matches mean something is spend a little money on promotion.

So for Bryan Danielson and Zack Sabre Jr. to get so much out of such a poorly-promoted match (relatively speaking) speaks volumes of their talents as wrestlers and the chemistry they had together.

Let’s hope this isn’t a one-and-done situation and we get to see them face off at least one more time.

Thanks for reading. You can email me with any questions or comments, and be sure to check out my 5-Star and Almost 5-Star Match Reviews series here.