Bryan Danielson worked closely with Vince McMahon during his time in WWE as Danielson was always a featured performer and a multi-time WrestleMania main eventer.
Danielson previously thanked McMahon when he left WWE in 2021. In January 2024, former employee Janel Grant filed a lawsuit against McMahon, WWE, and John Laurinaitis, accusing McMahon of sexual assault and sex trafficking. Laurinaitis was married to Kathy Bella, the mother of Brie Bella, Danielson's wife.
Appearing on MJ In The Midday, the host mentioned how he was a big fan of McMahon and all he did for wrestling, and asked Danielson what it was like working for Vince.
"It had its ups and downs. I'm not going to answer too much of that. There is too much, honestly, click-baity headlines that could come out of that, but also, too many family things that are sensitive to my family specifically, because part of everything that has gone down involves my mother-in-law. I also have a very complicated thought process when it comes (to Vince)," said Danielson.
The host pressed, asking if Vince was a good boss.
"As a boss, he has his good parts and bad parts. That's everybody. It's a really tough thing for me. I have a hard time, internally, I'm not even talking about it in public, internally, I have a hard time with the whole concept of Vince McMahon," replied Danielson.
The host mentioned that Vince treated him well when they met, and then noted how Vince pushed Danielson, putting him in the main event of WrestleMania 30. He asked Danielson if he was grateful for Vince pushing him.
"Absolutely. There's the idea of 'career' and what he did for my career, and I consider that kind of a separate thing. When I'm looking at Vince McMahon, the human being, how he was to me when I was backstage, we're also talking about a guy who, when my dad passed away, gave me the best hug I had ever gotten. I'm somebody who is not necessarily concerned with career advancement. Being a World Champion was never this thing I aspired to. I loved the fact that I could do this thing that I loved and make a living doing it. There is his treatment of me as an employee, but there was his treatment of me as a human being, and that's the part that is hard to rectify with the things they are accusing him of. The way he treated me as a human, he treated me very well in a way that is kind of hard to describe to people if they are coming at you from a negative perspective of Vince McMahon. There are also negative aspects about Vince McMahon," said Danielson.
Danielson previously explained how his feelings towards Vince have changed.
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