AEW star Bryan Danielson has applied for a trademark related to his iconic “Yes!” chant.
On July 29, Danielson filed to trademark the term “Yes! Yes! Yes!” The filing is related to the following goods and services:
Entertainment in the nature of wrestling contests; Production of podcasts; Entertainment services, namely, wrestling exhibits and performances by a professional wrestler and entertainer; Television show production; Media production services, namely, video and film production; Entertainment services in the nature of a wrestling club; Production of music; Provision of information relating to television, motion picture film, audio and radio production; Television, video and movie filming services
The trademark application comes in advance of Danielson challenging Swerve Strickland for the AEW World Championship at All In next month. Danielson earned the title shot by winning AEW’s Owen Hart Foundation Tournament.
Wembley Stadium in London is hosting All In on Sunday, August 25.
Danielson is currently competing in his final year as a full time in-ring wrestler, but Tony Khan has said that he knows Danielson plans to stay with AEW for a long time going forward. Danielson contributes to AEW both behind the scenes and in the ring.
The “Yes!” chant was part of Danielson’s rise to superstardom in WWE. After joining AEW in 2021, he initially stayed away from encouraging the chant but has since done it some.
Swerve Strickland praised Bryan Danielson during a recent interview with Sports Illustrated.
Strickland said that his upcoming challenger at AEW All In is the greatest wrestler of all time, but added that Danielson has never faced anyone like him.
“Bryan’s not just experienced, he’s the greatest of all time,” said Strickland. “That’s who I’m going up against–a first-ballot Hall of Famer. I’ve never faced anyone like him. But he’s never faced anyone like me.”
Strickland, who was born in Tacoma, also spoke about how he, Danielson, and other AEW stars have done a lot for wrestling in the Pacific Northwest.
“I’m so proud of what we’re doing for the Pacific Northwest,” Strickland continued. “We’re both from Washington. There’s me and Darby, and I know the people from DEFY are proud of that, and Bryan Danielson, who has been doing it at a high level a lot longer than us. Now we’re main-eventing one of the bigger shows of the year. There is a lot of Pacific Northwest pride going into that.”
Strickland’s family moved away from Tacoma when he was young but he’s performed for DEFY dating back to 2017. He defeated Vikingo in his last match for the promotion in October 2023.
“Bryan told me I’m a special breed of talent,” Strickland added. “I’m also a special breed of danger. I know we wrestled before, but he’s never faced me like this. Bryan is facing me after my Texas Deathmatch against Hangman Page. He’s facing me after I beat Will Ospreay–and Christian Cage and Samoa Joe.”
“I’m a different beast. I can’t wait for him to see it.”
All In will be the second singles match between Danielson and Strickland. The first took place on the October 10, 2023, edition of AEW Dynamite. Danielson picked up the win in a match that went 16 minutes.
The number one contender to the AEW World Championship will speak live on the Wednesday, July 31 Dynamite.
A new segment for Wednesday’s Dynamite was confirmed during Friday’s Rampage episode, where it was announced that Bryan Danielson will speak on the show.
Danielson is set to challenge Swerve Strickland for the AEW World Championship at Wembley Stadium in London at All In on August 25 by virtue of winning the 2024 Owen Hart Foundation men’s tournament.
CMLL Women’s Champion Willow Nightingale vs. Kris Statlander in a title eliminator bout is also confirmed for the July 31 Dynamite.
Also set for Wednesday’s show, new AEW signing Kamille will appear alongside TBS Champion Mercedes Mone after Kamille attacked Mone’s All In opponent Britt Baker on this week’s Dynamite.
The updated lineup for the Wednesday, July 31 AEW Dynamite:
Bryan Danielson speaks live
CMLL Women’s title eliminator: Willow Nightingale vs. Kris Statlander
On a new Wrestling Weekly, Les Thatcher has returned from his annual trip to the National Wrestling Hall of Fame, so we discuss those ceremonies as well as all the happenings in WWE and AEW. Thanks for listening and have a great weekend~!
Bryan Danielson’s AEW wrestling contract is slated to expire one week from today.
Though he’ll be competing in the main event of All In, Danielson’s AEW contract is actually set to expire weeks before the show. In an interview uploaded by AEW, Danielson told Renee Paquette that August 1 is the date that his wrestling contract with the promotion is up.
All In is being held at Wembley Stadium in London on August 25. Danielson said his focus right now is on the pay-per-view, not on his contract situation.
“August 1, actually. Next Thursday, my wrestling contract is up. Which also happens to be my son’s fourth birthday,” Danielson said. “Tony [Khan] talked about this in an interview, so I feel comfortable talking about it. I’m not MJF’ing this and being like, trying to use my contract being up and being like, ‘Oh, I’m going to get all the money. Somebody give me all the money.’ Yeah, my contract is up August 1. You know, when I signed this contract — me and Brie [Garcia], we talked about how this would be the last wrestling contract I was going to sign. Part of me is wondering what life is like after this, you know? Part of me is excited about that. But even though Wembley is after this, I still have to focus on that. That’s got to be kind of my focus. So, yeah, it’s a wild time. It’s a wild time.”
Danielson is challenging Swerve Strickland for the AEW World Championship at All In. He earned the title shot by winning the 2024 Owen Hart Foundation tournament.
This is Danielson’s final year as a full-time wrestler. He has not announced when his last match as a full-time performer will be taking place.
Earlier this week, Khan said he knows Danielson is planning to remain part of AEW for a long time. Danielson contributes to AEW behind the scenes in addition to his work in the ring.
“I hope Bryan will stay here for the rest of his life, and I know he’s planning to stay with us for a long time going forward as part of the company, hopefully,” Khan said. “I would want Bryan to stay with us as long as humanly possible.”
Bryan Danielson is planning on staying in AEW “for a long time” according to company owner Tony Khan.
In a new interview with The Rich Eisen Show’s TJ Jefferson, Khan commented on Danielson’s short-term and long-term future with the company:
“I can’t say how much time Bryan has left in the ring, but he has said this will be his final year, this is going to be the year Bryan hangs it up from full-time wrestling. At that point it’s going to be a sad day for pro wrestling, and for me personally.“
When Jefferson asked if Khan planned to keep Danielson on once his full-time in-ring career was over, Khan responded affirmatively and noted that Danielson is planning on the same:
“Absolutely. 100 percent. I hope Bryan will stay here for the rest of his life, and I know he’s planning to stay with us for a long time going forward as part of the company, hopefully. I would want Bryan to stay with us as long as humanly possible.”
Khan has noted previously that Danielson’s AEW deal expires in August, and that re-signing the star is a “top priority.”
Khan also discussed Wednesday’s Dynamite Blood & Guts, All In, All Out, AEW’s origin story, and much more in the 30-plus minute interview, which is embedded below.
Jeff Jarrett has opened up about his time in Calgary for the finals of the Owen Hart Foundation tournament.
Jarrett, along with Dr. Martha Hart, presented tournament winner Bryan Danielson with the Owen Hart Cup on last week’s Dynamite after Danielson defeated Hangman Page in the finals. Jarrett says Owen would have loved the image of the three of them standing in the ring together.
“Martha in the ring who had just announced Bryan Danielson the winner, Bryan has the belt over his shoulder, me and him are jointly lifting the cup. The old adage a picture says a thousand words, to me it really does,” Jarrett said recently on his My World podcast. “It epitomizes to me, Owen’s in-ring skills. Because he was baby brother, and I’m not saying held to (Bret’s) standard, but Bret got to the WWF first, he was the Hart Foundation and had that tag team run and the spotlight naturally and rightfully so, had been on Bret. But I think Bret would even tell you about Owen’s in-ring skills and how really, really good they were.”
He continued:
“For Martha, myself, and Bryan, a good bud, I’ve respected him for so many years but I believe currently he’s the very best in-ring, I hate to use the word performer, I’ll just say in-ring professional wrestler because from bell to bell he tells stories, the passion, heart… So, for him to win the tournament, me be a part of it, Conrad, that was really, really, inside for me, very emotional.”
“Owen, I don’t like to say looking down, but Owen being aware of that – which I believe he is fully aware – I hope it put a smile on his face. The Owen that I know and loved he absolutely would have loved it, probably would have loved to pull a rib here or there but…” Jarrett continued.
Jarrett mentioned that he got to spend time with Martha and Oje Hart after the show. In a clip AEW would share on social media and later on Collision, Oje said that he’s never felt closer to his father than when he takes part in the Owen Hart Foundation events with AEW.
“A lot of time has gone by since he’s gone but I’ve actually never felt closer to him since doing these things so it’s good for me too,” Oje says to Jarrett in the video. “It’s really hitting hard. It’s probably hitting me the same way it’s hitting you, so thanks, man.”
Jarrett responded to Oje’s comments on his podcast, saying, “That warmed my heart in so many ways. I can’t put that into words.”
2024 men’s Owen Hart Cup winner Bryan Danielson knows exactly what traits of the trophy’s namesake he wishes to embody.
Danielson told Sports Illustrated recently that it is the way Hart put his family first that makes him someone he aspires to be.
“When I was a teenager, Owen Hart was one of my favorites, which makes this really special,” said Danielson. “I love hearing about how much he loved his family. Those guys were on the road so much, something like 300 days a year. So when I hear the stories about how he’d find one extra day to be at home, that means a lot.”
“Was he an incredible professional wrestler? Of course. Was he hilarious? Everyone says he was. You can see it in his promos. But I want to embody the way he put his family first.”
Danielson defeated Hangman Page in the finals of the tournament on Dynamite last week. After the match, he was presented the Owen Hart Cup and a championship belt by Hart’s widow, Dr. Martha Hart, as well as Jeff Jarrett, whose emotional promos about his friend have been a highlight of AEW programming of late.
“I’m honored to be part of the Owen Hart Memorial Foundation Tournament,” said Danielson. “It’s really inspiring to me what Martha Hart has done with this tragedy, and how she’s helped so many people–and raised her children. She got her doctorate. She raised two wonderful children, and she’s an incredible parent. That’s something I aspire to be, too.”
Martha Hart created the Owen Hart Foundation in December 2000 after her husband’s death in May 1999. The charity runs programs to help those with limited resources secure housing and scholarships. They also help raise money for international aid efforts, food drives, and other special projects. You can learn more about the foundation’s work here.
After defeating Page on Dynamite last week, Danielson cut a promo calling Martha Hart an inspiration as well.
“I’m proud of winning The Owen because Owen Hart meant so much to professional wrestling. He meant so much as far as what it means to be a father in professional wrestling. What it means to put your family first. Right? That’s what Owen Hart means,” Danielson said.
“But then also as Martha is shaking my hand and giving me the trophy — we call this the Owen Hart Memorial Foundation tournament, but I’m just as proud to shake her hand. Because what she’s done as a mother all on her own and raised those kids and started the Owen Hart Memorial Foundation. And all the good that she’s done. Getting her doctorate. The people that her children have become. That’s inspiring to me. And that — not because I can’t handle it anymore, not because I’m not good enough — because I want to be the type of parent that Martha Hart is. That’s why I’m stopping full-time wrestling.”
While AEW was in Calgary last week, Martha and Owen’s son Oje Hart shared a special moment with Jarrett and said that he’s never felt closer to his father than when he takes part in AEW’s events with the Owen Hart Foundation.
“A lot of time has gone by since he’s gone but I’ve actually never felt closer to him since doing these things so it’s good for me too,” Oje said to Jarrett. “It’s really hitting hard. It’s probably hitting me the same way it’s hitting you, so thanks, man.”
John LaRocca and I are back to talk about the major topics in the world of professional wrestling on this week’s Fight Game Podcast.
We kicked off the show with our Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down winners and losers of the week. Then, we went through our Top Five topics of the week which included:
John Cena’s retirement tour
Rhea Ripley’s return on Raw
Bryan Danielson and Mariah May winning the Owen Hart Foundation tournaments
MJF vs. Will Ospreay and Swerve Strickland vs. Kazuchika Okada on Dynamite 250
Bryan Danielson sees Dr. Martha Hart as an inspiration.
Last night, Danielson defeated Hangman Page to be crowned the winner of the 2024 Owen Hart Foundation men’s tournament. He got to share a moment with Martha after the match when she presented the winners’ trophy. In addition to the trophy, Danielson has earned an AEW World Championship shot against Swerve Strickland at All In 2024.
Speaking in a post-show promo, Danielson said he’s honored to win the tournament not just because of what Owen Hart represents but because of what Martha Hart and the Owen Hart Foundation represent as well. He thinks of Martha as an inspiration and wants to be the kind of parent she is.
“I’m proud of what I did out there. And a lot of this, I’m proud of winning The Owen because Owen Hart meant so much to professional wrestling. He meant so much as far as what it means to be a father in professional wrestling. What it means to put your family first. Right? That’s what Owen Hart means,” Danielson said.
“But then also as Martha is shaking my hand and giving me the trophy — we call this the Owen Hart Memorial Foundation tournament, but I’m just as proud to shake her hand. Because what she’s done as a mother all on her own and raised those kids and started the Owen Hart Memorial Foundation. And all the good that she’s done. Getting her doctorate. The people that her children have become. That’s inspiring to me. And that — not because I can’t handle it anymore, not because I’m not good enough — because I want to be the type of parent that Martha Hart is. That’s why I’m stopping full-time wrestling.”
This is Danielson’s final year as a full-time wrestler. He wants to win the AEW World Championship at All In to show his family that he can be the best in the world.
“I’m not going out because I can’t do this anymore. I want to show my kids and my family that I can be the best in the motherf*cking world,” Danielson said. “And I’m not stopping because I can’t hang anymore, I’m stopping because I love my family so much. We talk about Owen Hart. Tonight, I’m talking about Martha Hart. That’s the kind of parent I want to be.”
The Owen Hart Foundation was started by Martha after Owen’s death in 1999. It supports local, national, and international communities through scholarships, housing, and partnership programs.
AEW and the Owen Hart Foundation entered into their partnership in 2021. The Owen Hart Foundation tournament has taken place every year since 2022.
Mariah May won the Owen Hart Foundation women’s tournament last night and will face Toni Storm for the AEW Women’s World Championship at All In. The pay-per-view is being held at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday, August 25.
Bryan Danielson became the third-ever winner of the men’s Owen Hart Foundation tournament on Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite, earning a shot at AEW World Champion Swerve Strickland at August’s All In.
To do so, Danielson had to defeat rival Hangman Page in the finals. He pulled out all the stops, even hitting a springboard somersault to the outside of the ring in the match’s later stages. Danielson was bloodied during the match as was Page.
Referee Paul Turner got knocked out during the match which led to Page whipping Danielson with his belt while he was down. That brought special enforcer Jeff Jarrett down to the ring to help prevent further damage. After Page shoved Jarrett down, Jarrett revealed he had a referee shirt on underneath and he then took over for Turner.
After a fevered last few minutes that saw Page nearly submit Danielson with his own LeBell Lock, Danielson used a pinning counter to get the victory in front of the Calgary, Alberta, Canada, crowd.
Danielson is now 2-1-1 against Page, having won his last two.
After the match, Danielson was presented with the Owen Cup in the ring in addition to the ceremonial title belt followed by speeches by Martha Hart. He joins Adam Cole (2021) and Ricky Starks (2022) as past men’s winners.
Danielson earned his way into the finals with a win over Shingo Takagi in the quarterfinals and then PAC in the semifinals while Page defeated Jarrett and then Jay White, respectively.
Unless there is a title change between now and Sunday, August 25th, Danielson will face reigning champion Swerve Strickland at London’s Wembley Stadium. Strickland is coming off a match of the year candidate against Will Ospreay at June’s Forbidden Door and addressed Danielson in a promo after the match.
The two have wrestled in AEW before with Danielson defeating Strickland in October 2023.
Page was attempting to get another shot at his blood rival Strickland and stormed out after the match.
Arena business and what historical achievement took place this past weekend
How the poll for the show had a unique and noteworthy result
Looking at AEW going into All In
A look at Money in the Bank, Heatwave, and ticket demand for the three WWE shows this week in Toronto.
A look at the playoffs for the G1 tournament
UFC 303 coverage of one of the shows where they had to change everything over and over again
Thoughts on the WrestleMania documentary, what was talked about, and what wasn’t.
A look at all the TV ratings info from the past week including rankings for the night and week, the competition, the whys behind the numbers, segment-by-segment and more
Chris Jericho returns to Arena Mexico
A look at Friday’s show including the Altantis Jr. ROH TV title win
AAA TV time notes
AAA Verano de Escandalo card
Major changes in Stardom
New Japan pushes a big open to 2025 for both their promotion and Stardom with dates for tourists
Minoru Suzuki vs. Sanshiro Takagi rematch on the bullet train
Notable sight gags on the match
Update on Marigold’s first major show with Iyo Sky
Rematch of one of the best bouts of the year set for the RevPro anniversary show at the Copper Box Arena
WWE stars at TNA TV tapings and at Bloodsport
More on Britt Baker’s return
Tony Khan talks about media rights negotiations, the Juneteenth rating, a milestone Eric Bischoff could never do
Will Ospreay opens up about his autism
Advance ticket sales for all the WWE & AEW shows over the past week
Biggest merch sellers in WWE & AEW
Dana White makes a claim that will blow your mind
More on the Bloodline angle
SmackDown issues with FOX
Notes on WWE departures
WWE investing in new business with notable partners including the NFL
Dijak talks more about his contract not being renewed
This Week’s Wresting Observer Newsletter Back Issue
After it was announced that Drew McIntyre would be returning to Raw on Monday, GM Adam Pearce wrote on X: “@DMcIntyreWWE Incompetent Bald B**** looking to set a meeting with Insecure Hirsute Dobber for Monday in Dayton. Combative Tattooed Chicagoan won’t be there. Left you a msg, so shoot me a text or childish tweet and let me know.”
Tokyo Sports has an interview with IYO SKY ahead of her match against Utami Hayashishita at Marigold Summer Destiny on July 13.
The company uploaded a video on their new WWE Vault account showing previously unaired tryout matches with former Pro Wrestling NOAH star Takeshi Morishima from 2008. He faced Jamie Noble and Charlie Haas in seperate matches.
AEW has uploaded the entire trilogy between Bryan Danielson and Hangman Page ahead of their Owen Hart Foundation tournament final on Wednesday.
Adult Swim announced that a ‘Battle for the Booty’ event with AEW wrestlers will take place on July 25 in during the San Diego Comic-Con. Matches will have Johnny TV and Taya vs. “Fang + Meatwad” and Willow Nightingale and Orange Cassidy vs. “Rachel and Mr. Frog”.
Steph De Lander is issuing a warning to female talent regarding Marco Polo Wrestling: BEWARE OF ‘MARCO POLO WRESTLING’ emails such as this one are being sent to female wrestlers around the globe. I don’t think this is a real company, but let’s make sure it doesn’t become one.”
Effy vs. Sean Ross Sapp has been announced for GCW’s Believe Me event on July 18.
The finals of the men’s Owen Hart Foundation tournament are now set after Hangman Page defeated Jay White in their semifinal match on Saturday’s AEW Collision.
Page now moves on to face Bryan Danielson on this Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, with the winner moving onto to challenge AEW World Champion Swerve Strickland at August’s All In.
A twist that occurred after the show is that Jeff Jarrett will now be special enforcer after he got involved during Saturday’s match.
Danielson and Page have squared off three times in AEW with the two going to a one-hour time limit draw in December 2021. The two then rematched a few weeks later for Page’s then-World title. After going 0-1-1, Danielson finally got a win in the first round of the 2022 Grand Slam Tournament of Champions.
The end of Saturday’s match came when White and Page exchanged counters and White got tossed into the referee, knocking him down. Page got a visual pin and then decided to remove his belt to order to choke and whip White with it.
Jarrett then came out to grab the belt but got tossed by another referee. In the chaos, Christian Cage entered the ring and speared White, leading to Page recovering and hitting a Buckshot clothesline to get the pin and win with the original referee counting.
The reason for Cage’s interference is that he and The Patriarchy are in hot pursuit of White and the Gunns’ AEW Trios titles. White had previously made some disparaging comments about the group which Cage retorted earlier on the Collision episode.
Page was bloodied during the match and continued the new-look aggressive style he displayed against Jarrett in the semifinals, his first match since March’s AEW Revolution.
Page, a former AEW World Champion, has feuded with Strickland since last October’s WrestleDream while Danielson has squared off with Strickland once, defeating him on an October 2023 edition of Dynamite.
Three more have advanced in the Owen Hart Foundation tournament.
Willow Nightingale, Bryan Danielson, and the returning Hangman Page advanced Wednesday ahead of next week’s finals on Dynamite, which will be held at the Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
Danielson was the first to advance, making it to the finals of the men’s tournament after defeating PAC. The two exchanged pinfall attempts until Danielson ended up succeeding. Later in the night, Hangman Page returned after being gone for several months and defeated Jeff Jarrett to advance to the semifinals, scoring the win following the deadeye.
Page will next face Jay White this Saturday on Collision. The winner of that match will face Danielson in the finals.
Willow Nightingale, meanwhile, advanced to the finals of the women’s tournament after defeating former friend Kris Statlander. The finish came when Stokely Hathaway introduced a steel chain and distracted the referee while Statlander attempted to use the chain on Nightingale. Statlander missed, narrowly missing Hathaway before being rolled up by Nightingale for the win.
Nightingale will now face the winner between Hikaru Shida and Mariah May, which will air on Friday’s Rampage.
Bryan Danielson and Mariah May have made it to the next round.
The two won their qualifying matches at Sunday’s Forbidden Door to reach the semifinals of the men’s and women’s Owen Hart Foundation tournaments respectively. May was the first to advance during the Forbidden Door Zero Hour pre-show after catching Saraya in a pin. On the main card, Bryan Danielson managed to defeat NJPW’s Shingo Takagi, submitting him with an armbar to make it to the next round.
May will now move on to face Hikaru Shida in the semifinals of the women’s tournament. The winner of that match will face the winner between Willow Nightingale and Kris Statlander in the finals.
In the men’s tournament, Danielson will now immediately move on to face PAC at AEW Dynamite Beach Break on July 3. Jay White, meanwhile, will face the winner of a match between Jeff Jarrett and a “wild card” of The Elite’s choosing.
The winners of both tournaments will be decided on the July 10 edition of Dynamite, which will take place at the Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The tournament winners will also receive world championship matches that will be held at All In on August 25.
