AEW's Bryan Danielson Defeats Minoru Suzuki in Epic Match (2024)

AEW kicked off a big night of Rampage with The Buy In, and the show's main event was Bryan Danielson vs Minoru Suzuki. The match was set to be 30 minutes (or have a 30-minute time limit), and once the bell hit the two stars tentatively locked up. Suzuki would wear down Danielson a bit but he eventually got to his feet, and then it was Danielson's turn to do some damage. They would trade holds and big punches until Suzuki taunted Danielson a bit, and landed a huge chop. He asked Danielson for one, but he dished out a kick instead.

Suzuki kept coming back, delivering another big chop to Danielson's chest. Danielson collected himself and hit a huge kick, and then Suzuki warmed up and landed a devastating forearm that knocked Danielson to the ground. Danielson then launched a flurry. of kicks, and then followed that up with huge elbows to Suzuki's neck, followed up with even more kicks that knocked Suzuki down and almost sent him out of the ring.

Suzuki then surprised Danielson with an armbar over the ropes, and he kicked Danielson down twice and followed it up with a punch outside of the ring. Things got back into the ring where Suzuki was punishing Danielson by torquing his arm and shoulder, and then he put pressure on his fingers, neck, and arm.

Danielson got the better of the match for a bit, but Suzuki kept coming back, punishing Danielson more. Danielson would then lock in a hold on Suzuki's arms, allowing him to keep Suzuki pinned to the mat, but he eventually had to let go. Then it was time for chops and kicks again, and then Danielson was on the receiving end of more kicks to the chest.

Suzuki could not be stopped, locking in another hold and straining Danielson's wrist and hand. Both would trade even more brutal punches, chops, and kicks, and while Suzuki looked in control for a while, it was ultimately Danielson that hit a flying knee, sending Suzuki reeling and putting him down long enough for Danielson to claim the victory.

Here's the full cards for both The Buy in and AEW Rampage:

AEW Buy In:

Bryan Danielson vs. Minoru Suzuki
Bobby Fish vs. Lee Moriarty
Tay Conti vs. Santana Garrett

AEW Rampage:

CM Punk vs. Matt Sydal
Ruby Soho vs. The Bunny
The Inner Circle (Chris Jericho, Jake Hager, Sammy Guevara) vs. Men of the Year (Scorpio Sky and Ethan Page) and Junior dos Santos

The Buy In starts at 9 PM EST, while AEW Rampage kicks off at 10 PM EST. Both air live on TNT.

What did you think of the match? Let us know in the comment comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Twitter @MattAguilarCB!