CM Punk first started his career in the Midwest, wrestling his then-friend Colt Cabana in their very first match. Bryan Danielson actually got in his car and drove to Shawn Michaels' wrestling school. His very first match was a dark match on WWE Velocity, something that took Punk over a year to get. All Punk ever wanted in the WWE was the main event of WrestleMania, something Danielson got to do twice.

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It sure sounds like that little guy who trained with Shawn Michaels and Willam Regal got the big chances and CM Punk had to fight and claw his way to the top. It will make for an interesting storyline between the two should they ever face off in AEW, which surprisingly would only be their tenth major singles match.

9 ROH Reborn Stage 1 (04-23-2004)

CM Punk Vs Bryan Danielson ROH Reborn Stage 1 - 04-23-2004

With the Rob Feinstein controversy looming over the company and TNA pulling all their talent off of Ring Of Honor show, it’s no surprise that they labeled this event Reborn. It needed to be huge and it was - the first ever meeting between Danielson and Punk wasn’t even the main event on the show! Part of this match involved Punk’s then growing heat with Ricky Steamboat, but it was the American Dragon Punk had to deal with in the ring. Danielson was able to weaken Punk enough to get the win with an Abdominal Stretch to take their first ever fall.

8 IWA MS - Ted Petty Invitational (09-18-2004)

CM Punk Vs Bryan Danielson - IWA MS - Ted Petty Invitational 09-18-2004 Cropped

If their first meeting was on shared and mutual ground in ROH, then there second was firmly in Punk’s backyard of IWA Mid South. The two met during the second round of the Ted Petty Invitational.

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Matches like this are the reason that WWE came calling for both of these guys and the fact that they still can work this hard over 15 years later is completely banana. After Punk failed in pulling off The Pepsi Plunge, Danielson was able to get a another tap out victory with his patented Cattle Mutilation.

7 FIP Dangerous Intentions (02-12-2005)

CM Punk Vs Bryan Danielson- FIP Dangerous Intentions 02-12-2005 Cropped

At Full Impact Pro wrestling, anything goes. That annoyed the Straight Edge CM Punk. As for Bryan Danielson, he was already looking ahead to challenging for the FIP championship. That might have been The American Dragon’s downfall because after trading some nasty kicks and submissions, Punk was able to get the tap out with a rope assisted Figure Four.

6 FIP Bring The Pain (03-26-2005)

CM Punk Vs Bryan Danielson - FIP Bring The Pain 03-26-2005 Cropped

With their first few encounters being early classics for both men, it was time to up the ante in a two-out-of-three falls match at FIP’s Bring The Pain. The time allowed both men to develop a scientific match and tell a good story, each picking apart a body part, trying to gain an advantage. In the end, Danielson was once again able to eke out a win against CM Punk.

5 WWE Raw (01-30-2012)

CM Punk Vs Daniel Bryan - Raw 01-30-2012 Cropped

One night after the Royal Rumble, the path to WrestleMania was clear and for the first time ever two former Indy darlings were world champions and firmly in the driver’s seat of their respective brands. Both CM Punk and Daniel Bryan faced off on their first ever match since both arriving to WWE. The back and forth contest was ruined however when Chris Jericho came out to cause the DQ loss for Punk before nailing him with the Code Breaker.

4 WWE Raw (02-27-2012)

CM Punk Vs Daniel Bryan - Raw 05-28-2012 Cropped (1)

There was a of storylines featured in this match between the two WWE champions. After all, you have to hype both of their title defenses at WrestleMania, as well as CM Punk’s ongoing saga with Raw GM John Laurinaitis (too bad Ace and Bryan weren’t yet related by marriage that would have made for interesting storyline quips!). But all the interference and schmoz finish couldn’t stop these guys from having a bad match even if they tried to.

3 WWE Over The Limit 2012

CM Punk Vs Daniel Bryan - Over The Limit Cropped

After failing to regain the World Championship, Daniel Bryan set his sights on the WWE title, still held by CM Punk. The two met at Over The Limit and for the first match in their program, there was actually no interference. There was also no clear cut winner as Bryan had Punk tapping to the Yes Lock while Punk had Bryan’s shoulders down for the three count.

2 WWE Raw (05-28-2012)

CM Punk Vs Daniel Bryan - Raw 02-27-2012 Cropped

One week after getting brutalized by Kane, Daniel Bryan was once again mixing it up with Punk, this time in a non-title match. During this time, the two now-AEW wrestlers were having several multi man and tag matches, but very few singles matches, making them a little extra special.

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This was also the era of AJ Lee becoming an emerging star. She skipped all over the ring in Punk’s shirt, annoying her ex-boyfriend Daniel Bryan. Lee even alerted the ref to Bryan’s cheating. But it didn’t matter, The Yes Man was still able to stand tall here, leading into their Money In The Bank showdown.

1 Money In The Bank 2012

CM Punk Vs Daniel Bryan - Money In The Bank Cropped

With AJ Lee as the guest referee, Daniel Bryan tried his best to coax his ex into helping him capture the WWE title. Once she was knocked out, Bryan took control with a kendo stick in the No Disqualification match. When she returned, she came back with a chair that Bryan wound up using. But eventually the Second City Saint was able to get the up hand and suplex Bryan through a table to retain his title.