Daniel Bryan believes he can have his way with Mike Jackson on the ground.

Bryan is a WWE superstar under the SmackDown Live banner. He recently came out of retirement to compete inside the squared circle. Bryan had retired due to issues stemming from a history of concussions.

While Bryan and CM Punk were never close friends, it’s hard for the two not to be linked by fans due to their similar paths. They were both “indie darlings” back when Ring of Honor was the cool underground wrestling promotion and had the odds stacked against them going into the WWE. They both prevailed and became world champions.

Punk tried his hand in combat sports and has an 0-2 mixed martial arts record for his efforts. His last opponent, Jackson, has taken a lot of heat for his performance. During a recent Instagram Live session, Bryan said he could defeat Jackson if the fight hit the mat :

“Did they just ask me if I could beat Mike Jackson in a fight? I could beat him on the ground, for sure, I think. If the WWE would let me fight in the UFC, maybe [I would prove it].”

Jackson offered his response to FanSided:

“A friend of mine, who is a journalist reached out and said, ‘Yo, did you hear Daniel Bryan called you out?’ I was like, ‘What are you talking about?’ He sends it to me and I remember seeing that headline. I was like, ‘Yo, this is getting out of control now.’ He says, ‘Man, I can beat him on the ground in a UFC fight.’ Look Daniel Bryan; I will do you worse than I did your man Punk because I will have no reservations in punching this guy in the face 100-percent. And at will. . . If Daniel Bryan wants the smoke, just call me the chimney man because I’ve got the smoke.”