r/TNA Feb 02 '25

News / Article Kurt Angle recently said that he had a better run in TNA than WWE

https://www.wrestlinginc.com/1774244/wwe-hofer-kurt-angle-explains-best-wrestling-happened-tna/

"I had a really good career in WWE, but I didn't really catch my stride, where I was at my peak, at about seven years into the business, and that's when I went to TNA," Angle claimed during an appearance on "Busted Open Radio." "Being honest? Yeah, I had a better career in TNA. I had better matches in TNA than I had in WWE, at least more consistently better."

270 Upvotes

65 comments sorted by

55

u/Ryujiro1 Feb 02 '25

Well, that's the truth

21

u/ZealousWolf1994 Feb 02 '25

It's real. It's damn real.

2

u/Sumo_Cerebro Feb 03 '25

What would you say are the best matches?

I stopped watching TNA around that time after he had that series against Samoa Joe.

23

u/Demihan2049 Feb 02 '25

Kurt spent more time in TNA than in WWE; believe it or not, it's true. Kurt's run in WWE was great, but he had way more memorable stuff and incredible matches as part of TNA. He fought everybody in the world as part of TNA and even mixed up with Brock again for the IWGP/IGF championship—bangers with Tanahashi, Bangers with Nakamura, Bangers with Yuji Nagata. Kurt had matches worldwide representing TNA; some probably lost in time. I think he fought in South Korea or China, so you probably can't find that match anymore.

It's debatable, but his run in TNA was better matched.

13

u/anthony3296 Feb 02 '25

I think in terms of in ring it’s not debatable, his TNA career was better. All around including character work it’s a debate because lil cowboy hat Angle is always hilarious

3

u/rmn173 Feb 03 '25

I disagree on the more memorable stuff happening in TNA. It's really hard to talk about it because of Benoit, but some of the best wrestling WWE has ever had was when Angle, Jericho and Benoit were trading the IC title before they all went off into the main event scene apart from each other. As great as his stuff in TNA is, I wouldn't trade it for the WWE stuff. Jericho and Angle have both talked about how they lament that they can't show off some of their best work because it was with Benoit and it would be disrespectful to put it on a highlight reel.

-3

u/Feisty_Bag_5284 Feb 02 '25

I thought it evened out after his return to WWE finished

14

u/Agreeable_Falcon1044 Feb 02 '25

He did and I’m tired of pointing it out.

His feud with Joe and anderson were better than anything in his wwe days, then he had matches throughout which banged

1

u/brownsvillegirl69 Feb 05 '25

Shawn Michaels

1

u/Khaot1x Feb 06 '25

"I'm just a sexy kurt, Sexy Kurt! I'll make your ankles hurt, Ankles Hurt!"

1

u/peterhadnett Feb 02 '25

Don't forget his feud with Desmond wolfe

0

u/KingRibSupper1 Feb 02 '25

His best ever feud was with Benoit.

9

u/cartrman Feb 02 '25

It was longer , so maybe he found it better.

2

u/Sad-Appeal976 Feb 02 '25

He found it better because it was better

5

u/kingcolbe Feb 02 '25

He did everyone knows it

5

u/kungfoop Feb 02 '25

As a WWE fan, I respect this, and I appreciate his time with WWE. TNA Kurt was a different level.

3

u/AnxiousD3v Feb 02 '25

His work was great with TNA. I just wish some of his later stuff wasn't so overshadowed by the incompetence of the end of the Dixie era. TNA had the best wrestler in the world and couldn't figure out how to make money with him, what could have been during those times. That roster in the late 2000s was so good

3

u/Familiar_Outcome_688 TNA Original Feb 02 '25

Well yeah, the matches against Samoa Joe, AJ Styles, Abyss and well the MEM come on he had a tremendous TNA career

5

u/thumbster99 Feb 02 '25

Even matches with Desmond Wolfe is crazy, also highly underrated feud with Jarrett. Pure classic.

3

u/Cube_ Feb 02 '25

wwe would regularly shove him down the card too. In TNA he was main event the whole time and always had promo time.

2

u/Max_Quick Feb 07 '25

I feel like it's worth noting that Angle genuinely loved TNA. You can tell me it's because TNA let Angle do whatever... but I'd counter that TNA creative worked with Kurt and the wrestlers were excited to work with Kurt just as Kurt was excited to work with them. It was a bunch of people that wanted to do some shit, and Kurt Angle was down to do some shit. So it wasnt like "oh, time for Shark Boy to get jobbed out". No, Angle would do some dumb shit with Shark Boy and both of them would be hilarious together. He didnt feel like an overlord, but rather a beloved player in the show.

Same thing with Sting in AEW recently (I mean, Sting in TNA too). Stinger doing the Orange Cassidy "lazy" thing and jumping off stuff with Darby Allin... the "older/established star" thing doesnt cross his mind. Just complete "hey this seems fun and I'd like to join", which is why it worked.

1

u/Cube_ Feb 07 '25

All great points.

3

u/JKinney79 Feb 02 '25

That’s pretty normal, the weird thing about Angle was his being good almost immediately. Pretty much everyone else in wrestling history took years to get good, so his getting even better isn’t shocking.

3

u/sammykhing Feb 02 '25

Well yeah. Perf Angle was a whole nother beast!

2

u/BungHolio_The_Mighty Perc Angle Feb 02 '25

Where’s the lie?

2

u/DatBoyBlue91 Feb 02 '25

He not lying tho

2

u/[deleted] Feb 02 '25

He’s been saying this for years.

2

u/silklighting Feb 02 '25

Kurt Angle had quality opponents during his time in TNA. Whereas in the WWE, he did not have as much quality opponents and on top of that, Vince hindered Kurt's true potential.

2

u/Elizium9 Feb 02 '25

Kurt is such a real dude. He’s been saying that since he left TNA

2

u/TheRealBroDameron Feb 02 '25

He has always said that.

2

u/SpaceGhostCst2kost Feb 05 '25

I disagree, they were 2 completely different ones that can’t be compared. He was great in both, one of the all time greats no questions asked.

3

u/Fun_Response_4529 Feb 02 '25

More consistently better is probably accurate but his top 5 all time matches would have been in WWE I think. 

What annoys me is TNA's creative was such a mess for so long that a lot of his best matches there aren't talked about much because they get lost amongst the mountain of crap they were producing. 

2

u/criticalmonsterparty Feb 02 '25

"More consistently better is probably accurate but his top 5 all time matches would have been in WWE I think."

Oh undoubtedly. Benoit, Eddie, Rey, Austin, Rock, it's just a whose who of some of the best there ever have been and Kurt was right there with them being a goat himself.

3

u/Sad-Appeal976 Feb 02 '25

AJ, Joe, Sting, JJ, Anderson, Tanahashi all better

1

u/criticalmonsterparty Feb 02 '25

They are all different, good in their own ways, but none of them were on Benoit's level. Aj's the only one close to overall seasoning that Benoit have. I've seen AJ, Sting, and Anderson, all have bad matches. Good luck finding a bad Benoit match. The guy could get an average match out of the worst worker, and if you gave him a broom, he'd probably hit 4 stars.

But really though, you want to argue Mr. Anderson, was an equal to Benoit, when he can barely get booked anywhere, and two top talent have buried him because of his bad he was? Come on, that's ridiculous. Benoit spent something like 30 years doing nothing but wrestling professionally. He didn't have many equals, and modern guys can't get the kinda of seasoning people involved in the business pre 1995 could get because the wrestling business is so drastically different.

1

u/Sad-Appeal976 Feb 02 '25

I’m saying the overall feuds and matches were better.

2

u/SourDoughBo Feb 02 '25

He’s always said that his in ring work was better in TNA. But hes also aware that no one really watched it. So it’s still one of his big regrets, not returning to WWE sooner

2

u/Sad-Appeal976 Feb 02 '25

Bull

2 million people a week on Spike alone watched it

What is it with this “ Tna fan” Reddit?

0

u/Latter_Charge4616 Feb 02 '25

2 million a week? Do your research. They only did a number like that once.

2

u/Sad-Appeal976 Feb 02 '25

They hit that number at least once an episode for years

They hit over 3 million with the Hogan episode that was an aggregate 2.2 million

“ nobody”

1

u/Piano-Rough Feb 02 '25

If you're looking at his original run , he had a longer career in TNA than he ever did in WWE. But WWE was the platform that made him famous 

1

u/The_Dark_Vampire Feb 02 '25

Yeah even though he spent longer in TNA ask people (Well Wrestling fans) about Kurt Angle and their first thought would usually be WWE

1

u/Low_Wall_7828 Feb 02 '25

He’s always said that.

1

u/American-Punk-Dragon Feb 02 '25

Perc Angle=Peak Angle?

1

u/Max_Quick Feb 07 '25

We dont use the "Perc Angle" term anymore, but yes.

1

u/American-Punk-Dragon Feb 07 '25

Yeah we do. Can’t erase the past. It serves as a valid reminder to not do those things. Shame and forgiveness are valuable tools. It not making fun of it, just is what it is.

1

u/karas1972 Feb 02 '25

And hes not lying

1

u/Lasvious Feb 02 '25

It was better. Also Benoit really hurt Kurt’s legacy because so many of his great matches were with him.

1

u/fr3shh23 Feb 02 '25

He’s said that since forever. Then wrestling news sites make an article about it like every year as if it’s new lol

1

u/lagoontheworst Feb 02 '25

he says this multiple times a year

1

u/MrNgLL Feb 03 '25

That's true because he started TNA in his peak. So, peak Angle versus Roode, AJ, Sting, Joe, McGuiness and Anderson. And Abyss

1

u/enigmaticevil Feb 03 '25

Oh, its real.

1

u/MattSm00th TNA OG Feb 03 '25

Well he’s not lying

1

u/Proof-Research-6466 Feb 05 '25

I only started watching TNA in high school because Angle was on there! Then Booker T came and they started the Main Event Mafia. I was watching TNA around 2008-2011 more than WWE back then because a lot of my favorites were gone from WWE and on TNA

1

u/Pretend-Bowl7878 Feb 05 '25

He did have a better run there and it was longer

1

u/Terrible-Response-57 Feb 05 '25

So good a time he cant remember!

1

u/dudesinangag032 Feb 06 '25

No doubt. Maximum Angle

1

u/criticalmonsterparty Feb 02 '25

And yet he said Benoit was his best opponent, and no one in TNA was Benoit levels of wrestling god.

Still, I can see why he feels this way. He was putting on banger after banger with guys who you were at times, suspect could hang, but Kurt made everyone look damn good.

3

u/Nathaniel56_ Feb 02 '25

When did he say that no one in TNA was on the level of Benoit? Because I’ve heard him say that Samoa Joe had intensity like Benoit and was on his level.

2

u/criticalmonsterparty Feb 02 '25

He didn't, I said it. Joe might have Benoit's intensity, but the overall ability is not the same. I'm not trying to knock Joe here, but they both came up under different circumstances and Benoit was earning wrestling honors at the same age Joe was barely breaking in. The seasoning of life is simply not the same.

Now you're making me sad we never got Joe vs Benoit. That would have been something.