Kurt Angle's WrestleMania Matches - From Worst To Best
The Olympic Hero has an impressive WrestleMania hitlist, but what match comes out on top?
The only Olympic gold medallist in professional wrestling, Kurt Angle would have been a grappling legend even if he had never stepped foot inside the squared circle. But step inside it he did, and after making his in-ring WWF debut in 1999 he took to the sport like the proverbial duck to water. Within a year he was winning World titles, breaking ankles and leaving behind a Hall of Fame calibre legacy.
He would only get better and better as the years went by.
Not unlike Shawn Michaels, Kurt Angle's exploits at the Show of Shows have been impressive to say the least. It is telling that whereas guys like John Cena and Randy Orton have faced a wide variety of opponents, Angle and Michaels seemed to face only 'dream match' type opponents, wrestlers who could work at something approaching a similar level.
This is truer for Angle than any other, something easily understood from even the most cursory glance at his back catalogue.
Angle only appeared at seven WrestleManias, but the quality of his output there is hard to match. Over half of his WrestleMania matches would be considered as four star affairs or more, a clear sign that the Olympic Hero more than stepped up to the plate on the grandest stage.
But which match was his best?
7. Vs. Kane - WrestleMania X8
Something of a no-brainer for the bottom position on this list, is Kurt Angle facing off against Kane at WrestleMania X8. There was nothing particularly offensive about the match itself. It was two credible stars facing off on an incredibly stacked show (Triple H vs. Y2J, Rock vs. Hogan, Austin vs. Hall, Taker vs. Flair were also on the card), but there wasn't much spice or sizzle to it.
Looking back, it screams of 'two guys with nothing else to do'.
One huge rumour that has always done the rounds ever since is that WWE actually had big plans for Angle going into the show, and his 'Mania moment hinged on the outcome of serious negotiations with one of WCW's most prized icons - Sting. As with most wrestling rumours, several pinches of salt must be taken here, but supposedly Sting was so close to signing that the writers were told to find a spot for him on the show.
That spot was going to be against Kurt Angle.
As it happened, the deal didn't go through. This left Angle at a loose end going into WrestleMania X8, which is where good old dependable Kane steps in. Angle would pick up the win, but many have since forgotten that this match ever happened.