10 Greatest Vince McMahon Creations
4. Kurt Angle
Those who bemoan the Roman Reigns push - and decry architect Vince McMahon for being out of touch in engineering it - would be wise to remember the Kurt Angle story.
By 1999, the world and wrestling was unrecognisable to how it existed three years prior. Kurt Angle was a national hero in 1996, having captured heavyweight freestyle Olympic gold. The anti-hero Attitude Era rendered that achievement a big nothing when Angle belatedly turned professional; the idea that fans would get behind a white meat babyface at a time when even the heels were cool was untenable. McMahon's ingenuous twist saw him debut Angle as a purposefully anachronistic non-babyface hilariously oblivious to the fact that he was, in fact, a heel. It was an instant sensation; Angle got the gag as quickly as he picked up the mechanics and the psychology. The comedy hit the sweet spot between obliviousness and righteous indignation. Angle's phenomenal in-ring work put it over the top.
McMahon has forgotten more about wrestling than we deign to know. He knows that Roman Reigns isn't a cutting edge character an undeserving fanbase are too dumb to appreciate - history tells us that - he simply does not seem to care.
A sobering thought.