10 TNA Matches You Totally Forgot (That WWE Should Now Book)

2. Kurt Angle Vs Bobby Roode

Bobby Roode Kurt Angle
ImpactWrestling.com

At one point the two best all-rounders in TNA, Bobby Roode and Kurt Angle were never able to shake the ghost of their woeful Bound For Glory 2011 pay-per-view main event and the internal politics that destroyed it.

A burgeoning babyface on the heels of a phenomenally successful 'Beer Money' unit with James Storm, Bobby Roode had won the inaugural 'Bound For Glory Series'. The complex tournament was littered with cack-handed convolutions typical of TNA, but had nonetheless established Roode as the top contender and rightful heir to Kurt's throne.

Atoning somewhat for the shaky foundations his title shot stood on, TNA went to the trouble of following Roode's mental and physical preparations for the bout, earning rightful plaudits for some outstanding vignettes that built him as the babyface-in-waiting against the ruthless titleholder Kurt.

Things changed just days before the show. It emerged that Angle was carrying a serious leg injury making the already-obvious result seem like a banker, but the alleged involvement of Hulk Hogan behind the scenes completely flipped the script. Believing Roode to be a better heel, he apparently reworked the entire main event scene to have Angle defeat him in a woefully disappointing end to the story, only for a babyface James Storm to unseat Kurt in two minutes days later on TNA Impact.

Roode's coronation came at his tag team partner's expense shortly after, but the rejig completely flattened what should have been an exceptional contest with the Olympic Gold Medallist. WWE could rectify this with an out-and-out classic between the two.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation for 10 years. Alongside the production of daily written, audio and video content covering WWE and AEW, he also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot on the UK's wrestling podcast charts with over 10,000 episodes and 70,000,000 total downloads. He also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House!, Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast, and has guested on long-running Sunderland AFC podcast Wise Men Say. With WhatCulture, he has provided in-person coverage of some of the biggest pay-per-views and Premium Live Events in wrestling history, including WrestleMania, Survivor Series, All In & Double Or Nothing in destinations such as New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. He has also been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana, 411Mania and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in music and culture magazines The Crack, Pilot as well as Sunderland AFC's premiere fanzine A Love Supreme. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it every other Saturday at the Stadium Of Light, and at Cribs gigs nationwide.