10 WWE Match-Ups That Were Better In Another Promotion

Few wrestling free agents were as hot on the market when Kurt Angle announced his departure from WWE in 2006. Angle, frustrated with his descending position on WWE's monolithic totem pole, took action by quitting the company and heading for their competition.

Angle's arrival on TNA shifted wrestling's paradigm, the biggest signing of its era. It changed the dynamic of the TNA as a promotion, taking it from a place for young flashy talents honing their craft, to where the best workers came to do the best work. The Impact Zone finally felt big-time when Angle rose from the floor.

From there, Angle vs. Joe was the marquise match, a bout that always delivered without returns diminishing. Angle's amateur style meshed seamlessly with Joe's hard-hitting strikes and suffocating submissions. TNA even evoked MMA aesthetics by having Angle dawn fighting shorts for his cage match with Joe at Lockdown 2008.

When they found themselves in Vince's ring, Angle, bogged down by years of injuries found himself unable to match Joe's level of performance. Save for a headbutt, calling back to their initial encounter, their match on Raw was an unremarkable win that Kurt took on his way to being retired by Baron Corbin at WM 35. What a waste.