Kurt Angle Says WWE Has No Respect For Him, Comments On Vince McMahon

[AKI Man]

<blockquote class='quote\\_blockquote'><dl><dt>Quote:</dt><dd> </dd></dl><div>The New York Post has published an interview with TNA Wrestling star Kurt Angle discussing his Olympic aspirations. The interview includes discussion of his professional wrestling career, and he explains how he made the transition between the professional and amateur ranks.

"It was a complete career adaptation. It wasn't a step above, going from amateur wrestling to pro wrestling, it was going from real wrestling to sports entertainment," Angle said. "A lot of people put me up there as far as saying he's one of the best ever. And I've only been wrestling for 11 and a half years. I think that Ric Flair, Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker, guys who have put 30 years into it deserve it. Me getting that praise after only 11 years—it's not fair.”

Though Kurt Angle has not competed inside a WWE ring in over five years, his impact is still seen today. The Olympic Gold Medalist, however, does not appreciate his moves and style being replicated.

"When Jack Swagger copies my ankle lock and Randy Orton does my Angle Slam, it's disrespectful," Angle said. "I didn't come up with the Ankle Lock, Ken Shamrock came up with the Ankle Lock but I waited until he retired to do the Ankle Lock. That company has no respect for me."

Despite his displeasure with WWE grapplers using his moves, Angle is grateful that he has been able to parlay Vince McMahon's vision for him into a successful career in both WWE and TNA Wrerstling.

"I love Vince McMahon. He came up with the Kurt Angle character,” Angle said. "He ran with it and then I was able to run with it. I thank him for the opportunity he gave me. Vince McMahon was one of my best friends, period. Now I'm loyal to Dixie Carter." [/quote]

 

[Tired]

<blockquote class='quote\\_blockquote'><dl><dt>Quote:</dt><dd> </dd></dl><div>Wah! Wah! Wah! Somebody call this man a wah-mbulance![/quote]

- John Bradshaw Layfield

 

[TheDoctor]

:bender: Shut Up Meatbag!

 

[Tired]

I used to be a massive Kurt Angle fan. He stands beside Bret Hart, Roddy Piper, Shawn Michaels and Chris Benoit as my all-time favourites.

I started wrestling professionally around the time he made his WWE debut. And emulating his style got me over so quickly. I hated cutting my hair, but I did to look like him. I bought the t-shirts and as many WWE VHS tapes as I could if he was on the card. I was on his website daily, and I started following the training programme he had on there. I never once managed to reach one of his full work-outs, but I was determined to be more like him.

I later got into amateur wrestling because of him, and even tried out for the Olympic team. Injuries, to me and team mates, resulted in Ireland not submitting a team at all in 2004.

Is Angle the greatest of all time? Maybe. Is he one of the greatest? Definitely. He is the closest thing there is to a flawless wrestler.

But he is not a flawless human being. The reason why he is not in the WWE is because he tried to manipulate them. He was working in a manner which put his life in danger, and kept him on the injury list. During his final year, he returned from injury just to sustain 3 seperate injuries in his first match back. It was his own erratic behaviour that ended his WWE tenure.

But think about this. He won the WWF Heavyweight title, European title, Intercontinental title and King of the Ring in his rookie year. He was in the first pay-per-view match of 2000, and ended it in a no contest in Tazz' debut appearance. He was in the final ppv match of 2000, when he succesfully defended the title against Undertaker, Rock, Austin and Triple H (and Rikishi) in the same Hell in a Cell match.

He is one of only 4 Euro-continental champions. He is one of only 3 men to have held the Attitude era grand slam (Heavyweight, Intercontinental, European, Hardcore and Tag Team). He is the only guy who won the WCW World AND United States championships while they were WWE championships. He is a 6 or 7 time world champion in WWE. He has repeatedly main-evented WrestleMania, and he has stolen the show literally hundreds of times. On top of this, he remained a consistent main-eventer, receiving a pay-cheque that matched his status. Literally, dozens of other WWE Superstars, past and present, have to list their matches with Angle as the ones that shaped their careers. The WWE still pays him thousands of dollars annually because he is on so many 'Best of...' and WrestleMania DVD compilations.

If that is disrespect, then sign me up.

But it was his own actions that got him released. The same actions that facilitated his divorce. His bitter (and strange) break-up with Rhaka Khan. His multiple DUI and DWI arrests. Jeff Jarrett's demotion in his own company.

But Kurt parted ways with the WWE in 2006. It has been 6 years. And he has spent those 6 years helping their biggest rivals, and supporting those who have bad-mouthed McMahon and Triple H the most. He has won 6 more world championships, and was briefly the only man holding titles in TNA. He has main-evented more shows than anyone in TNA history. All this, while receiving the same rate of pay for a quarter of the dates. And this whole time, he has criticised the WWE and McMahon any chance he has had.

Kurt Angle has had a great career in both WWE and TNA. But Angle himself has no intention of returning to WWE anytime so. In that case, HE NEEDS TO LET IT GO AND MOVE ON. And IF WWE have wronged him, I think he has landed on his feet. He's need to get over it.

In other threads, we make fun of older wrestlers who do not know how to let go of the past. Nash and Warrior being the current two. What Angle is doing is no different. He needs to stop complaining about the few times he didn't get his way, and look towards the many blessings his life and career have, and keep on giving to him.