An Olympic wrestling gold medalist at the 1996 Atlanta Games, Kurt Angle not only managed to make the transition to pro wrestling. He became one of the greatest performers of all time.
After an appearance on ECW, the Olympic champion hated one particular angle with The Sandman being hung by a cross at ringside by Raven and The Sandman’s son, so Kurt signed for the then-named WWF in August 1998, having made his television debut on November 14 of the following year, at Survivor Series.
Over the next seven years, Angle was a four-time WWE Champion and a one-time WCW Champion, World Champion, WCW United States Champion, WWE Tag Team Champion, European Champion, Hardcore Champion, and Intercontinental Champion. He also won King of the Ring in 2000 and starred in memorable matches and rivalries until 2006, when he left the company due to ongoing drug abuse of painkillers. He has since returned to WWE and was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
In 2006; he moved to Impact Wrestling/TNA, where he also collected titles between 2006 and 2016: TNA World Heavyweight Championship (six times), TNA World Tag Team Championship (twice: with Sting and AJ Styles ) and TNA X Division Championship (once). He held every title, all at once.
So it’s worth checking out our list of the ten best Kurt Angle matches in TNA, in chronological order.
Genesis 2006: Samoa Joe vs. Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle made his TNA debut on October 19, 2006, confronting Samoa Joe , who refused to relinquish the NWA World Heavyweight Championship belt he had stolen from Jeff Jarrett. Angle and Joe ended up getting involved in a feud, which allowed Jarrett to regain the title.
Three days later, at Bound For Glory , Angle and Joe were again involved in a brawl during the match between Jarrett and Sting for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship, in which Kurt Angle played the role of special enforcer .
On the November 16 episode of Impact! , Angle debuted in the TNA ring with a victory over Abyss achieved via submission, via an Ankle Lock, but was attacked by Joe after the match.
Turning Point 2006: Samoa Joe vs. Kurt Angle
At Genesis, Kurt Angle defeated Samoa Joe via submission, via an Ankle Lock, imposing Joe’s first loss in TNA in 18 months with the company. After the match, Joe said that Angle was the best man that night, but asked for a rematch and proposed a handshake, but the request was refused by Angle, who left the ring.
However, it ended up being scheduled for a new match between the two for Turning Point.
Lockdown 2008
Six Sides of Steel Cage match for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship :
Kurt Angle (c) vs. Samoa Joe
After The Unlikely Alliance ( Christian Cage , Kevin Nash and Samoa Joe ) defeated The Angle Alliance ( AJ Styles , Kurt Angle and Tomko ) at Destination X 2008, a Six Sides of Steel Cage match was scheduled for Lockdown 2008 between champion Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship during the March 13 episode of TNA Impact! . In the same episode, Joe stated that he would leave TNA if he did not win the title .
However, Joe was not seen on TNA’s weekly schedule for several weeks as he was training specifically for the match.
On the April 10 episode, the combat contract between Angle and Joe was signed , who had already faced each other at Genesis and Turning Point in 2006 and at Final Resolution and Hard Justice in 2007.
Hard Justice 2008 – Last Man Standing match : AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle
On the February 14, 2008 episode of Impact! , TNA staged a wedding between Kurt Angle ‘s wife Karen and AJ Styles , although Angle and Karen were still married, with the separation taking place almost a month later on the March 13 episode. Meanwhile, Angle tried to reconcile with Karen, but she refused her ex-husband’s request, who got carried away by jealousy and attacked AJ Styles .
On the May 29 episode, authority figure Jim Cornette announced a match between Kurt Angle and AJ Styles for Slammiversary . Despite having suffered a serious neck injury, Angle appeared in the match, but Styles achieved victory after a Styles Clash . However, Angle and Tomko attacked Styles after the duel.
Four days later, on the June 12 episode, Angle beat Styles in a Lumberjack match before a brawl took place between Kurt Angle ‘s group and Team 3D (Brother Ray and Brother Devon) and AJ Styles , Christian Cage and Rhino. The two factions faced off in a Six Man Tag Team Full Metal Mayhem match at Victory Road , with Angle and Team 3D getting the upper hand.
On the July 24 episode of Impact! , Angle and Team 3D again beat Styles , Christian and Rhino, this time in a Six Man Tag Team Elimination Tables match.
A week later, Angle attacked Styles inside a cage, knocking him unconscious, prompting Styles to challenge Angle to a Last Man Standing match at Hard Justice, a challenge Angle accepted.
Turning Point 2008: Falls Count Anywhere: Kurt Angle vs. Abyss
At Bound For Glory 2008, Kurt Angle was defeated by TNA founder and co-owner Jeff Jarrett in a match featuring Mick Foley as a special guest enforcer. At Impact! following the pay-per-view, Angle challenged Jarrett to a rematch at Turning Point, but Jarrett declined. Furious at his rival’s refusal, Angle began attacking several TNA wrestlers to persuade Jarrett to accept the challenge.
On the October 23 episode, Angle again issued the challenge and was denied by Jarrett. However, the TNA founder recommended Abyss, one of Angle’s victims the previous week, for an opponent for the Olympic champion.
A week later, Angle lost a duel with Abyss , via disqualification, after hitting Monster with a chair, which led to the scheduling of a Falls Count Anywhere match between the two for Turning Point.
Genesis 2009: Kurt Angle vs. Jeff Jarrett
At Turning Point 2008, Kurt Angle beat Abyss in a Falls Count Anywhere match and kept his intentions intact to get revenge for his loss at the hands of Jeff Jarrett at Bound For Glory. On the November 20 episode of Impact! , it was announced that if Angle beat Rhino at Final Resolution, he would be entitled to face Jarrett again. On the other hand, if Angle was defeated, he would be fired from TNA.
Angle ended up beating Rhino, in yet another match that had Mick Foley as a special guest enforcer. In the match, Al Snow distracted Foley and allowed Angle to controversially take the victory.
In the weeks leading up to the match between Angle and Jarrett on Genesis, the rivalry became even more personal on Impact! on December 11, with the Olympic champion telling Jarrett’s three daughters that they were going to be orphaned and that maybe “Uncle Kurt ” would adopt them. Jarrett came out to confront Angle , but was held off by BG James, Terry Taylor, referee Earl Hebner and Scott D’Amore.
Impact! (October 15, 2009): Kurt Angle vs. AJ Styles
At the No Surrender pay-per-view in September, AJ Styles captured the TNA World Heavyweight Championship from Kurt Angle in a five-way match that also involved Matt Morgan, Sting and Hernandez.
Four days later on Impact! , Angle said that he was not defeated by AJ Styles but was framed by Matt Morgan, Angle ‘s supposed ally who applied a Big Boot to him during the match at the No Surrender pay-per-view . On the October 8 episode, Angle accused Sting and Styles of fixing the result at the No Surrender pay-per-view , since Sting walked away for Styles to lay down on Angle , to face each other in the main event of Bound For Glory by title. Meanwhile, Angle attacked Sting and trapped him in an Ankle Lock , but Styles made the save . However, Angle challenged Styles to a match the following week, just three days away from Bound For Glory .
Turning Point 2009: Kurt Angle vs. Desmond Wolfe
After making a name for himself in Ring of Honor under the ring name Nigel McGuinness, Desmond Wolfe made his TNA debut on the October 22 episode of Impact! , when attacking Kurt Angle .
The following week, Wolfe beat Angle in a street fight by referee decision, after the British applied a Lariat on the opponent. However, a first duel between the two on pay-per-view was scheduled at Turning Point.
Lockdown 2010: Steel Cage match – Kurt Angle vs. Mr. Anderson
At Against All Odds, Mr. Anderson defeated Kurt Angle, after weaponizing dog tags, in the quarterfinals of a tournament the winner of which would receive an opportunity at the TNA World Heavyweight Championship. On the following episode of Impact! , Angle accused Mr Anderson of disrespecting U.S. soldiers for using the plates as a weapon, which led to Anderson hitting Angle with a microphone.
At Destination X, Kurt Angle beat Mr. Anderson via submission, but a new Steel Cage match at Lockdown was scheduled. On the April 5 episode, Anderson defeated Angle in a ladder match to gain possession of the key to the cage door to be used in Lockdown.
No Surrender 2010: Kurt Angle vs. Jeff Hardy
On the August 19, 2010 episode of Impact!, the TNA World Heavyweight Championship was declared vacant after champion Rob Van Dam was injured by Abyss. To determine the new champion, an eight-man tournament was held. In the quarterfinals, whose fights took place in episodes of Impact!, Jeff Hardy beat Rob Terry; while Kurt Angle, who had returned from a sabbatical and promised that he would retire if he lost a match, defeated Douglas Williams, thus scheduling a duel between Hardy and Angle for the semifinal, scheduled for No Surrender. At the same time, Mr. Anderson and D’Angelo Dinero had a fight scheduled for the same event, in the other semifinal.
