Kurt Angle Reflects on Disappointing 2017 WWE Run Following Hall of Fame Honor

After returning to the WWE from TNA after 11 years, Kurt Angle's in-ring career trajectory dipped down owing to bad creative decisions.

Kurt Angle Reflects on Disappointing 2017 WWE Run Following Hall of Fame Honor

Kurt Angle at WWE Hall of Fame 2017 (via WWE)

🔍 Explore this post with:

ChatGPTPerplexityGrok AIGoogle AI

Kurt Angle is often regarded as one of the greatest in-ring performers in WWE history. Debuting at Survivor Series 1999, the Olympic gold medalist quickly became known for delivering legendary matches with just about anyone, whether it was Rey Mysterio, Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, or Eddie Guerrero.

His NCAA wrestling background helped him adapt faster than most, and bouts like his WrestleMania 19 classic against Lesnar and his show-stealer with Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 21 cemented him as one of the very best inside the ring.

But his second WWE run in 2017 told a different story. After leaving WWE in 2006 for TNA, Angle endured years of intense competition and multiple neck surgeries. During that time, he also became addicted to painkillers, a difficult period fans later dubbed the ‘Perc Angle’ era.

By the time he returned to WWE, his body had broken down significantly. Moreover, he even had a double knee replacement surgery just three years back. On The Undertaker’s Six Feet Under podcast, he opened up about the pain that forced him into the procedure and how his disappointing final run in WWE made it clear something had to change.

Angle believes his matches would have been far better if Vince McMahon had let him wrestle right away when he came back to the company. Instead, the former WWE CEO first inducted him into the Hall of Fame, then put him in the role of Raw General Manager. Angle was sidelined for nearly a year, and by the time he finally returned to the ring, his knees had deteriorated badly.

When I watched myself wrestle in WWE my last year, I looked like an old man in the ring…I was like wow, this is brutal. I couldn’t even look at myself. So I knew I had to have knee replacements. I had so much pain in my knees, arthritis, and so much damage there.

Kurt Angle via Six Feet Under podcast

Angle was kept inactive for about eight months, and during that time, his arthritic knees got worse. This made it harder for him to perform when he finally returned to action.

Then all of a sudden he’s like, Kurt, I want you to wrestle. Uh, that’s gonna be a problem [laughs]. I literally, when I got in there, I looked like cr*p. I mean, I couldn’t do anything. It made me want to retire earlier than I wanted to. That’s why I retired with Baron Corbin at WrestleMania…because I didn’t want people to look at me and say, gosh, he used to be great, but now…I didn’t want that. So I decided that this is it.

Kurt Angle via Six Feet Under podcast

After a career filled with classics, Angle’s final match came at WrestleMania 35, where he retired in a lackluster bout against Baron Corbin. Many fans considered it a missed opportunity, as they had hoped to see Angle face John Cena in his farewell match. 

The reasoning was simple: Cena made his WWE debut in 2002 by confronting Angle during the Ruthless Aggression Era, and closing Angle’s career with that same rivalry would have given him the iconic sendoff he deserved.

Angle further revealed that while his knees feel fine following double replacement surgery, his neck still gives him serious issues. His vertebrae fused together naturally, leaving him with no discs, which causes constant pain, shaky hands, numb pinkies, and other problems that no treatment, stem cells, or surgery has been able to fix.

Angle admitted that he has learned to live with it, saying he would rather deal with neck pain than go through knee pain again. The Undertaker responded with a simple but powerful reminder about taking the hard road of wrestling and paying the price. 

Kurt Angle tells the tragic tale of alcohol and painkiller addiction during his TNA run

As mentioned earlier, Kurt Angle faced serious struggles during his TNA run in 2006. While he still delivered fluid performances inside the ring, his body had become dependent on heavy doses of painkillers. On Six Feet Under With The Undertaker podcast, the Olympic gold medalist opened up about the harrowing toll his health issues and addictions took on him.

Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle (via WWE)

He debuted in TNA in October of 2006, confronting Samoa Joe, who had refused to hand back the NWA World Title he had taken from Jeff Jarrett. However, behind the scenes, Angle was battling personal demons. He admitted that in the transition from WWE to TNA, he developed a serious addiction to both alcohol and painkillers.

When I left, I went to TNA, I stopped the painkillers, and my doctor was giving me two little pills: MS Contin… Then I started drinking alcohol excessively. I switched from one drug to the other, and that’s what a druggie does. That’s what an addict does. And I started making horrible decisions; I would go wrestle, but I wouldn’t wrestle drunk. Afterward, I would go to the store and grab a 12-pack of beer, drive to my hotel room, drink, and pass out.

Kurt Angle via Six Feet Under podcast

Angle admitted that his drinking quickly spiraled out of control. For about a year, he drank heavily after matches, but eventually, he began drinking while driving to the next town. This reckless behavior led to four DUIs in five years. Angle said his life spun out of control during this period, costing him his reputation and everything he had worked for, calling it the lowest point of his life.

Also read: