UK promotion Insane Championship Wrestling (ICW) has revealed Kevin Nash as the special guest Commissioner for their upcoming Fear & Loathing X event in Scotland.
ICW is arguably the biggest promotion in the UK, last year’s Fear & Loathing event took place at the SSE Hydro Glasgow in front of over 6,000 fans and featured Finn Balor as the guest Commissioner.
Check out the free match that ICW has released between Kurt Angle and homegrown star Joe Coffey for a taste of the ICW style.
On a recent edition of WWE Network’s Table For 3, former WWE Superstars Edge, Christian, and Kurt Angle joined together for a meal to talk about a variety of topics. During the event, “Captain Carisma” discussed watching Angle come up through the developmental system and the former Olympian’s awkward appearance at his wedding. Check it out:
Knowing Angle was going to be a natural after their encounters together in developmental:
“I was already under a developmental contract at the time and they were just bringing me back monthly to figure out if I was ready to go up to the main roster. [Angle] never had a pro wrestling match [at that time]. Like, I remember getting in there and doing the basic lockups and grabbing the arm, just basic things that you learn very early on. And sometimes it takes guys are long time to pick those types of things up and I remember, boom, the first time [Angle] had it. Every time, [Angle] had it and I remember thinking to myself, ‘my God, this guy is a natural.'”
Talking Angle through his first match at a spot show in New England:
“To me, that was a huge honor. First of all, for me, they trusted me to be the guy to come in there and have a match with [Angle]. I was like, ‘don’t worry, you always know what you’re doing out there. I’m going to talk to you’ and [Angle is] like, ‘what? Don’t do that.’ I was like, ‘what do you mean?’ ‘You can’t talk.’ I was like, ‘yeah, I might even tell you a joke’ and now he [has] got his hands here [over his face], ‘please, don’t make me laugh. Please, don’t talk to me.'”
Angle showing up to his wedding with ripped pants and a red face:
“Maybe a little known fact that [Angle] stood up at my wedding. That’s how good friends we are and Adam was obviously the best man. When [Angle] showed up, his face was like beet red and I was like, ‘Kurt, are you alright?’ He was like, ‘I haven’t put this tux on for a while. The button is too tight.’ And it looked like [Angle’s] head was going to pop. And [Angle was] like, ‘hey, look at this,’ and [Angle] put [his] leg up and [he] ripped the crotch out of the pants on the way to the wedding.”
WWE Hall of Famer and RAW General Manager Kurt Angle recently did a Q&A on his Facebook page. Here are the highlights of what Angle said about:
If he expects to wrestle again:
“Yes. I don’t know when, but I will wrestle again. It’s true!”
Roman Reigns’ potential:
“Yes, Roman is fine. He has a huge future too. Roman has potential to be “the face” of WWE. Let’s see how he pans out.”
His worst moment as a WWE wrestler:
“Continuously breaking my neck. 4 times in 2 1/2 years. I kept rushing back to WWE by convincing my own doctor to clear me and that I was ready to return. I wasn’t. That was tough. Kudos to WWE for not allowing that anymore. Now you have to be cleared by a WWE doctor and they are strict.”
Which mid-card Superstar could be a WWE main eventer:
“I really like Neville. He has the ability to cross over from the 205 division to the HWT division. He’s so talented as a wrestler, and his character is strong. He can speak very well and his style will mesh well with the heavyweights. Almost like Rey Mysterio was able to mesh with the big boys. Neville is very talented.”
Who he wants to see n the WWE Hall of Fame:
“Christian. Very underrated. He has consistently had the best matches, was a multi world champ and entertaining as hell. I love that guy.”
Kurt Angle has come a long way. His professional accelerates speak for themselves. After winning an Olympic gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics, Angle went on to have a legendary WWE career during the Attitude Era and has firmly cemented himself as an all time great. He’s back on top in WWE as a Hall of Famer and the General Manager of WWE RAW. He’s got a beautiful wife and 5 children he adores. Angle has a lot to be proud of, but he’s also had his personal challenges.
Angle struggled with addiction for over a decade and almost lost it all as a result. He became addicting to pain pills, was drinking heavily and was arrested for four DUI’s in five years.” He’s now sober 4 1/2 years and is using his experience to help others stay clean. For those unaware, Kurt Angle launched AngleStrong, an initiative to assist recovering addicts stay in recovery. You can learn more at AngleStrong.com and below.
Angle posted a lengthy message on Instagram this week detailing his battle with addiction and his mission to help others struggling with the deadly disease:
“I’ve been clean and sober for 4 1/2 years. My battle with addiction lasted over a decade. I remember the day that my wife came to me and said “I love you. But I can’t be with you anymore if you continue to pass out every night. It’s sad to see you ruining your life and missing out on our children growing up.” “I’m sorry, but if you don’t get clean, I’m leaving you,” she told me. “I don’t want your money. I just want to protect my family.”
Wow! I didn’t realize how bad I was. You never do when you’re in the middle of hardcore addiction. But having 4 DUIs in 5 years also showed me there was a horrible pattern. The fact that each DUI charge was reduced to reckless driving or thrown own just gave me an excuse to keep using.
So I decided to go to rehab, and it was the best decision I’ve ever made. In rehab, you have so much structure. After one week of very, very difficult withdrawal symptoms, I was feeling great. The routine was 8 hours of sleep. Wake up. Exercise and yoga. Breakfast (healthy meals). Addiction prevention class. Lunch. Class again. Dinner. Meetings. Music time. Then sleep.
But what happens when you get out? You’re released back into the world where you became addicted. That’s why 95 percent of those in recovery relapse. There’s no structure after rehab, except for AA/NA meetings, which can be difficult if you’re a husband, father, career man, and celebrity, not to mention very private.
I struggled nights with what I could do to help others stay in recovery after rehab. It took me 4 years to come up with a solution. And that’s AngleStrong. AngleStrong is an initiative to assist recovering addicts stay in recovery. Go to the AngleStrong.com website to read about it. I’ve helped to create an app that any recovering addict can follow daily to stay in recovery.
It’s easy: Sign up, fill in your profile, answer the questions each day, sign up your lifelines to help support you in recovery and go to the chat line to converse with other recovering addicts. It has daily reminders, positive daily messages, a monthly video call with me answering your questions, and it’s GPS enabled so that we can find you if you relapse. This is Anglestrong! We will win!!”
Daniel Bryan Tweets About Final Match & Tyson Kidd Responds
Yesterday was the two year anniversary of Daniel Bryan’s final WWE match. Bryan teamed up with John Cena to face Tyson Kidd & Cesaro. Bryan has made it known in several interviews that he may look to wrestle elsewhere once his WWE contract expires. For now, he serves as the GM of Smackdown and co-host of Talking Smack. Bryan sent out a tweet acknowledging the two year anniversary of his last match and Tyson Kidd responded to it.
Kurt Angle Is Excited Booker T Is Doing Commentary For RAW
As noted earlier, new RAW announcer David Otunga will miss the next six weeks of WWE RAW to film his new movie “Katrina”. Booker T was announced as his temporary replacement on the RAW commentary team. RAW GM Kurt Angle seems to be a fan of that decision and sent out the following tweet:
– WWE’s negotiations to purchase ring of honor are effectively dead, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. There are still ongoing talks for WWE to license content from ROH’s video library, but WWE will not be outright buying the promotion. During a recent interview with the Baltimore Sun, Sinclair Broadcast Group / Ring of Honor COO Joe Koff addressed the rumors of WWE looking to buy ROH.
“It was not a story. It was not a story when it came out. I think people want to make a story out of nothing.”
– Seth Rolins posted this heartfelt message and photo on Instagram welcoming Kurt Angle back to WWE. Angle now serves as the General Manager of Monday Night RAW.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BSzl5eshX11/
– Braun Strowman has responded to an online petition that sought to get him fired from WWE for the way he brutalized Roman Reigns on Monday’s RAW.
WWE Hall of Famer and Raw General Manager Kurt Angle will be getting his own DVD set later this year. Wrestling DVD Network is reporting that a three disc DVD set entitled “Kurt Angle: The Essential Collection” will be released on August 1st, 2017.
Below is the official synopsis for the release:
“It’s true! It’s true! Kurt Angle has had some of the most epic matchups in WWE history. Now for the first time ever, you can watch them all with Kurt Angle: The Essential Collection.
Relive all of his rivalries with Stone Cold Steve Austin, The Rock, John Cena, Edge, Shawn Michaels, Triple H and more in this complete collection.”
WWE Superstars React To Superstar Shake-Up
WWE has uploaded a new video highlighting a few reactions to the Superstar Shake-Up that will be happening next week on Raw and Smackdown. Sasha Banks sent out a tweet asking to be sent to Smackdown after Shinsuke Nakamura made his debut on Tuesday night. AJ Styles stated that the Superstar Shake-Up sounds like a “phenomenal” opportunity and used #Raw in his tweet.
Former Raw GM Mick Foley announced on Facebook that his hip replacement surgery has been delayed until April 19th. Foley also wished new Raw GM Kurt Angle the best and stated that he is a great choice to run the show.
“Kurt Angle is great choice for #RAW GM. He has the respect of everyone in the dressing room, can get serious when he needs to, and has an awe-inspiring ability to embrace his inner nerd. He is likely to have very good chemistry with a wide assortment of the #Raw roster – which makes for good television.”
Vince McMahon appeared on Monday’s post-WrestleMania RAW from Orlando and made two big announcements. Vince said it’s time to “shake things up” with the RAW and SmackDown rosters. He did not specifically mention a draft, but expect to see some high-profile trades starting next week.
With Mick Foley being relieved of his duties as RAW General Manager, Vince also announced that the new RAW GM will be somebody who was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this past weekend. Teddy Long came out, but Vince informed Teddy that he’s not the new GM. The new General Manager of RAW is none other than Kurt Angle.
The WWE has uploaded a video previewing the pyro and set for Wrestlemania 33. Kofi Kingston, Xavier Woods and Big E introduced the set. The New Day are the official hosts of Wrestlemania 33 which airs tomorrow night.
Last night, Kurt Angle was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2017. Angle broke out all the hits during his speech. The WWE uploaded a video highlighting some of the best moments from Kurt Angle during the Hall of Fame ceremony.
The WWE has uploaded several videos of Kurt Angle backstage during the WWE Hall of Fame ceremony last night. Angle was clearly emotional watching the highlights and listening to some of the commentary from former and current WWE Superstars. Angle also was emotional during John Cena’s speech inducting him into the WWE Hall of Fame.
The WWE uploaded two more videos of Angle arriving backstage after pouring milk all over himself. Angle also said that he hoped he delivered a Hall of Fame moment in an interview after his speech.
The WWE has posted a new video of 2017 Hall of Famers Teddy Long, Beth Phoenix, Rock ‘n’ Roll Express, Diamond Dallas Page and Kurt Angle receiving their rings from Triple H and Vince McMahon. Rick Rude’s family also received a Hall of Fame ring.
The WWE also uploaded a new 360 interview with Daniel Bryan and Kurt Angle. Bryan and Angle debated what would happen if a dream match were to take place between the two.
Bayley posted a photo of her and Scott Hall earlier today. Bayley was wearing a classic Razor Ramon jacket.
The WWE recently posted a video of Kurt Angle arriving in Orlando for Wrestlemania 33 weekend. Angle is being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame tomorrow night. Angle stated that he was not expecting to be inducted right now and is very grateful.
This Friday night, Kurt Angle takes his rightful place in history when he’s inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.
Angle recently sat down with RAW announcer Corey Graves for an exclusive interview, his first WWE-related project in over a decade. Topics discussed include his legendary career, battling his demons and his triumphant return home to WWE.
The 20-minute special also includes footage of Kurt Angle reuniting with Vince McMahon and Triple H at WWE headquarters.
If you’re a WWE Network subscriber, click here to watch Kurt Angle: Oh, It’s True, It’s True!
– WWE has published a video of Katya Kavaleva, a 6’5″ recruit that tried out for the WWE last month. Kavaleva is a former kickboxing champion and discusses her extensive training in the video.
– Goldust took to Twitter to call out people that are selling merchandise of his late father, Dusty Rhodes. Goldust threatened to take legal action if people continue to sell merchandise that is not licensed by the WWE.
The WWE recently posted an article and listed 5 people that could replace Mick Foley as Raw GM. Foley was fired from the position on this past week’s episode of Monday Night Raw. Here are the names included on the list.
Eric Bischoff
Bischoff has already played the role of Raw GM before. It didn’t end well for him, as he was fired and thrown into the back of a garbage truck. Eric Bischoff will be inducting Diamond Dallas Page into the WWE Hall of Fame during Wrestlemania weekend. Bischoff returning to weekly television as the Raw GM is pretty unlikely.
Stone Cold Steve Austin
Stone Cold and Vince McMahon have quite the history. While it would be entertaining to see Austin, Stephanie McMahon Triple H have a power struggle on Raw every week, it most likely will not happen. Austin has a very successful podcast and hosts a reality show. Austin has been Co-General Manager with Eric Bischoff and even played the role of CEO for a brief period of time.
Jim Cornette
There is absolutely no chance in hell that this would ever happen. It is borderline miraculous that Jim Cornette is even a part of Wrestlemania weekend this year. Cornette also hosts a very successful podcast, in which he often mercilessly bashes the WWE product and the performers involved in the company. I think this would easily be the most entertaining Raw GM but this would never happen. Jim Cornette will inducting the Rock ‘n’ Roll Express into the WWE Hall of Fame. Cornette has often bashed the WWE Hall of Fame in the past and claimed that the WWE Hall of Fame is just another marketing creation by Vince McMahon. It will no doubt be must-see television when Cornette inducts the Rock ‘n’ Roll Express during Wrestlemania 33 weekend.
Edge
This one is intriguing. Edge would be an interesting Raw GM and would certainly challenge Triple H and Stephanie McMahon on their shenanigans. I can’t imagine that Edge would want to return to the weekly travel grind that is professional wrestling to play a fictional general manager. However, if he was to be the next Raw GM I think it would be a solid choice. Edge & Christian also have a podcast that launched today. Their first guest was WWE Universal Champion Goldberg and you can check that out by clicking here.
Kurt Angle
Out of all the names on this list, this one seems the most likely. Angle has made it known that he wants to wrestle again in the WWE and is being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame during Wrestlemania weekend. Behind the scenes, Angle and the WWE have had a rocky relationship over the years. The WWE might be hesitant to have Angle return to the ring right away and would want to make sure he is 100% healthy if they chose to do so. Angle as the Raw GM makes perfect sense because it introduces Angle back to the WWE Universe and allows the WWE to build a storyline that hopefully will lead to the in-ring send-off that Angle deserves.
Olympic gold medalist Kurt Angle spoke with Fox Sports to discuss his legacy, his upcoming WWE Hall of Fame induction and promote his appearance at Comic Con in Cleveland over the weekend.
Angle recently sat down for an interview with Corey Graves, which will air in its entirety on the WWE Network in the coming weeks. Angle spoke about the importance of his legacy and wanting to be the greatest of all time, not just somebody who had that potential but squandered it due to personal issues. Fox asked Angle if he considers himself to be in that top tier. Angle believes he’s the greatest technical wrestler of all time, but admits that he didn’t have a long enough run in WWE to be the greatest Superstar of all time.
“You know what, to be honest with you… I haven’t been there in 11 years. You can only have so much impact when you’re in a company for six and a half years [and] you’re injured for a year and a half of it, so really five years…
Would I put myself in the history books as the greatest wrestler of all time? Yes. But not ‘WWE Superstar’. I was only there six and a half years. I also had a pro career in TNA for 11. You can’t combine them together unless you’re talking from a non-WWE standpoint. And the WWE is the monster, it’s everything. The longer you’re in there and the more successful you are, the more accolades you should have. I wasn’t John Cena, I couldn’t stay on top for 14 years. I tried. Very few individuals could do that.”
Angle used Steve Austin as an example. He believes Stone Cold is the greatest of all time and his star burned as bright as anybody in history. However, Austin’s run was only about five years and some of that time was plagued by a neck injury. Nobody has the consistency of John Cena and you need that staying power to be considered the greatest. Angle says he had a consistent run with TNA, but he needed a very reduced schedule to stay healthy.
In recent years, we’ve seen guys like The Rock, The Undertaker, Triple H, Brock Lesnar and Goldberg work part-time schedules. This luxury has extended their careers and allowed them to work big WrestleMania matches many years past their primes. Angle wonders how things would have been different if he could have worked a part time schedule after he left WWE back in 2006.
“What’s crazy is two years after I left, they started doing that. It was like ‘damnit! I just missed it by two years.’ I would have stayed in WWE. I went to rehab back in 2006 and I got myself straight, took Vince McMahon’s advice, and I would have stayed. I wanted to stay, I just knew I couldn’t do that schedule …
Part-timers usually have to put in that 20 or so years. So I understood that, but two or three years later they started doing that. I missed that moment where I could have stayed, and I could have been a 25-time World Champion.”
Head over to Fox Sports to check out the full interview.
WWE announced on Thursday that John Cena will be the man to induct Kurt Angle into the WWE Hall of Fame during WrestleMania weekend.
John Cena and Kurt Angle have a lot of history together. Cena made his WWE television debut back in June of 2002 when he answered an open challenge by the Olympic gold medalist. 15 years later, we’ve come full circle and it will be Cena honoring Angle as he takes his rightful place amongst the sport’s top legends.
Since the announcement of Angle’s Hall of Fame induction, he’s done various interviews talking about who he wanted to induct him. On multiple occasions, he said that he requested The Undertaker, John Cena or Stone Cold Steve Austin.
American Alpha recently spoke with the The Sun and gave their thoughts on Kurt Angle. SmackDown’s tag team champions acknowledged that they’ve been compared to Angle and sound excited about the prospect of working with him in some capacity.
Jason Jordan: “It would be great to work with Kurt. He paved the way for us amateur wrestlers. Also, his mind – the way he works in ring – it’s a thing of beauty. It’s amazing.
“There are all these stories we’ve heard about Kurt Angle – and obviously we’ve gotten some comparisons – but it would be really nice to work hand-in-hand with him, help get our game to the next level.
“Obviously he has so much experience that he can put upon us. It would be great to just sit under the tree of knowledge and let him talk with us and give us some pointers.”
Chad Gable: “We’re really looking forward to Orlando. Maybe we’ll get a minute to sit down with him and ask a few things.
“He did the exact path that we’re trying to do right now and succeeded in the biggest possible way. If there’s anyone that’s going to help Jason and I, he’s the man for the job.”
Kurt Angle takes his place in the WWE Hall of Fame on Friday night, March 31st from Orlando.
– 2017 WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle was backstage at Tuesday’s SmackDown Live, which took place from his hometown of Pittsburgh, PA. Angle was on hand to film content for the upcoming “WWE 24” WWE Network special as well as material for social media.
– The Bella Twins’ official Youtube channel has published the following behind-the-scenes video from Brie Bella’s recent maternity photo shoot. Brie and her husband, former WWE World Heavyweight Champion Daniel Bryan, are expecting their first child in the spring. They’re expecting a girl named Birdie Joe Danielson.
– Speaking of The Bella Twins, Nikki Bella took part in a photo shoot in Pittsburgh while she was in town for Tuesday’s SmackDown. She shares some images on Twitter from the shoot:
– David Otunga and Mauro Ranallo were both absent from this week’s SmackDown broadcast, leaving announcing duties to the duo of JBL and Tom Phillips. Otunga had the night off to film a movie, and Ranallo had travel complications due to the storm in the Northeastern United States. Otunga is believed to have been filming for either Days Like This or Sandy Wexley, both upcoming comedy films.
– WWE released the above video after SmackDown went off the air showing Shane McMahon leaving the arena on his own two feet. He was attacked by AJ Styles earlier in the night, and then announced at the very end of SmackDown that he would be facing Styles at WrestleMania in April. McMahon was accompanied out of the arena by Fit Finlay and Jamie Noble.
– 2017 WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle was backstage at the PPG Paints Arena on Tuesday in his hometown of Pittsburgh, PA. Angle wasn’t booked to appear on SmackDown, and was reportedly just backstage at the arena to film material for a “fantasy warfare” feature WWE will be sharing on their social media pages.
WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels was recently interviewed by Sports Illustrated and spoke about his experience working with Kurt Angle. The two squared off at WrestleMania 21 in a ‘dream match’ that is still talked about to this day. Ahead of Angle’s WWE Hall of Fame Induction in less than two weeks, Michaels reveals Angle was the only opponent he ever faced that he felt he had to specifically train for.
“There was never even a possibility that someone could have more gas in the tank than me, but Kurt was different,” Michaels admitted. “I confessed to myself that Kurt was that guy, and I knew that match had to live up to extremely high standards, so I made sure I prepared extra. Kurt was the one guy I wondered if he could actually blow me up, so I had to work to make sure that didn’t happen.”
Michaels says he and Kurt Angle were on different brands at the time and their matches were usually ‘special attraction’ affairs, since they didn’t work long programs together. He says no matter what Kurt Angle did ‘in other places’ over the past decade, he’s a WWE guy and his best matches were on the WWE stage.
“I’m so amazed that he could go from this gold-winning Olympian and transition so flawlessly into our line of work. Nothing was out of the ballpark for him. He could wrestle, he could be silly, he could out-wrestle guys. Kurt adapted to the world of the WWE unlike anybody with his unbelievably legitimate credentials behind him.”
During Monday night’s “Bring It To The Table” event, WWE broadcaster Corey Graves presented a preview clip of his recent sit-down interview with Kurt Angle. Angle spoke about returning home to the WWE family and addressed his legacy. Angle says he still wants to be considered the greatest of all time and does not want people saying, “He could have been the greatest if he would have just stayed out of trouble.”
It was also revealed that Angle will be the subject of a new WWE 24 documentary special. It’s unknown at this point if the Kurt Angle WWE 24 will air before WrestleMania, or if they’ll wait until afterwards to include footage of his Hall of Fame induction.
Here is a clip from Kurt Angle’s first appearance on WWE television in 11 years including his reunion with Vince McMahon.
– WWE RAW General Manager Mick Foley posted a message on Facebook asking fans, “Assuming Mrs. Foley’s baby boy gets the boot sometime in 2017, who would you like to see in the GM role?”
A fan suggested 2017 WWE Hall of Fame inductee Kurt Angle, since he’s got a storied history with commissioner Stephanie McMahon. Foley replied, “Kurt would be a great choice.”
– 205 Live star Cedric Alexander will be out of action for 3-5 months due to a knee injury, according to Pro Wrestling Sheet.
– WWE.com is running a poll asking fans about their favorite Undertaker WrestleMania match. Each option description includes the event and the opponent, except one. Conspicuously absent from the list is Taker’s WrestleMania XXIX opponent, CM Punk.
Thought it was a joke, but it's true. WWE poll listing every Undertaker opponent at WM with one name noticeably absent, and it's not Snuka. pic.twitter.com/P4Ci1zKq1Z
Kurt Angle returns to the WWE Universe later this month as the headliner of this year’s WWE Hall of Fame class. Since the announcement of Angle’s induction, the Olympic Gold Medalist has been very outspoken about his desire to compete in a WWE ring once again. We don’t know if Angle has taken the WWE medical exams required for him to wrestle, but it’s looking increasingly likely that Angle will be returning to WWE television after the Hall of Fame.
Earlier this week, Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com reported that Angle is scheduled for WWE RAW from Orlando the night after WrestleMania. In an update to this story, Johnson now says that Angle will also be appearing at SmackDown Live the following night.
Angle hasn’t appeared live on WWE television since August 2006 when he was one of the top stars in WWE’s ECW reboot. Since leaving TNA last year, he’s been working the independent scene, competing against the likes of Cody Rhodes and Alberto El Patron in recent months. It’s worth noting that he does not have any independent bookings lined up after his WWE Hall of Fame induction.