Kurt Angle says his time in TNA potentially hurt his reputation with WWE higher-ups.
WWE Hall of Famer Kurt Angle enjoyed tremendous success in the company. His tenure will forever be remembered by the matches he had and the personality he showed on television. But while Angle may be considered one of the greatest in the minds of WWE fans, the Olympic gold medallist believes his time in TNA potentially held him back.
Speaking to Steve Fall on NBC Sports Boston, Angle explained how even though his work in WWE is respected by many, he doesn’t get the same praise as The Rock or Stone Cold Steve Austin. Angle credits this to him spending more time in TNA than in WWE:
“No, I don’t, but there’s a reason for that. You know I left the company high and dry in 2006 and didn’t come back for eleven years. You know when you leave a company like that and you know they wanted me to stay. It was, you know, you’re going to pay the price eventually. So I was in TNA longer than I was in WWE, so that has a bearing on this as well. So I feel even though I’m a WWE product, that’s where I started and that’s where I ended. I think WWE looks at me as a TNA product and that’s the reason why.”
Angle departed from WWE in 2006. In the DVD documentary Kurt Angle: Champion, Angle stated that he requested his release because he wanted to take time off, but the company wouldn’t allow him to do so. Angle also revealed that he was working hurt during that time. He eventually signed with TNA and made his debut on October 19 that year.
H/t – Sportskeeda