Jim Ross Says Fans Should Stop Asking Kurt Angle About One More WWE Match
Former WWE play-by-play announcer Jim Ross is happy that Kurt Angle is scheduled to headline this year’s WWE Hall of Fame ceremony in Orlando, Florida, and he’s also happy that our Olympic Hero is coming back to the place that made him one of the biggest names in professional wrestling. But, he’s not happy that fans are continuing to ask if the 48-year-old will have one more match.
On the most recent edition of the Ross Report podcast, which is hosted by none other than good ‘ole JR himself, Ross explained why fans should stop asking about Kurt Angle’s future in the ring.
“I hope that the fans will celebrate the announcement that Kurt’s going into the WWE Hall of Fame – I can’t see [WWE] inducting anyone bigger this year. Maybe we’ll be surprised. We should focus on that, and not on the endless questioning: is Kurt gonna wrestle at WrestleMania? And if so, who’s he gonna wrestle? And if so, is he gonna win or lose? Come on. Stop. Kurt Angle, 2017 WWE Hall of Famer sounds good to me, and that’s what I wanna focus on.”
Even though he left TNA roughly a year ago, Angle is still an semi-active wrestler. In fact, he has a match coming up with former United States Champion Alberto Del Rio. The match of course isn’t going to happen under the WWE banner, as Del Rio is no longer a contracted WWE superstar. It quite clear though that Angle can still go, which is why fans are wanting to see him have one more match.
Furthermore, Angle hasn’t wrestled a match for WWE since 2006, as he left for TNA a little over a decade ago. He actually spent the majority of his professional wrestling career in TNA, which is a little hard to believe. So fans want to see Angle have another match in a WWE ring just because it’s been so long, and because he is still physically capable of doing at least one match, if not more.
One of the biggest reasons for Angle’s abrupt exit from WWE in 2006 was his health. He suffered his fair share on injuries, including several neck injuries, during his run in Vince McMahon’s organization. He also suffered some injuries during his time in TNA, but he was able to work through them.
According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, an Angle in-ring comeback for WWE depends on whether or not he can pass a physical exam, which every new signee has to pass in order to get cleared for in-ring competition. So if Angle isn’t able to pass a physical, he won’t be allowed to have one more match, no matter how badly the fans want to see it.
Last week, Cageside Seats reported that WWE is at least toying with the idea of having Angle be a surprise entrant in the Royal Rumble match, which may be a hint that he already passed his physical. So we may not have to wait until the spring to see Angle return to WWE.
No matter what ends up happening with Angle’s in-ring future, people will continue to ask about one more match, even if he can’t pass WWE’s physical. So, wrestling fans probably won’t be taking Jim Ross’ advice until they see our Olympic Hero step into a WWE ring once again.
As for who Angle could wrestle if he returns, well, there are a few names that come to mind. In previous interviews, he’s named guys like Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns, Kevin Owens, and Finn Balor as dream opponents. So, don’t be surprised if he ends up in the ring with one of those men if he returns to action.
[Featured Image by WWE]
