Kurt Angle considers his TNA run better than the one with WWE

Kurt Angle, in his twenty-plus-year pro wrestling career, has worked all around the globe with different promotions. The most notable ones were, of course, WWE and TNA. The “Wrestling Machine” was draped in gold in both promotions, but one was more impactful than the other, according to Kurt Angle.

In a recent interview with Busted Open Radio, the Olympic gold medalist candidly talked about his run for both companies, but he put his TNA run ahead of his WWE one. “I consider my work in TNA better than my work in WWE as well. And the reason is I kind of came into my own,” said Kurt Angle. He further added that he only trained for 7 months before debuting in WWE (then WWF) and was on a learning curve in his first two years. By the time he hit his prime, he decided to move to TNA, where he became the best version of himself.

Angle continued to say, “I had some great matches with AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, Sting, Jeff Jarrett, Abyss, Bobby Roode; a lot of great talents that I got to work with that I was very honored to go up against them in TNA.” Kurt Angle had some of the all-time feuds during his time in TNA while leading the “Main Event Mafia” and held the top prize of the promotion 6 times. He also held the TNA tag titles on two separate occasions, one with Sting and the other with AJ Styles.

Following his exit from TNA in 2016, Angle spent some time in the independent scene before returning to WWE for one final run in 2017. Though he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, it did not turn out how he hoped for before eventually retiring in 2019. The 12-time world champion shed light on what convinced him about hanging up his boots.

Kurt Angle discusses what led to his retirement

Speaking of his second WWE run and eventual retirement, Kurt said, “When you get away from it at the age I was… fans could tell that I was not the same wrestler. I looked older, I wrestled like I was older, I felt like I was looking like an old man. And I didn’t like what I saw.”

When Kurt Angle returned to WWE, he was given the role of Monday Night RAW general manager. That led to his WrestleMania 34 match against Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, which also featured the debuting Ronda Rousey. His final WWE match was at WrestleMania 35, where he lost to Baron Corbin in an uninspiring fashion.

After years of fighting with his inner demons, Kurt Angle aged poorly. He even admitted how his second wife saved his life when his addiction problems took hold of him. Given the history of his serious issues, it was wise of Angle to prioritize his health over his passion for a healthier life.