What ensued was a balls-to-the-wall match with great psychology and a clever-as-hell finish.Īngle was the machine, a relentless force between the ropes who could punish opponents by picking them apart before inevitably tapping them out. Two of the best in the world battled for the top prize in professional wrestling, on the industry's grandest stage at WrestleMania XX when Angle challenged Eddie Guerrero for the WWE Championship. That is a major compliment and a testament to just how great Angle was just three years into his own career. He was the best in the business between the ropes and his employers recognized it, tasking him with helping establish one of the men who would stand atop the WWE mountain in the years to come. In the wake of the contest, no one remembered Edge lost, only that he and Angle had a hell of a contest that instantly elevated the young star.įor Angle, it was proof of his own star and how valuable it could be in helping bring along fresh new talent. The 13:25 barn burner saw Edge hang with a superior wrestler and nearly upset him, coming within seconds of defeating Angle on multiple occasions, only to have his opponent catch him mid-Spear with an Olympic Slam for the win from out of nowhere. The raw talent was there and he had the personality to succeed at the top of the card, but he needed that one match to really define him early on. There is a real argument to be made that every bit of Edge's success, including the world titles and 2012 Hall of Fame induction, would not have been possible without Kurt Angle.Īt Backlash 2002, the Olympian battled the future Rated-R Superstar in a match that did more to elevate Edge in one night than anything WWE had attempted before.Īngle was an established star and clearly the best wrestler in the world, while his rival was still trying to find himself as a performer.

So routinely characterized as a technical wrestler because of his unparalleled mat work, it was also further proof that when he wanted to, Angle was a badass brawler, too. It would not be the last time we saw the two do battle in a Dixie Carter-owned ring, but it was their best match by far and a reminder of just how well Angle could adapt his style to match his opponent. Placed in an unenviable position in which they had to set real-life animosity aside in the name of producing the best match possible, they more than delivered in a chaotic brawl that ended with the Olympian outwrestling his opponent with a crucifix pin. What they didn't know is that both men would deliver a physical and dramatic battle that would rank among the best of their careers.

With the personal lives of each competitor spilling onto TV in the weeks leading into the match, fans knew to expect an emotionally intense contest. Rarely does a match get more real and raw than the showdown between Angle and Jeff Jarrett at TNA Wrestling's Genesis 2009.

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