A Whole New Angle

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Jul 27, 2001

Now this is more like it!

I have been saying since I started doing commentary that Kurt Angle is the man. I was happy to see him hold the WWF Championship. They did all the right things with that reign; five months is just enough for someone who rose so quickly, yet so deservingly.

He had the perfect stepping stone career: He began in college, became and All-American, went to the Olympics, won the ’95 winter gold and ’96 summer gold for freestyle. When he got to the WWF, he worked his way up quickly, yet steadily. First he won the European belt, then the Intercontinental belt, becoming the only superstar to hold both at the same time! Of course, we all know that he won the 2000 King of the Ring, and then had his taste of the true prize with the Heavy Weight Championship.

However, I always believed he could be a great babyface if he just grew up a bit; if he ditched the whining and used the gold medals and a legitimate accomplishment and not his only claim to fame (like he did early on July 28’s “Smackdown” while trash talking to Austin).

My cries must have been heard.

I know I heard them this past “Smackdown.” People went from booing him to screaming his name in praise. They couldn’t have chosen a better place to make his stand his ground then in his hometown of Pittsburgh. They arena really exploded in cheers for my Olympic hero.

And winning the WCW Championship was the perfect way to show the world that he is damned serious. It also eases him into a feud with Booker T, which not only keeps him occupied while The Rock feuds with Stone Cold, but also establishes Kurt Angle as a technical part of the WCW roster. This last part will work out when WCW premiers with Angle as part of the main event – originally that was to be Triple H’s spot, but we all know he won’t be back until at least November.

Angle needs the fan base that this is going to give him in order to pull in enough ratings to help boost WCW in their opening days (or months). He will never have the rating power that Triple H did, but at least he isn’t greeting new fans crying.