WWE Hall Of Famer Kurt Angle Discusses Issues With Final WWE Run

When a nearly 50-year-old Kurt Angle returned to the WWE in 2017, many fans understood that there probably weren't many matches left in the tank. Still, they were nonetheless excited about whatever remained. But Angle's final run seemed backward, starting with a Hall of Fame induction before ending with a farewell match at WWE WrestleMania 35 against an opponent many felt unworthy of the task. Fans' opinions of this period are not dissimilar from how Angle perceives it, and he got candid during an appearance on "Wrestling Life Online."

"When WWE brought me back after I spent 11 years in TNA, they had a different plan for me than I did," Angle said. "They wanted to induct me into the Hall of Fame first. And I was like, 'Vince, the Hall of Fame should be last, when I retire.' He said, 'Well, we want to induct you into the Hall of Fame and get a feel for you, make sure you're doing okay.'"

Angle — whose previous problems with painkillers have been well-documented — spent a year as "Raw" GM before wrestling sporadically in tag matches or matches cut short for TV time. It turns out the man once billed as a "Wrestling Machine" needed to run that machine more frequently to ensure its smooth operation.

"When you get away from it at the age I was... fans could tell that I was not the same wrestler," Angle said. "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." Angle wanted to work a retirement program with John Cena, but those duties were dealt to Baron Corbin, who ultimately defeated him at WrestleMania 35.