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“We went to Vince and Vince said ‘No”- WWE Hall of Famer reveals why he and The Undertaker never had a match at WrestleMania

Rishabh Singh
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The Undertaker

The Olympic Gold medalist Kurt Angle reveals how the original plan for him to face The Undertaker at WrestleMania 22 was nixed.

The matches between Kurt Angle and The Undertaker have always been fast-paced. The duo has had multiple rivalries and feuds in the past all the way from the early 2000s. The two legends have been on top of each other every time they squared off in the ring. Despite having riveting matches together, the two legends of the industry never faced each other at the grandest stage of them all, WrestleMania. 

In 2006, the wrestling machine Kurt Angle was set to defend his World title against the Undertaker at the PPV event “No Way Out”. The two competitors left nothing to be desired delivering one of the most classic matches on WWE TV. To this day, that match is remembered as the best work of the duo together. On an edition of the podcast “The Kurt Angle Show”, The Olympic Hero explained how The Deadman wanted to face him on WrestleMania 22. 

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The Undertaker was the one who came up with the idea and Kurt agreed. However, when the idea was pitched to Vince, he turned it down simply because he didn’t want Taker’s streak to end. While Kurt was okay with losing to Taker at WrestleMania allowing for the streak to continue, Vince did not want Taker to be Champion at the time. Instead of having the match at WrestleMania, Vince booked it for No Way Out. 

 

“It was a big deal to us, both Undertaker and myself,” Angle said. “Having ‘Taker come in at No Way Out and you wrestle him in the main event, usually it’s a downer pay-per-view, but it was an upper. Taker actually wanted to face me at WrestleMania [22], he told me this back in December before I had the match at Royal Rumble. I said that’d be fantastic, he said we’re going to have to go to Vince [McMahon] and ask him. We went to Vince and Vince said ‘No, I’m not ending Taker’s undefeated streak.’ He didn’t tell me why I would have to end his undefeated streak, but the reason was because I was going to win the World title and go to WrestleMania and wrestle somebody holding the world title. I think Vince McMahon felt I was going to hold the World title after WrestleMania, which I didn’t. It was really awesome to have him at No Way Out and the reason Vince booked it is because we wanted the match at WrestleMania so Vince said no but we’ll make it at No Way Out.”

 

During the closing moments of the match, Taker was the aggressor who had Angle locked in a triangle choke. Angle then rolled over and pressed Taker’s shoulders on the mat and picked up the win via pinfall. The match concluded and Angle retained the title that night but the furious Phenom shoved Angle to the corner of the ring and said, “I am not done with you, I got your number”. 

Kurt Angle believes that Vince likely regretted not making it a “WrestleMania” match

Every moment in the 30-minute-long match between Angle and Taker had the fans hooked. The two Hall of Famers displayed wrestling at its best. The contest was WrestleMania worthy. Fans witnessed a glimpse of history, emotions, and physicality. In his podcast, the Olympic Gold Medalist professed that their work that night was the match of the year 2006. Kurt further said that Vince McMahon in hindsight would’ve regretted not having the match at the grandest stage of them all. 

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“If you don’t think Vince was thinking that, you’re high,” Angle said. “Of course he’s going to say ‘Damn, that was my main event of WrestleMania.’ Because I legitimately thought that was the match of the year in 2006, I took pride in that match”.

Fast forward to WrestleMania 22, Angle put his World Title on the line against Randy Orton and Rey Mysterio in a triple threat match which he ended up losing and The Undertaker defeated Mark Henry in a casket match turning 14-0. 

About the author

Rishabh Singh

Rishabh Singh

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Rishabh has been a pro wrestling aficionado for two decades. As a gullible seven-year-old kid he believed that his dad could only be defeated by The Undertaker. His love for pro wrestling is visible in his writing. Over the years, he took inspiration from his favorite wrestling icons and adopted fitness lifestyle. He is a big proponent of exercise. Besides that, he is a movement coach, a Steelmaceflow artist, and a Krav Maga instructor.

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