It’s not a far stretch to think Kurt Angle would have excelled in the UFC octagon, and it actually almost happened for the WWE Hall Of Famer on three different occasions.
Speaking with ESPN ahead of his upcoming “Angle” documentary on Peacock, Kurt Angle revealed that he was offered his first deal from Dana White to join UFC after his success winning Olympic gold with a broken freakin’ neck. The offer was for $150,000, but that was over the course of 15 fights and Angle wasn’t about putting his body through that type of punishment, especially for $15,000 per fight.
“So, I decided to go to WWE and when I got there, I had so much success early on. And then UFC started becoming mainstream in the early 2000s, and this is when I was having a stellar career in WWE, winning world championships, beating The Rock for the world championship, beating ‘Stone Cold’ [Steve Austin] for the world championship. And I thought, ‘Man, I would love to fight, but I already had this great career going on right now.'”
The next offer came for Kurt in 2006, but Angle declined that one as well because he just joined TNA. Angle said that White didn’t want him to wrestle at the same time and Angle didn’t want do go back on his deal with the promotion.
Kurt Angle recently said that he is glad that he failed the UFC medical.
Kurt Angle recently jested that he could have a couple more WWE matches.
Dana White Offered Kurt Angle A Massive Deal In 2009
Kurt Angle must have been the apple of Dana White’s eye as the UFC owner made one more attempt at bagging him in 2009. This time the deal was for $500,000 and it was to be on “The Ultimate Fighter.” Angle began a workout regimen for it, but came to the realization he was past the point of fighting in mixed martial arts.
Although Angle never did compete in the octagon, he did play one on the silver screen in the Tom Hardy film “Warrior.” Additionally, if you ever need a barometer on how Angle may have done in his prime in the UFC, Brock Lesnar was a legit Heavyweight Champion, someone Angle reportedly bested as they once shoot wrestled in a WWE ring. White recently addressed speculation that Lesnar could return to UFC.
Kurt Angle recently revealed clauses in the WWE and UFC contracts that forbid talent from crossing over the two companies.