This day in wrestling history is loaded with first times, and few are as awesome as Kurt Angle defeated the Rock for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at No Mercy on October 22, 2000.
When Kurt Angle came to the WWE, he was a celebrated gold medalist for the 1996 Olympics and we had no clue the amazing ride we were about to be taken on.
From the start, Angle’s real strength was his charisma as he could make us love or hate him at the drop of a hat, and he used that to such an excruciating extent many fans outright hated him for it.
But love/hate relationships with fans are what it’s all about as we love cheering and booing them, and they love to hear it.
It’s politics as usual
But there have been plenty of stories about the politics backstage and the people that were mainly involved in them.
Special thanks to @awrestlinghistorian for all quotes used in this article.
One person in particular was against Angle winning the championship, and Scott Steiner talked about it in an interview with the Baltimore Sun on May 27, 2008. In the interview, he said:
“Triple H was trying to block Kurt Angle from winning the world title. He said in a meeting, ‘I think Kurt Angle’s too small.’ And Gerald Brisco stood up and said, ‘Well, what do you think would happen if you guys fought for real?’ And he sat down, shut his mouth, and they ran with it.”
As with anything, it’s important to take it with a grain of salt as it’s one person’s perspective. But with that being said, it’s ironic and funny how Triple H and the Kliq allegedly said this when the Rock was the champion and Bret Hart sided with the Rock.
Winning it again
With that done, all that was left was the match, and it was a memorable one as Angle defeated the Rock to win a different kind of gold.
“By the time I won the World Wrestling Federation title at No Mercy in October 2000…I was hated by fans everywhere. I knew it pained people to see me beat The Rock, The People’s Champ, and as they booed me that night in Albany, New York; I egged them on by spoofing my Olympic victory, falling to my knees and crying my eyes out just as I had in ’96 in Atlanta.
“I knew it would make the fans crazy. I had been planning it for five days after Rocky gave me the news I was going to win the belt, but you know I was actually crying for real because I was so happy. I just made it look more emotional than it was. I was holding the championship to my chest and looking to the sky in thanks. And the fans were screaming at me.
“It’s kind of funny how different the reactions were to my show of emotion. When I cried in Atlanta, the country cried with me, but that’s the difference between sports and sports entertainment. Here, it’s all about making your character work. My job is to make the fans boo me so I said to myself ‘Okay, people, the stuff you loved me for once, now I’m going to do it again just to piss you off a little more.’ but even with all the booing, winning the title gave me a feeling that was very much the same as winning the gold medal. I was ecstatic. I felt like I was on top of the world.” – Kurt Angle, It’s True It’s True book.
This day in wrestling history is another chapter in what has been an amazing hall of fame career for Angle, and it was a ride we’re glad to have witnessed from the start.
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