"He is above everybody" - WWE Hall of Famer says Chris Benoit was the best in-ring worker he ever faced
Kurt Angle spoke about his WrestleMania 17 match against Chris Benoit during the most recent episode of "The Kurt Angle Show" podcast on AdFreeShows.com.
The WWE Hall of Famer was asked where Benoit would rank amongst the most believable performers he faced in the ring.
Kurt Angle did not hesitate when he put Chris Benoit right at the top of his list. The Olympic gold medallist felt that Benoit was a very intense performer from an in-ring standpoint.
"Number one. Yes. He is above everybody. If you're talking about just in-ring, performing, as a technician, a wrestler, a performer, Chris Benoit is at the top. He is #1 on the chart, always will be. I never faced a guy that intense, that technically sound, and that explosive in my life. He is, without a doubt, the best in-ring performer I've ever been in the ring with."
Kurt Angle also discussed Chris Benoit's diving headbutt maneuver on the podcast. He explained why Benoit's diving headbutt wasn't dangerous from a concussion perspective.
"We'd try to blow each other up" - Kurt Angle on wrestling Chris Benoit
Kurt Angle explained that any performer would require a massive gas tank to wrestle Chris Benoit, as the latter always wrestled at a physically demanding pace.
Angle was known as the wrestling machine himself, and he even had an inside joke with Benoit about who would be the first one to get fatigued in their matches. Angle revealed that neither of them got really exhausted, and they usually ended up delivering highly technical and fast-paced bouts.
"No. There was no downside (of wrestling Benoit). You knew you were going to get really tired. He goes at 120 miles per hour the whole time. He is an intense individual—a lot like me. I felt like I was wrestling myself whenever I wrestled Chris Benoit. We'd up the ante too. We'd try to blow each other up, so it was an inside joke to see who gets tired first. But neither one of us would get tired."
Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle had several memorable singles matches throughout their careers. Angle and Benoit fought for 14 minutes at WrestleMania 17, and while it wasn't as great as their Royal Rumble 2003 classic, the match was still one of the best on the entire WrestleMania card.
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