Kurt Angle surprised AEW star never became WWE Champion, feels he deserved at least five world title reigns
The WWE World Title has eluded many exceptionally gifted performers over the years despite fans wanting them to carry the company's top prize. Kurt Angle feels Claudio Castagnoli (fka Cesaro) also belongs on the unfortunate list of talent. Angle recently said the AEW star should have become a world champion during his lengthy WWE stint.
Castagnoli spent 11 years in WWE until his contract expired in February 2022, when he chose to leave to join Tony Khan's AEW eventually. Cesaro was widely considered an underutilized talent in WWE as he never really got a sustained main-event push, even though he was one of the best wrestlers in the world.
While speaking on his podcast, Kurt Angle admitted that Cesaro deserved to become a WWE Champion and was surprised that the promotion never fully backed the Swiss superstar.
Angle claimed that Cesaro's resume should have had five WWE Championship reigns to his name before he eventually departed the company earlier this year.
"Oh my gosh, yeah (WWE missed the boat on Cesaro). He should have been a five-time world champion before he left WWE," said the WWE Hall of Famer. "Not once did they give him the world title! I'm really surprised because that kid could do it all in the ring." [12:58 - 13:08]
"He is pound-for-pound, the strongest wrestler I've ever seen" - Kurt Angle on AEW's Claudio Castagnoli
Cesaro's outrageous feats of strength were what made him a rabidly popular figure in WWE. Most wrestlers couldn't even replicate what the former Intercontinental Champion was capable of in the squared circle as he quickly gained an excellent reputation for being a technically-sound wrestler.
Kurt Angle, who himself was called 'The Wrestling Machine,' stated that the AEW star was the strongest wrestler he'd ever seen.
The Olympic gold medalist even spoke about Claudio's Delayed Gutwrench Suplex and why the move required a lot of effort to execute.
Angle added:
"He is, pound-for-pound, the strongest wrestler I've ever seen. The stuff he does in that ring is incredible. That suplex off the second rope, when the guy is on the ground, he is on the second rope. He arches in and pulls them up, and forces them up. That's incredible, man. When you do stuff like that, you're unbelievable." [13:09 - 13:30]
Should Cesaro have been a multi-time world champion in WWE before his exit? Sound off in the comments section below.
If you use any of the above quotes, please credit The Kurt Angle Show and H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription.