"He knew I would embarrass him" - Kurt Angle jokes about top WWE star not wanting to face him in a wrestling match
WWE legend Kurt Angle recently disclosed why AJ Styles wouldn't have wanted to face him in an amateur wrestling match off camera.
AJ Styles has had a long and storied career, which began over two decades ago. Prior to becoming a pro wrestler, Styles tried his hand at amateur wrestling and became a two-time state champion. He is currently embroiled in a heated feud with Edge and Damian Priest on RAW.
While speaking about Styles on The Kurt Angle Show, Angle talked about their match where Styles wore the former's Olympic gold medal after winning the match. The Hall of Famer stated that Styles was a good amateur wrestler in high school but eventually turned his interest toward pro wrestling.
"AJ (Styles) was actually a state champion wrestler in high school, he's actually pretty good. He never wrestled in college but he should have. But he decided to start his pro wrestling career. AJ was actually a pretty decent wrestler, especially in high school. (From 13:40 to 13:55)
Angle also spoke about the idea of having an amateur wrestling match with The Phenomenal One.
"No (about challenging AJ Styles for a wrestling match off-camera). You know why? 'Cause he wouldn't do it. He would never do it. He knew I would embarrass him... He never wanted to and I don't blame him," said Styles. (From 14:15 to 14:28)
This may be the CRAZIEST spot I've ever been a part of. AJ Styles. Wow!!! #KurtAngleWeek #ThankYouKurt https://t.co/J70HcE684p”
Styles won the match mentioned above in IMPACT after using a guitar and a baseball bat in what was an Olympic-style bout.
Kurt Angle did have an amateur wrestling match with a WWE legend
Kurt Angle ties up Brock Lesnar during their WWE Championship bout main event at WrestleMania XIX https://t.co/0N6Qqfs5qh
Angle did have an off-camera amateur wrestling match with another former WWE Champion, Brock Lesnar. Despite being a lot smaller than The Beast Incarnate, the match ended in the Olympian's favour.
"There was only one takedown. We wrestled for about 10 minutes. There was a couple of times I almost took him down that he fell into the ropes. I did take him down and that was it," said Angle.
Lesnar, like Angle, has an illustrious amateur wrestling background, having been an NCAA Division I national champion before his foray into pro wrestling.
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