This day in Pro Wrestling history - 13th April: Angle vs Joe
The April 13 edition of ‘This day...’ looks back at those days when TNA was still fun. The highest earner in the WWE for the past year, Kurt Angle would join TNA in 2006 for want of a lighter schedule and this created the opportunity for the promotion to pit him against Samoa Joe.
Joe would see his long unbeaten streak ended by Angle before proceeding to force the former WWE Champion to submit. Their matches put TNA on the map again after the initial buzz of the X-Division had died down.
On April 13, 2008, Angle and Joe fought over the TNA World title.
Also on this date, Taz and Terry Funk created ECW history.
#1 Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle – Lockdown, 13th April 2008
Samoa Joe had been TNA Wrestling’s version of Goldberg. TNA Creative built Joe up with an eighteen-month unbeaten streak which was broken after a match for the ages against Kurt Angle in 2006.
Angle and Joe would exchange victories in their feud, with Angle winning their deciding match on Ironman rules 3-2 while being saved from tapping out by the clock timing out.
Joe and Angle would rekindle their rivalry in 2008 and they would clash for Angle’s TNA World Championship at the 13th April Lockdown PPV. Joe would pick up the victory and the title after another critically favoured match.
While Joe vs Angle really put TNA on the map, the booking failed to capitalise on Joe’s ascent. Joe would have a lengthy title reign of six months, successfully defending his title against the likes of Angle, Scott Steiner, Frankie Kazarian and Booker T, before losing it to Sting.
Surprisingly, the TNA original would never be chosen as the World Champion again.