Kurt Angle v. Shane McMahon
Street Fight
WWF King of the Ring 2001
June 24, 2001
June 24, 2001
"Have you ever seen an athlete quite like Kurt Angle?"
-Paul Heyman
In 1996, Kurt Angle was already recognized as one of the best amateur wrestlers in the world. He had won a gold medal at the 1995 World Championships. However, despite an amateur career that also included a Pennsylvania State Wrestling Championship as a senior in high school, two NCAA Division I Championships and four national championships, he was just another face in the crowd to most Americans. That all changed at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.
Kurt Angle's gold medal victory at the 1996 Olympics may not have turned him into an international celebrity, but his credentials were more than enough to draw interest from those in the world of professional wrestling. The World Wrestling Federation quickly came calling. Angle declined their contract offer.
A couple months later, someone else reached out to Kurt Angle. Shane Douglas was also a Pittsburgh native. He invited Angle to an Extreme Championship Wrestling show. It included one of the most controversial moments in professional wrestling history.
As the story goes, Kurt Angle was so offended by what he saw in Philadelphia that he immediately left the ECW Arena, and threatened to sue the company if it ever used footage of him appearing at the event.
It certainly sounded like Kurt Angle was done with professional wrestling. Over the year that followed, Pittsburgh watched as he tried his hand at television, sportscasting and endorsing a local pizza chain. The results weren't great. Like so many athletes who find fame at the Olympic Games, it appeared Angle had exhausted every option for cashing in on his gold medal moment. That's when he decided to give professional wrestling one more shot.
Kurt Angle signed with the World Wrestling Federation in 1998. He appeared on WWF television for the first time in March 1999. His first televised match came at the 1999 Survivor Series. With his in-ring debut came something unexpected. Kurt Angle, hero of the 1996 Summer Olympics, had a talent for making fans hate him. No one was more surprised by his charisma and skills on the microphone than those who watched him struggle behind an anchor desk in Pittsburgh.
By the summer of 2001, just three years after he signed on with the World Wrestling Federation, Kurt Angle was well on his way toward being the best professional wrestler on the planet. Angle was already a former King of the Ring, and attempting to be the first to win back-to-back tournaments. He was a former WWF Champion, Intercontinental Champion and European Champion. His character development was perhaps even more impressive. A memorable love triangle story line involving Stephanie McMahon and Triple H took the WWF by storm in the summer of 2000.
After winning a Two Out Of Three Falls Match over Chris Benoit at Judgement Day 2001, Kurt Angle was ready for new challenges. The first came the very next night on Monday Night Raw. Angle was interrupted by Shane McMahon, the owner of WCW, who hadn't been seen on WWF television in nearly a month.
Kurt Angle and Shane McMahon were put on course toward a Street Fight at King of the Ring 2001. The pay per view was a coming out party for Angle. He dominated the night, wrestling three matches. He opened the event against Christian. In a clever twist, Shane McMahon interfered on Angle's behalf, helping him win and ensuring that Angle would have to endure another match before they squared off later that night. In the King of the Ring tournament finals, Shane interfered once again. This time he helped cost Angle the match, allowing Edge to claim the crown.
With the additional animosity now added to the mix, Kurt Angle and Shane McMahon returned to the ring one last time. What unfolded was more than almost anyone in attendance or watching at home could have imagined.
For me, there are three essential Shane McMahon matches: The "Love Her Or Leave Her" Match vs. Test at SummerSlam 1999, the Street Fight vs. his father, Vince McMahon, at WrestleMania X-7 and this classic testament to Shane's toughness and raw athleticism. It is a spectacle is every sense of the word.
Shane McMahon has since moved on from the family business, leaving World Wrestling Entertainment in January 2010. Fans still miss him. Perhaps it's because he seemed to represent what could happen to one of us if we ever found ourselves inside the ring. What he lacked in experience, he made up for with guts. Shane McMahon shared a connection with fans that no other member of his famous family could approach.
Where Shane McMahon is lacking when it comes to the professional wrestling skills, Kurt Angle is seemingly blessed with an embarrassment of riches. He went on from this match to play one of the biggest roles in The Invasion story line. In fact, Angle may have benefited more from it than anyone else in the WWF.
Kurt Angle's ascent to main event status in was built upon one simple concept - credibility. The reputation he earned as a legitimately tough, Olympic gold medal winning, amateur wrestler remains with him every time he steps into the ring. It was impossible for him to be bogged down when he was labeled as goofy, nerdy or naive at various points during his WWF career because his credibility reigned over everything.
King of the Ring 2001 was a launching pad for Kurt Angle, and a high point in the in-ring career of Shane McMahon, but the incredible performance they put on did not come without a physical price. One they were both willing to pay, and one that bonded them for life.
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