Kurt Angle Says The Rock’s Heel Turn Leading Into WrestleMania Was ‘Genius’

On a special stream of The Kurt Angle Show, the WWE Hall of famer talked about WWE WrestleMania XL, The Rock, and more. You can check out some highlights below:

On Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania: “Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see Dwayne. I would have if I would have went backstage, but I didn’t decide to go backstage. I just watched the show, but I really enjoyed that match. Especially the last match of WrestleMania. Roman Reigns and Cody Rhodes tore the house down. And I loved the little mix of John Cena and The Rock and Undertaker, especially The Rock and Undertaker. Because those guys are from the Attitude Era. It was really cool to see those guys at that point in time.”

On WWE pivoting its plans with The Rock: “I really enjoyed how they were able to intermingle The Rock with the storyline. And I thought The Rock was gonna come back and beat Roman Reigns and win the world title. I mean, it was like, ‘Okay,’ you know, you almost could read it. I didn’t know if they kind of changed things or — you know, because they were listening to the fans or whatever. But Rock turning heel was genius. They decide to do that without the fans’ — I guess the fans’ approval. Not approval, but yeah, there’s support there. It’s just incredible that they were able to get Rock to turn heel. I mean, he was really good too, man. It reminds me of when he first started, and the heel he was back then.”

On his biggest takeaway from this year’s WWE Hall of Fame: “What really touched me, is Muhammad Ali’s wife. Man, I met her, fabulous woman. I mean, Muhammad Ali was one of the biggest sports heroes of my life. I love the guy. I loved the showman he was, I loved the way he was an athlete. He was just incredible, and what he’s been able to do for African Americans and you know, being a leader in that community is just incredible. I have the utmost respect. Muhammad Ali actually lit the torch at the Olympics, my Olympics. He was the one guy that I really looked up to in Rocky from the movie Rocky. Those are my two best athletes, even though one isn’t a real athlete.”

On Paul Heyman’s Hall of Fame induction: “Paul was my favorite to work with. He came up with so many incredible storylines, and the way he was able to carry himself, and how he was always prepared whether it’s written already or if he has to improvise. The guy’s amazing. I mean, he comes up with the best stuff. And what he’s been able to do with Roman Reigns this past few years is nothing short of incredible. I mean, he kept that storyline very intriguing. You know, I thought it was gonna get kind of boring and run out. And you know, it was gonna be like, ‘Okay, let’s move on to something else.’ But he really did a great job of keeping that storyline going. It was incredible.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit The Kurt Angle Show with an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.