Kurt Angle Recalls Wrestling Hurt Before Royal Rumble 2003, Team Angle Being The Favorite Part Of His Career

On a recent episode of The Kurt Angle Show, Kurt Angle discussed the leadup to the 2003 Royal Rumble pay per view. Some highlights are below.

On if he told anyone he was hurting and maybe shouldn’t be wrestling: “Well, I injured my knee, not at this night when Brock Lesnar did it, it was for storyline purposes to show that I hurt my knee. So, I did it beforehand and I had to have knee injury so I was in a position where I was champion and I was going to go out with injury and they didn’t know what to do, but I told them listen it’s just a meniscus, it’s just a cartilage. I’m just gonna get it taken out and I’ll be ready in three. It usually, you know, takes about six to eight weeks, but I figured I could do it in three weeks. So, that’s what I promised Vince and I did it.”

On wrestling Chris Benoit: “You got to be ready when you wrestle Chris Benoit. I mean, he’s the most well-conditioned, most intense wrestler I’ve ever been in the ring with. You have to be on your A game, but Chris is great because he can work around anything so I knew with my knee injury we could actually still have a great match. Chris was never stiff or dangerous. The only stiff thing he did was the chops to your chest other than he was really good. He had a great perception and never stiffed you.”

On if Brock Lesnar was pumped for their WrestleMania match: “You know what it’s the first time we.. Well, we got in the ring a little bit here and there you know tag matches and stuff. But, this was our first singles match and both of us were looking forward to it. I saw how talented Brock was and how quickly he picked it up and he knew I was really talented so we were really looking forward, especially with our amateur wrestling backgrounds we really wanted to showcase that at WrestleMania.”

On Team Angle (Shelton Benjamin & Charlie Haas): “This was awesome. This is my favorite part of my career. I just felt that Team Angle didn’t last long enough. It had a lot to do with my injuries unfortunately, but I would have loved for Team Angle to go on for years.”

On Paul Heyman’s ability to make stars: “He does he has a way with words that really, really make a difference. Paul is the best promo guy I’ve ever heard.”

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