Kurt Angle Would Only Return to the Ring if Vince McMahon Asked

– Kurt Angle spoke with Wrestling Inc for a new interview discussing his retirement, what would bring him back to the ring and more. Angle worked his farewell match against Baron Corbin at WrestleMania 35, putting Corbin over. Speaking with the site, Angle said that he doesn’t expect to return to the ring and would do so if Vince McMahon asked, but doesn’t think that will happen. Highlights are below:

On staying active behind the scenes with WWE: “No, it’s not a retirement. I don’t think I’ll ever retire where I’m just sitting down and not doing anything. I’ve got to do something constructive and right now I’m producing for WWE, doing movies and I also have a supplement business called Barndad Nutrition.”

On if he ever expects to return to the ring: “No, but it seems like they always come back. I’ve seen Shawn Michaels come back; Ric Flair come back. I don’t plan on coming back but if Vince McMahon needs me, I would do it in a second. Do I think he’ll call on me? Probably not. I think Vince is more proud of me not as a wrestler, but someone who overcame his demons and stayed straight for this long. He doesn’t want to be the one who ends up having me relapse because he wanted to use me for a match and I got hurt and I ended up taking painkillers. I think Vince looks at me as a success story, but also a liability.”

On his painkiller addiction that led to his WWE departure in 2006: “I was out of control and Vince couldn’t control me. I just got tired of everything and told Vince I wanna leave. He didn’t want to let me go and wanted me to go to rehab and stay with the company. But I said, ‘No, I’m gone Vince. I don’t wanna be here.’ I went to TNA and the painkillers didn’t get any better. When I finally got clean, it took Vince three years to even look my way.”

On coming back to WWE in a non-wrestling role first: “You understand what he did? He brought me back and had me settled in without doing anything physical. He continued to drug test me to make sure I was staying clean. Eventually he had me wrestle, but by then my body was arthritic.”