Kurt Angle On His WWE SummerSlam 2002 Match With Rey Mysterio, Why They Embraced Being Opening Match

On a recent edition of The Kurt Angle Show, Kurt Angle discussed having matches with Rey Mysterio on the house show circuit before their SummerSlam 2002 match, embracing being the opening match on the card, and much more. You can read his comments below.

Kurt Angle on having matches with Rey Mysterio on the house show circuit before their SummerSlam 2002 match: “I had to feel Rey out. Like I said before, I had never wrestled Lucha style. When you wrestle somebody at a pay-per-view, you want to make sure you have good chemistry with them. So, you had usually one or two or three practice at the house shows before the pay-per-view just to show that you guys have chemistry. You’re not gonna do the exact same thing at the pay-per-view, but there are some things you will do that carry on to the pay-per-view. I knew Rey and I would have an incredible match.”

On their SummerSlam match and embracing being the opening match on the card: “I knew we would get the crowd into it. Rey is such a talented individual. At least I knew I could work with him because of the night before, and we were ready to put this match on. It was gonna be a high-paced match with a lot of action. That’s what we did, we tried to do that so we could get the fans into the pay-per-view because when you wrestle first, that’s the second most important match of the night behind the main event. You have to get the crowd ready to go, and that’s what we did.”

On whether there was talk of Rey defeating him in the match: “No, there wasn’t. I think this is part of the reason why. When they introduced talent from WCW, Vince wants you to know, ‘Hey, you’re coming into my company. You’re not gonna get over until I tell you to.’ Eddie Guerrero and Chris Benoit, they came in larger than life and main evented for the first couple of weeks. Then, they got pulled down to the opening card status and had to work their way back up. Same with Rey Mysterio. I knew that me beating Rey, part of the reason was because he came from WCW. Vince has that way about him that if you’re not a WWE guy, he’s gonna make sure you understand ‘no’ and that he’s gonna push you when he wants to push you.” 

If using any of the above quotes, please credit The Kurt Angle Show with an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.