Published 17:27 IST, September 10th 2020
Rusev reveals reason WWE rejected his Kurt Angle pitch: 'We don't want to see him die'
Former WWE star Rusev recently thanked Kurt Angle for praising him and revealed that he had also pitched an idea about a match with The Hall of Famer.
Earlier this week, Kurt Angle’s wife Giovanna revealed that her husband wanted to face Miro FKA Rusev in the WWE ring. The Bulgarian Brute shared a video on his YouTube page where he can be seen reacting to Giovanna’s comment. Rusev first thanked the WWE Hall of Famer and revealed that he had also pitched an idea about a match with Kurt Angle but WWE officials shot it down in a very morbid manner. Kurt Angle claimed that during a meeting with some high-ranking WWE officials, he asked them to bring Kurt Angle back so he could face him at WrestleMania 31.
WWE officials rejected Rusev's pitch
At the time, Rusev was in his “Russian” persona and used to feud with superstars like Big Show, Mark Henry and others. He started that since Kurt Angle's persona was a true American, a match between him and Kurt Angle made sense. However, the officials wasted no time in scrapping the idea, claiming that they didn't want Kurt Ange to return and die in the ring. “They told me no. This is verbatim for the person who told me. He said, "We don't wanna feel responsible if he comes back and dies," Rusev said.
Rusev later started a feud with John Cena and the two ended up facing each other at WrestleMania 31, which Rusev lost. Kurt Angle, on the other hand, made his WWE return in 2017 but was never able to face Rusev. Kurt Angle delivered some memorable matches as a wrestler but soon moved to a backstage role after announcing his in-ring retirement in 2019. Rusev then went on to work with Undertaker, Bobby Lashley, and others, but soon stopped appearing on WWE TV. On April 15, 2020, WWE released Rusev, Kurt Angle and host of other staff members as part of the budget cuts stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Despite getting released, Kurt Angle appeared in a couple of WWE episodes but refused to re-sign with the company. In an interview with Comicbook, Kurt Angle revealed that he refused the offers to focus on his health and his nutrition business. “I just have so much going with my business, Physically Fit Nutrition, and I need to make sure it succeeds before I do anything else,” said Kurt Angle. Rusev, on the other hand, opened a Twitch channel after getting released, but soon joined Tony Khan’s AEW.
Image Source: WWE.com
Updated 17:27 IST, September 10th 2020