Kurt Angle on WWE retiring championship title after 23 years of its existence

The world title may be the most prestigious championship in WWE, but that shouldn't undermine the value of other secondary belts. During a recent podcast episode, Kurt Angle admitted that WWE made the wrong decision to retire its Intercontinental Championship in 2002, nearly 23 years after its introduction.

Triple H defeated Kane to unify the World Heavyweight and Intercontinental Championships at that year's No Mercy event. Kurt Angle felt there was no need to "deactivate" the workhorse title as it gave WWE's mid-card wrestlers something to pursue.

WWE officials eventually reactivated the Intercontinental Championship in 2003 and have thankfully not repeated their past mistakes, as it remains a coveted prize in the company.

Here's what the Olympic gold medalist had to say about the Intercontinental Championship's importance on The Kurt Angle Show:

"Wrong decision! You don't retire something that wrestlers use as a stepping stone to get to the main event," said Angle. "Like, what are the undercard and mid-card wrestlers going to wrestle for? If they are not in the main event, yeah, they are not going to be wrestling for the world title. They have to wrestle for something." [45:14 - 45:28]

Angle also mentioned the now-defunct European Championship during the show. He stated that the mid-card singles titles were a stepping stone for talents who wished to break into the main event scene.

The WWE Hall of Famer knew how necessary they were for a wrestler's development as he himself won the Intercontinental, European, and United States Championships before eventually becoming a world champion.

"That's why the European Championship, the Intercontinental Championship, and the US Championship, they are all stepping stones to making it to the main event level. It gives them something to work for while they are undercard/mid-card wrestlers. So, I completely disagreed with it; that was wrong." [45:29 - 45:46]

WWE's secondary titles are seemingly returning to prominence under Triple H's regime

One of the biggest complaints during Vince McMahon's reign was the lack of focus on the Intercontinental and United States Championships.

Triple H has seemingly changed the fan perception towards the belts, specifically regarding the United States Championship. Bobby Lashley's reign did wonders for the title before he dropped it to Seth Rollins, who has continued to increase its prestige on RAW.

Over on Smackdown, Gunther has elevated the Intercontinental Championship courtesy of his hard-hitting feud with Sheamus. The legendary Rey Mysterio also joined the championship picture in last week's episode, which is another reminder of Triple H's ambitious long-term goals for the company's secondary title belts.

Have you liked what Hunter has done thus far with the championships? Sound off in the comments section below.

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If you use any of the above quotes, please credit The Kurt Angle Show and H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription.