AEW star pays homage to Kurt Angle, shares rare photo from 25 years back

An AEW star just paid tribute to Kurt Angle. These two men have a long history together.

Christopher Daniels has been in the wrestling business for a very long time. He wrestled for almost every big wrestling promotion before settling down in AEW. Recently, Daniels competed in his final wrestling match against Hangman Adam Page on the 16th January episode of Collision.

Following his retirement, Christopher Daniels has shared photos and paid homage to various stars he faced throughout his career. Hence, he recently shared a picture of himself facing Angle in 2000. Daniels and Angle have a long history together due to their time in TNA where the two have faced each other on numerous occasions.

"Wrestling @RealKurtAngle UPW 9/13/2000. The first time one-on-one with the Olympic Hero. We got to do a lot more down the line in TNA, but this one was special! Kurt was one of a kind in that ring!"

Check out his tweet here:

---

Kurt Angle believes he would've won the Royal Rumble if he didn't leave the WWE

Kurt Angle first joined WWE in 1998. Within a few months, he became one of the top stars in the company and even won the WWE Championship. However, he surprised fans when he left the Stamford-based promotion in 2006 and joined TNA. Under the Total Nonstop Action banner, Angle had some of his best matches and moments.

After leaving TNA in 2016, he returned to WWE in 2017. However, The Olympic Hero's best years were behind him at this point. Angle retired at WrestleMania 35 after accomplishing everything in the company except winning the Royal Rumble.

Speaking to Great Offshore Sportsbooks, the Olympic gold medalist said that he would've won the Royal Rumble later on in his career but he never did as he left the promotion:

"I didn’t win the Royal Rumble. Now, I could have later on in my career, but I only went to WWE for (eight) years. And then I left and went somewhere else for 11. So if I would have stayed, I think I would have ended up winning the Royal Rumble. Because I believe they were going to give me the title multiple times. But because I left early due to my injuries and my painkiller problem, I left early and never found out if I would have gone on to win it," Angle said.

Despite being retired, Kurt Angle made a surprise appearance during the 2025 Royal Rumble as a member of the audience.