WWE legend Kurt Angle reveals why he turned down Dana White's $500K offer to fight Kimbo Slice in the UFC

WWE legend Kurt Angle recently revealed that he had discussions with Dana White throughout his pro wrestling career and noted that he turned down a $500K offer to fight Kimbo Slice in the UFC.

While speaking to ESPN MMA journalist Marc Raimondi, the 1996 Olympic gold medal-winning wrestler opened up about offers he received throughout his WWE and TNA wrestling career to make a transition into MMA. Kurt Angle mentioned that despite declining past offers from the previous ownership, he met with White to discuss him possibly appearing on season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter, which was an all-heavyweight season with Rashad Evans and Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson serving as coaches.

He said:

"When I thought I was going to be done with wrestling, I went back to Dana, and Dana came back with an idea to be in (The Ultimate Fighter) with Kimbo Slice...'[He said] I'll give you a half-million to be on the show. And then I'll give you this contract a six-fight deal regardless whether you win it, The Ultimate Fighter, or not. You'll have a contract when it's over." [h/t Bloody Elbow]

Kurt Angle also brought up his well-documented history of neck injuries that occurred ahead of his 1996 Olympic gold medal win and throughout his pro wrestling career. He mentioned at that stage of his life, the injuries and his age resulted in him reconsidering a transition to MMA, saying:

"I thought about it. At that point in my life I was 41-years-old...I broke my neck five times. I sat back and I realized - I started training for it a little bit, and I realized, 'I'm past my prime, I can't do this.' So, I had to turn it down." [h/t Bloody Elbow]

It would have been interesting to see how Kurt Angle would have fared against Kimbo Slice had he accepted Dana White's offer to participate on TUF.

Check out the full interview:

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Kurt Angle has no regrets about turning down UFC opportunities

Despite turning down a number of offers throughout the years to join the UFC and compete in MMA, Kurt Angle doesn't regret his decision.

The 1996 Olympic gold medal-winning wrestler had a very successful career in both WWE and TNA that saw him headline events against the likes of The Rock, 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin, The Undertaker, and Sting. During the aforementioned interview, he mentioned that he has no regrets, saying:

"It makes you question 'did you do the right thing?', but I look back and I say 'you know what?' I had a pretty stellar career in pro-wrestling, so I can't regret that." [h/t Bloody Elbow]