An Open Letter to Kurt Angle

Kurt:

Call me presumptuous, but know that it is based on being a fan of professional wrestling for several decades, and a student of the sport, and a man who has gained the confidence of some impressive names in the industry.

When I watch you wrestle, or read about your exploits, or see your name in the headlines, I am very happy that you are still working at your craft, still giving it a tremendous amount of effort, and still show a passion for the sport of professional wrestling that few wrestlers bother to exhibit these days.

But with that admiration comes concern.

The concern is not just for your health, which of course should be foremost on the minds of your fans and your family and yourself.

The concern is for the very passion that drives you to greatness.

Because that passion is leading you down roads that do not look healthy. And not just because of your future health. Professional wrestling over the years has exhibited a track record of “life imitating art” and professional wrestling over the years has devastated lives, families and careers.

I have to believe that your ultimate goal, and the purpose to why you persist at the craft, is to achieve some level of greatness.

Greatness is hard to measure, but any measure of your career puts you in lofty company. However, your longevity is not an ally to your career. Longevity, with an eye towards achieving some intangible worth, is not supportable by the efforts that you undertake, by the storylines that you attempt to breathe life into, nor the style in which you display your talents.

Mr. Angle, there’s one thing I would shout at you this day, and that shout would be this: TNA is not doing you any favors.

There are three facets of my argument. Three intertwined concepts, and three points constructed by my perceptions of the business and my understanding of what it is to be great in the sport. Because, in the end, your achievement is going to be based on several things, and among them are longevity, perception and appreciation.

The three points tie into these aspects.

First of all, your style is far too reckless for your own good. I simply won’t argue with you about your health, the admitted (and admitted cessation) of pain pills, and any other underlying health concerns.

Kurt, when you look at the careers of the great ones, one thing comes to mind: they knew when to shift gears, and they knew how to incorporate their knowledge of the game, their understanding of crowd reactions, and the inherent ring psychology, all honed by experience, to raise the level of their entertainment value, all the while toning down their exposure to risk.

When the great Bruno Sammartino broke his neck in the ring, he pushed himself, much like a Kurt Angle, to return to the ring -- too quickly, against doctor’s orders, and against the wishes of his family.

But once he returned, he changed up the pacing of his matches, and yet never diminished his rapport with the crowds. Bruno showed wrestlers how to do it, and he worked matches with no less passion, just a lot less exposure to risk. Bruno also paved the way, showing that a champion could enjoy his family life and his wrestling career.

There comes a time when the fans are forgiving. Injuries are not.

TNA is your best choice for a relaxed schedule, I’ll readily admit that from my observations of the industry. Just take advantage of the schedule, and stop pushing your body. Start pushing your mind and your learned talents.

The second point is thus: stop with the comedy.

If you want to be a heel, then be a heel. If you want to be a mid-carder who relies on his past, and wants to wrestle for another two decades, then keep up with the comedy. It will promote your career.

But it will not make you great.

Now, some may say, Joe, you’re telling Kurt to stop being funny, but also to start toning down the wrestling. That doesn’t make sense.

It does make sense, and I’ll explain. When a passionate guy gets trapped doing foolish things, and feels that he must make up the foolishness with acts of sheer bravery (what should be called insanity!) then there’s a trade off that isn’t worth the effort.

Comedic relief that seems to come at the expense of crazed risk taking and far-too-physical matches is not worth the effort.

Kurt, if you want to be a goof, be a goof. And while you’re at it, settle for being a second rate clown in the ring. If that’s all you can do, but at the end of the match you want to risk breaking your neck, then your logic is far more fatally flawed than my own.

Let’s be honest. The biggest comedy players in the game over the last decade were The Rock, and to some extent, Stone Cold Steve Austin.

But neither of those talents relied solely on their comedy to get them over. They measured their acting, and they relied upon heel tactics, hard-edged auras and an attitude that they were tough guys at their core.

The Rock established his run by destroying Mick Foley. Austin set his career on fire by showing his guts and toughness (in a losing manner, by the way) in taking on Bret Hart in that I Quit match.

Both of these guys relied on skits and sketch comedy at times when they were so over that they didn’t need to kill themselves in the ring to keep the momentum going. But neither of them went in, week in and week out, to be comedians.

Again, if you want to be a comedian, if you want to be like Shohei Baba doing a mid-card comedy match on the tour, by all means, do so.

Please do so.

It’s just that your convoluted psychology and career logic don’t seem to be helping you get over, nor is it helping to establish TNA to get legit credentials in any world.

And the third point: stop with the family involvement in your storylines.

It’s neither funny, nor is it helpful to your career.

I could spout chapter and verse on the names and relationships destroyed by storyline divorces, but you’ve probably met most of them.

There’s nothing more that I can add to that.

To wrap up, let me say this. Kurt Angle is a champion and an Olympic great and has established himself as one of the big names in the wrestling business. But to move up to the next level doesn’t take physical effort, nor a mental stubbornness, nor even logical storylines.

What it takes is an evaluation of where you are, and where you want to go.

For the past few years, Kurt, your name has danced ever so close to two hard-to-attain listings. One is infamous, and the other is the pinnacle of professional wrestling greatness.

I will continue to follow your career, and I hope the best for you and your family. And maybe my advice is shortsighted and not quite as insightful as I may hope. But the bottom line is that you are obviously not comfortable in your role in TNA, and you need to determine a style, a path and a goal to make sure you do not succumb to the worst that this industry has supposed for you.

Joe Babinsack can be reached at [email protected]. Lots of great women’s wrestling on store, from WSU and SHIMMER and elsewhere.