Kurt Angle’s final WWE match at WrestleMania should match the excitement of his retirement tour by adding John Cena to the mix.
Kurt Angle is not just a WWE Hall of Famer, he’s one of the best to have ever stepped foot in the squared circle.
He’s a man with a long and storied career, spanning two companies and many memorable rivalries.
After Angle announced he would be stepping away from in-ring competition, that legendary career has received a massive spotlight across WWE TV.
Passing the torch in matches against up-and-comers like Apollo Crews and Chad Gable, Angle has provided us with some of the most exciting action in WWE over the past few weeks.
On top of that, Angle has been able to call back to his time in TNA Impact through a re-ignition of his feud with Samoa Joe and a brief encounter with fellow Impact icon A.J. Styles.
All of these angles are leading up to a WrestleMania week that’s already set to feature Angle go to war one last time against Rey Mysterio. A feud that dates back all the way to SummerSlam of 2002, it’s a fitting way for Angle to end his run on Monday Night Raw.
Then, at WrestleMania 35 itself, Angle is set to have the crowning match of his entire retirement tour when he takes on Baron Corbin.
Wait, Baron Corbin?
Oh yes, who could forget the epic feud waged between Corbin and Angle throughout 2018. In fact, even after Corbin was vanquished and his role as Raw general manager was stripped, this rivalry was so good it somehow kept going.
Actually, it just kept going, and keeps going on and on to this day. Truly, a booking masterstroke by WWE.
Unfortunately, no matter how you cut it, Corbin’s general manager storyline was one of the least memorable or exciting angles of 2018. The fact that it’s still going on, in spite of the practically utter lack of impetus for its continuation, is a travesty.
Kurt Angle deserves to have his last match in style, not just by tying up a loose end in a rivalry that should have been settled long ago. Angle deserves an opponent that matches the caliber of those he faced in his retirement tour.
Basically, Kurt Angle deserves to fight John Cena at WrestleMania.
Angle and Cena are responsible for creating one of the most memorable pro wrestling moments of the 21st century. Cena’s debut, replete with the famous “ruthless aggression” exchange that would go on to define an entire era of WWE, was an unforgettable moment in the careers of both superstars.
It’s an iconic segment that deserves to be celebrated before Angle retires, and what better way to do that then by having Angle take on Cena one last time?
For what it’s worth, if some recent Instagram posts are any indication, John Cena himself may also agree with that sentiment.
Cena recently posted this image from that classic encounter, except with a certain former constable’s head edited onto his body.
Cena’s oftentimes cryptic and off-the-wall social media posts are well-documented at this point, but it’s hard to shake the feeling that this one may actually be a teaser for what’s to come.
Although there’s little time left to build a real storyline, a surprise appearance at WrestleMania by the “Bumblebee” star to challenge Angle shouldn’t be ruled out. After all, Cena did promise to appear at WrestleMania 35 during an appearance on Sirius-XM’sToday Show not too long ago (h/t ComicBook.com).
While it’s similarly likely too late to expect this match to be a one-on-one brawl like their original encounter, especially given WWE’s recent push of Corbin, a triple threat match featuring Cena and Corbin together would still be a great way to send Angle off.
At the end of the day, WWE has to do something more than give us another Corbin versus Angle match at WrestleMania. Angle, and all of his fans, deserve more than that for a retirement match on the “Grandest Stage of Them All”
WWE needs to channel the ruthless aggression era just one last time by adding John Cena to Kurt Angle’s retirement match at WrestleMania.