Kurt Angle revealed during an interview with Fightful what he thought about TNA’s Six Sides Ring. Being a part of TNA during their most popular periods in the companies existence. He competed alongside legends of the promotion like Sting, AJ Styles and Samoa Joe in some of the best matches of not just his career, but the promotions as well.
Angle was a legend in TNA, leaving WWE to sign for the promotion in arguably the peak of his career, despite his demons causing a drug addiction that plagued him for years. He is a former six-time TNA World Champion, of which is the first ever champion and holds the record for the most reigns. He was also inducted in the TNA Hall of Fame in 2013, being the second inductee after wrestling Icon Sting.
One thing that helped TNA stand out in it’s heyday was the six sides ring that made it unique from the WWE. This was a brand new concept in the United States, although founder Jeff Jarrett was inspired by a Lucha Libre ring which he had seen in Mexico during his various travels across the globe.
TNA’s Six-Sides Ring, alongside a host of other reasons such as their use of young, exciting wrestlers in the incredible X-Division, saw them pull over 1 million views per episode in their peak and launched them as a solid number two promotion up against the behemoth that is the WWE.
Speaking with Fightful Select, Kurt Angle revealed that he learned to love the six-sided ring, eventually preferring it to the traditional square wrestling ring. He revealed that it took him time to adjust, the ring gave him the chance to put on more exciting, fast paced matches.
“The ring’s smaller. It’s six sides. It’s really harder to adapt to. Especially if you’re wrestling in a four-corner ring. It was difficult. It took me a few months to adapt to it, but eventually, I got it. I actually liked it better. It’s a faster-moving pace, yeah. The matches are a lot faster. You’re flying off the ropes and before you know it the guy’s right there. So, it’s a lot different than a four-sided ring.“
Kurt Angle recently returned to the WWE for his birthday celebration. Here he was greeted by a number of WWE talents, including his in-storyline son Jason Jordan. Angle left TNA in 2016 and made his return to the WWE a year later, 11 years after making his final appearance. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame prior to Wrestlemania 33. He was soon announced as the Raw General manager and made his in-ring return later that year, teaming with The Shield.
Kurt Angle retired at Wrestlemania 34 by losing to Baron Corbin. The match was his final match in WWE, although he was offered a match with John Cena a year later, but turned it down as he had made peace with his career being over. He has yet to wrestle since and is still employed by WWE whilst running his own podcast, “The Kurt Angle Show“.