Yes, I know the former Olympic Gold medallist has played down the possibility of a Royal Rumble appearance, but in the WWE, you just never know what the truth is. Perhaps he's playing it down to the increase the shock value on Sunday? We’ll see.
At the age of 48, Angle is still as agile as ever. He has more years in the tank and his star power is still present for all to see.
So why not use Angle to give a rub to younger talents, thus making them into household names? At the Rumble, you never know who could be standing behind the gorilla position but I know every single WWE fan is praying the Attitude Era icon makes his way through those curtains.
When/if he does, there'll be several superstars waiting to make their name at his expense. Here are 5 men who could eliminate Kurt Angle from the Royal Rumble if he returns on Sunday.
#5 Big E
From a dominant heel to a comedy act. Big E's WWE career so far has been somewhat of a never-ending rollercoaster, a rollercoaster that I'm sure he wants to get off. Going down as one of the most dominant heel champions in NXT history, Big E's in-ring career promised so much at the start.
It's long rumoured that when Vince McMahon was contemplating his next face of the company, the inventor of the 5-count was one of the final contenders with Roman Reigns. As it turned out, the 30-year old has gone on to provide comedy on Monday nights while the latter has won several world titles.
Also read: 10 Potential surprise returns and debuts at the Royal Rumble 2017
Of course, his career hasn't been all bad, but it just could have been so much more. Personally, I think a guy with his size and charisma should be a dominant heel running riot over the roster.
Ruining the return of one of the most loved WWE legends would set up that much-anticipated heel turn. First, he could eliminate his New Day brethren and then, just to consolidate his new heel nature, he could toss out Kurt Angle.
Come on, you know it makes sense.
#4 Baron Corbin
Ever since his debut appearance at Wrestlemania 32, the lone wolf has risen to become the cream of the crop in the WWE. Becoming a featured player on SmackDown alongside the likes of Cena and Ambrose has done nothing but raise his stock immensely.
Now it's time to raise the stakes even more. It's clear that the WWE has their eyes set on Corbin receiving a major push at the Rumble, perhaps with him even breaking Roman Reigns’ elimination record.
However, If Corbin were to eliminate a load of lower-card jobbers, his performance would be dominant but not particularly eye-catching. Now if he were to eliminate a former 5-time WWE World champion, he'd be the man of the match for sure.
#3 The Miz
After having one of the best 2016s of anyone in professional wrestling, the Miz has firmly etched his name amongst the main event talents of WWE. He's been able to take a mid-card championship in the Intercontinental Championship to the main event of SmackDown.
Along with his wife Maryse, they've become the most entertaining act on all of television. It's now time to cement his villainous status in the company.
Kurt Angle has the pedigree and star power to turn the Miz into a legend of his era. Just imagine the scene, Angle's music hits, the crowd erupts, the action stops in the ring, Angle enters the ring and the Miz sneaks up from behind to eliminate him. Awesome.
#2 Rusev
I for one have always seen the Bulgarian brute as an underrated figure in the WWE. For a man that has been in the ring with every single top star and part-timer in the WWE today, he sure doesn't get the respect he deserves.
In 2015, Rusev was an unstoppable foreigner laying waste to everything in his path, even after his first loss at the hands of John Cena he was still booked strong. It was after the Roman Reigns train came running through that his career took a turn for the worse.
Night after night, spear after spear and superman punch after superman punch, Rusev's stock dwindled. From then on, every single part-timer that came back gave Rusev their finishing move.
Shawn Michaels, Goldberg, Brock Lesnar have all left the Bulgarian's carcass laying out in recent years.
Now it's time to finally use a part-timer to elevate the company's best heel. If the symbol of American pride can get eliminated by the anti-USA Bulgarian, it sends Rusev to another level entirely.
#1 Sami Zayn
If you hadn't guessed by now, this article is all about using the star power of Angle to make new stars. For those who haven't recognised it yet, Sami Zayn is the best babyface in the WWE today.
The kid has got it all, heart, talent, charisma and above all, likeability. When you look at Sami Zayn, you see a guy that's worked his entire life to make it in the big leagues and now that he's here, he's stopping at nothing to get to the top.
Sami Zayn eliminating Kurt Angle at the Royal Rumble could be the moment needed to set his main event push in action. And you know what the best bit would be? The elimination would set up a Zayn vs. Angle match at Fast Lane, now imagine the level of technical wrestling we'd be treated to.
The match would probably set the benchmark for the rest of the year. We'd be in the second month of the year, experiencing the best match of 2017 already. What’s there not to love about this possibility?
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