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Kurt Angle has praised professional wrestler Steve Bradley, claiming the deceased star was the reason he made it in WWE.
In the first ever Ask Kurt Anything segment from The Kurt Angle Show, the Olympic Gold Medalist was pitched a question from a fan regarding 'Sensational' Steve Bradley. Immediately, Angle began to praise Bradley and recalled training with him for six months prior to his WWE debut.
Here's what Kurt Angle had to say about Steve Bradley:
"Steve is the reason I became so good so fast. When I tried out for WWE, he was there at the camp and they glued me to his hip for six months. That’s all I did, was work with Steve and train with Steve. He taught me everything! And I knew he was going to make it big, I knew he was going to be the next Rob Van Dam, maybe even a little more, I guess, versatile, than Rob. As far as his promo skills and everything. Rob was good too, don’t get me wrong, Rob is exceptional. Steve was very, very talented and I’m surprised he didn’t make it... I’m just surprised and shocked Steve Bradley didn’t make it big. He was the reason I made it in the company! I think, with his talents, people would have absolutely loved him. He passed away, I think, fourteen or fifteen years ago. It’s unfortunate."
Steve Bradley passed away in December 2008 from what were suspected to be drug-related causes.
Kurt Angle thanked Steve Bradley in his Hall of Fame speech
Podcast host Conrad Thompson recalled Kurt Angle thanking Steve Bradley during his Hall of Fame acceptance speech, noting how Bradley's name was one that not many fans may have been aware of.
But Angle was insistent thanking his former training partner was the right thing to do, saying:
"I had to thank him, especially with him being up in heaven. Good Lord, I’m grateful for what he did for me."
Just as Kurt Angle said in his speech, Steve Bradley will go down as one of the great "unsung heroes" in WWE.
