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Kurt Angle has had several five-star matches throughout his legendary career. However, the one against Eddie Guerrero from a SmackDown episode in 2004 certainly doesn't rank amongst his best.
The Olympic gold medalist faced Eddie Guerrero in a Lumberjack Match on a SmackDown episode that aired on September 9th, 2004.
During the first edition of 'Ask Kurt Anything' on AdFreeShows.com, Kurt Angle recalled competing against Guerrero on that forgettable night.
The WWE Hall Of Famer revealed that Latino Heat experienced problems with his energy and would, unfortunately, tire out quickly during matches.
Kurt Angle said Eddie Guerrero played his lively character perfectly in front of the cameras, but the former WWE champion was visibly struggling backstage. Angle added that Guerrero's heart wasn't pumping at the ideal pace, leading to difficulties in the ring.
"I never had a match I wished I could have redone, but there was one night with Eddie Guerrero, and this was probably a month before he passed away, maybe two months. Eddie was having problems with his energy. He was really run down. His skin was not toned. It was white, and he would walk backstage like this, and then when he would go out to the ring, his entrance, he was Eddie, you know, 'Hey, it's showtime!" But, when he was backstage, he was having a lot of issues with energy, and I think it was his heart not pumping at the proper pace," said Kurt Angle.
That wasn't 'the' Eddie Guerrero that night: Kurt Angle
Eddie Guerrero's health was in bad shape and he 'cracked' during his Lumberjack match with Kurt Angle. The WWE Hall of Famer said Latino Heat was not in a physical condition to wrestle that night and wished the match had never happened.
"Then one night, it was in Texas. I can't remember what city I had a match with him. It was a lumberjack match, and Eddie just broke down. At one point, he was so, so, so unhealthy, I don't even want to say tired, just unhealthy, he grabbed the rope, and he wouldn't let it go, and I was trying to shoot him off, I was like, 'Eddie, we've got to go.' He was like, 'No, no, no!' And I was like, 'Oh my god, he cracking!" I didn't know he had a heart problem. So, that's one match I would definitely like to take back, and it's just because Eddie was in no condition to wrestle at that time," said Kurt Angle.
Kurt Angle was thankful that the match was pre-taped as it gave WWE some time to air a clean and edited version of the contest.
While Kurt Angle considered Eddie Guerrero to be one of the all-time in-ring greats, he admitted that Latino Heat wasn't at his healthy best that evening.
"But nobody knew about his heart problem. I mean, that came out of nowhere the day he passed away. So, you know, it was, thank god the match was taped. It was a SmackDown match, and it was pre-taped. So, we were able to clean it up before we aired it on UPN, I believe it was. But, it was a night that I regret, that I wished I could take back because you know, Eddie was always the greatest in-ring performer, one of the greatest I've ever been in the ring with, and that wasn't the Eddie Guerrero that night," said Angle.
Eddie Guerrero passed away on November 13th, 2005, due to acute heart failure. Guerrero was just 38 years old at the time of his death, but the iconic former WWE champion left a lasting legacy in the professional wrestling business.
If any quotes are used from this article, please credit 'The Kurt Angle Show' and give a H/T to Sportskeeda.
