Kurt Angle won a gold medal with a broken freakin' neck in 1996 and then went on to become one of the best pro wrestlers to ever step foot in the ring.
In 1996, the UFC was not a multi-billion dollar promotion and pro wrestling turned out to be a better avenue for Angle. However, there was an offer for Angle to be part of the UFC coming off his Olympic run.
Speaking to Marc Raimondi of ESPN, Angle says he was offered $150,000 to compete, but that was over the course of a 15-fight contract.
"I love fighting, but I don't love it that much to get my butt kicked for 15 grand [per fight]," Angle said with a laugh. "So, I decided to go to WWE and when I got there, I had so much success early on. And then UFC started becoming mainstream in the early 2000s, and this is when I was having a stellar career in WWE, winning world championships, beating The Rock for the world championship, beating 'Stone Cold' [Steve Austin] for the world championship. And I thought, 'Man, I would love to fight, but I already had this great career going on right now.'"
Angle was offered another UFC contract in 2006 when he joined TNA/IMPACT Wrestling, but UFC President Dana White didn't want him wrestling.
"Dana White would not let me wrestle and fight at the same time. And I didn't want to go back to TNA and say, 'Listen, that contract I just signed is null and void," said Angle.
The final offer from UFC to Angle came in 2009, when he says he was offered $500,000 to be on The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights, a season that also featured Kimbo Slice.
"I started training for it a little bit and I realized, 'I'm past my prime, I can't do this,'" Angle said. "So, I had to turn it down. But I'm very grateful for the offers Dana White gave me. He is an incredible person."
In the end, Angle never competed in the UFC.
He did have a very successful wrestling career, winning world titles in WWE and IMPACT Wrestling.
His new documentary "Angle" will premiere on Peacock on September 2.
