Kurt Angle Teared Up During Rey Mysterio's WWE HOF Speech
Shortly before WWE cameras caught The Judgment Day's Dominik Mysterio and Rhea Ripley disrespecting Rey Mysterio by refusing to stand up for his Hall of Fame ceremony entrance, Mysterio walked up to Kurt Angle and shared a warm embrace with his old WWE rival. Moments later, Mysterio would name Angle in his "the people I'd like to thank" list — a customary act among wrestlers being honored — to close out his induction speech.
Speaking on his "The Kurt Angle Show" podcast, Angle touched upon the emotions he felt when Mysterio named him on the shortlist of people who left a lasting impact on his wrestling journey.
"It was a great night," Angle said of his experience attending WWE's 2023 Hall of Fame ceremony. "I got to see a lot of people, especially a lot of the current wrestlers. I didn't get to see Undertaker, who is the person I was most looking forward to seeing, but I ran into Triple H and had a talk with him. It was great to see Rey Mysterio again. He actually mentioned me in his speech, which was kinda cool. Thank you, Rey! But, yes, it was a great night."
For context, Mysterio's list included other names such as Konnan, Paul Heyman, Eric Bischoff, Kevin Sullivan, Dean Malenko, Batista, John Cena, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, all the producers/agents who worked on his matches, The Undertaker, Edge, JBL, Randy Orton, John Cena, and Eddie Guerrero.
'It was a very emotional night'
Angle was equally touched by Konnan's induction speech, which included tons of anecdotes that took even long-time fans of Mysterio by surprise. Mysterio himself went into great detail describing the challenges he encountered in his early years in the business, and the sacrifices made by his wife, Angie.
"What an articulate guy!" Angle said of Konnan. "It was really emotional, especially when Rey said that his wife [Angie] gave up going to school and started working full-time to provide for him, so he could be a pro wrestler. I got tears in my eyes when he said that. His wife was right in front of me. It was a very emotional night."
While Angle and Mysterio never had a lengthy rivalry in WWE, they did share the limelight at the Grandest Stage of Them All, at WrestleMania 22, where that year's Men's Royal Rumble Winner Mysterio wrestled then-WWE Champion Angle and Randy Orton in a three-way match for the WWE Championship. Mysterio would win the match by pinning Orton to start his first-ever reign as a world champion, a crowning moment in his career at the time.
Angle and Mysterio last wrestled a singles match on the May 30, 2006, episode of "WWE SmackDown." However, they did share the ring in the 2019 Men's Royal Rumble Match, which was ultimately won by Seth Rollins.