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We publish a whole lot of content here at Cageside Seats. We’re also [looks around and whispers so the bosses can’t hear] not the only place producing wrestling content on the internet. So, as a service to you on the weekdays, we’ll be producing a wrestling newsletter, "Rude Awakening." Well, it will be a newsletter eventually: for now, it’ll just be part of your experience here at Cageside, collecting the news, recaps, and social moments from the greater wrestling universe daily so you won’t fall behind, with a newsletter format to come.
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Kurt Angle is probably going to wrestle for WWE at some point, but it’s unlikely to be anytime soon — for now, he’s the general manager of RAW, and that role works both for him and the show. That “probably” is something to dream on, though, as a healthy Kurt Angle wrapping up his in-ring career back in WWE where his sports entertainment career began feels like something that should work for Angle, the WWE itself, and, of course, fans. Speaking of dreams, Angle has one he shared in a recent interview with Metro UK, where he said that he’s “dreaming of wrestling Finn Balor.”
(Thanks to SE Scoops for transcribing the highlights.)
Angle described Balor as one of WWE’s “top three guys right now” despite just recently (relatively speaking) showing up in the company. He knows him from back in the day, too, so this isn’t some corporate puffing up of a WWE favorite happening: Balor vs. Angle would have real potential to amaze even at Kurt’s age, and regardless of their alignments.
Balor isn’t the only one Angle mentioned, either. He of course name dropped opponents he’s worked with before in a WWE ring (Brock Lesnar, Triple H, and John Cena), but also mentioned AJ Styles, Seth Rollins, Cesaro, Sheamus, and Rusev (“I love Rusev,” said Angle). There’s no wrong answer in any of that group — anyone who would have disagreed with Sheamus’ inclusion here a few months back has probably changed their tune since his partnership with Cesaro began — but Finn is the most tantalizing option.
Sometimes it’s easy to remember because he was always so heavily muscled, but Angle is only 5-foot-10. Balor facing off against someone where the story won’t necessarily revolve around their size difference would be a good thing for him — not that WWE hinges on that for Finn often, but in the main event scene in that company, it’s going to come up time and time again. Also, there’s the whole past beloved main eventer facing off against the future of the company thing to look forward to.
- Friday’s Rumor Roundup features whispers about the plan for Lana and her role on SmackDown.
- Here is what pro wrestling would look like under socialism, or, here is the feature-length article that extrapolates beyond the idea of this perfect tweet.
- Flying to India for shows did not change how Impact’s writing works, so... yeah.
- Road Dogg named a few NXT wrestlers he’d want to show up on SmackDown, and even if he doesn’t get his way with most of them I sure hope he gets his way with Asuka.
- Matt and Reby Hardy had their second child on Thursday. Congrats!
- Diamond Dallas Page used his yoga to make you laugh and so you aren’t just wasting away your life at work.
- Austin Aries would like to remind you that 205 Live is still real new, and that its vision isn’t going to just be fulfilled overnight.
- ESPN ran a story on El Rey president Daniel Tibbets and the past, present, and future of Lucha Underground.
- Here is a photo of Big Show in high school.
- Jim Ross has a take I agree with on WWE’s use of the word “extreme,” and how it’s past its sell-by date.
- Gail Kim was recently interviewed by a former WWE creative team member on her injury, her contract situation, and more.