We have seen two professional wrestlers make the transition into MMA. They were Brock Lesnar and Bobby Lashley.
Lesnar went on to become the UFC heavyweight champion and quite arguably made the UFC the PPV business they are today. Lashley, however, hasn’t achieved the success that Lesnar had and has been a marginal fighter in Strikeforce and various regional promotions.
It was announced two weeks ago that former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal agreed to a deal with Bellator and TNA Wrestling to do MMA and pro wrestling.
TNA Wrestling president Dixie Carter feels that one of her wrestlers could also make that transition into MMA and wrestling. His name? Kurt Angle.
Angle stated last year he had been offered a contract by the UFC, but UFC president Dana White rebuffed that statement and said Angle was offered a slot on The Ultimate Fighter Season 10. Angle was not able to pass a physical according to White.
Carter states though they need the right deal for Angle to do MMA.
“Absolutely, he was. Kurt’s one of those unbelievable athletes that rises to the top of whatever field,” Carter told me. “Let’s say it’s amateur wrestler. Then what’s the next big thing he’s going to concur? Then he becomes the greatest wrestler in professional wrestling history. Then, it’s like, ‘OK. I’ve done that. Now, what else am I going to do?’
“He really wanted to fight,” Cater said. “He started training for it. But, I said, ‘Look, if we can’t get the right deal with the right organization to do it with, it’s just not worth doing if we can’t do it at the very top level.’ So, that’s why he decided to make a run at the Olympics at his age. And I’ve got to tell you, if it hadn’t been for that last-minute injury, I think he was just pushing himself so hard, working for me and training. I really feel like he had a good shot of making that team.”
With Lawal now signed with Bellator and TNA, could we see Angle in the cage? Only time will tell.
You can listen to my interview with Dixie Carter here.
You can follow me on Twitter @fightclubchi.
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