The rivalry between Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe will always hold a strong place in TNA aka Impact Wrestling history. Both wrestlers still speak highly of the other and name each other among their best respective rivalries. Many fans view it as the greatest feud to ever take place in TNA.
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The argument for that case is certainly there when looking back at Joe and Angle’s chemistry. However, a counterpoint can also be made that they had an overrated rivalry. Both sides should be examined before making a direct opinion. The following points will explore if Angle vs Joe is the greatest feud in Impact history or if it’s overrated.
10 Greatest Feud: Electric Debut For Kurt Angle
TNA had a red-hot start to Kurt Angle’s run when he had a tremendous segment with Samoa Joe. The first thing Angle did in his TNA debut was headbutt Joe in a shocking moment. An incredible brawl saw fans going wild in the Impact Zone and creating excitement for the viewers at home.
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Angle joining TNA was arguably the biggest wrestling story of the year, and the headbutt caused a lot of new fans to give TNA a chance. Joe was considered the most dominant wrestler with a world of momentum to make the segment feel like must watch television.
9 Overrated: Booking Match Too Fast
There was a polarizing reaction to TNA booking Kurt Angle vs Samoa Joe as Angle’s first program in the company. Everyone wanted to see the dream match, but it felt a bit strange to book your biggest money match right away.
Most promotions would have waited for Angle to get acclimated with his character before diving into the biggest attraction. Angle working with Joe right away made his new few PPV matches feel a bit disappointing since TNA started with the peak idea.
8 Greatest Feud: Match Quality Always Delivered
Some fans just want to watch great wrestling, and Kurt Angle vs Samoa Joe provided that every time. Both wrestlers have a hit list of all-time great matches, but they would see the bouts against the other on each’s top matches since they had a few classics.
TNA trusted Angle and Joe to deliver outstanding in-ring bouts with them providing that most times. Joe and Angle each took great pride in their matches, and it showed with the end quality. Even the future matches of them picking back up the feud saw them still having that chemistry in later years.
7 Overrated: Confusing Tweener Character For Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle felt like a babyface joining TNA since he was the biggest star to actively choose the smaller promotion when requesting his release from WWE due to them wanting him to attend rehab. TNA fans were ecstatic to rally behind Angle as the new face of the promotion.
However, the feud with Samoa Joe painted Angle as a tweener leading to confusion from the audience. Angle refusing to shake Joe’s hand after defeating him led to the heel side showing. TNA kept Angle a face for the rest of the feud until he turned heel later that year after winning the world title.
6 Greatest Feud: Samoa Joe Showed He Could Hang With Top Legend
There was some criticism for how TNA booked Samoa Joe in his feud with Kurt Angle, but it still validated his place in the wrestling world. Joe was already arguably the best wrestler in the world. Unfortunately, many fans viewed TNA as an argument against his case since it was so much smaller than WWE.
Angle was at the top of the WWE for years, and commentary even labeled him as someone in that best overall performer category. Joe holding his own and scoring a few huge victories over Angle in their feud helped make him look like a more credible top star.
5 Overrated: Winner Takes All Match
One match stands out as a low point in the Kurt Angle vs Samoa Joe feud. TNA kept them slightly associated after the trilogy of PPV matches to start Angle’s tenure there. Hard Justice 2007 featured the rivalry coming back to the forefront.
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All three TNA male titles and the IWGP Heavyweight Championship were on the line in a huge winner take all match. TNA ruined any excitement by making the story about Karen Angle. Joe foolishly trusted Karen saying she was sick of Kurt until she betrayed him to help Kurt win in a terrible swerve.
4 Greatest Feud: Kurt Angle Proved He May Have Been Best In The World
The way that Samoa Joe and other TNA talents benefited from facing a talent like Kurt Angle saw him also benefiting from working younger talents. Names like Joe, AJ Styles, Nigel McGuinness and Bryan Danielson were making a case that the best wrestling took place outside of WWE at the time.
Angle took strong pride in being the best and admitted that he wanted to test his limits against younger faster stars. Joe fit the mold of an elite talent that represented things WWE lacked at the time. Angle having such great matches with Joe made fans realize that he was a nearly flawless performer in any promotion he’d work for.
3 Overrated: Wasted Samoa Joe's Undefeated Streak
TNA had a great storyline of Samoa Joe’s undefeated streak being a big deal to fans. The only wrestling undefeated streaks for wrestlers to hold more weight over past three decades were Goldberg in WCW and Asuka in WWE/NXT. Kurt Angle defeated Joe in his first TNA match to end the streak right away.
There was a belief by some fans that TNA made Joe look like a joke losing in the first meeting to feel like a lesser star than the former WWE name coming over. Joe wasn’t as protected in the opening Angle feud as a true top star would be in most cases.
2 Greatest Feud: Tremendous Box Office Success
The financial success of the Kurt Angle vs Samoa Joe feud is the best argument for it being the best in Impact Wrestling history. Jeff Jarrett confirmed on his podcast that TNA’s business went up for those three PPVs where they had the opening trilogy to their feud, with the first still holding their buy rate record.
TNA going back to Angle vs Joe over a year later at Lockdown 2008 set the PPV gate record. Fans clearly were interested in the feud enough to pay to watch them lock it up multiple times. The expectations for Joe and Angle more than delivered when TNA badly needed momentum.
1 Overrated: Terrible Culmination
TNA basically turned the Samoa Joe vs Kurt Angle feud into a two-year story with them separating and going back to the rivalry. The official end came in a controversial moment that some argued ruined Joe’s chance of ever being a credible main eventer again in TNA.
A King of the Mountain ladder match ended with Joe having a chance to win and instead handing the belt over to Angle to hang it for the victory. Joe intentionally lost a TNA World Championship match to help Angle as the latest member of the Main Event Mafia. TNA basically erased all the great work they did in their feud throughout the years.
