Backstage Notes On Kurt Angle vs. Drew McIntyre On Raw

Returning to singles action did a lot to re-ignite Kurt Angle’s competitive fire. But for all the intensity, integrity and intelligence Angle brought to his main-event battle against Drew McIntyre on Raw, “The Scottish Psychopath” defeated the WWE Hall of Famer at his own game, concluding the match with a rare submission of the Olympic Gold Medalist that snapped Angle’s chances of captaining the Raw Men’s Survivor Series team for a second straight year.

According to Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated, the story of the match was drawn up by Angle and Vince McMahon.

“The story, which Sports Illustrated learned was drawn up by Angle and Vince McMahon, was for McIntyre to brutalize Angle and destroy any hopes he has of captaining the Raw Team for the Survivor Series,” Barrasso wrote.

“After meeting with McMahon, Angle presented the creative to McIntyre, who delivered in full force on live television.

“Angle and McIntyre have history from their time together at TNA, wrestling twice in 2016. They were only scheduled to have one match, but Angle specifically requested a rematch before he exited the company, stressing that he wanted to do the honors for McIntyre. Their final TNA encounter took place in Manchester, England, which was the same city that hosted the match this past Monday on Raw.”

Here is a video of the final moments of their second one-on-one encounter in TNA, with McIntyre forcing Angle to tap out on January 29, 2016.

Following Raw, McIntyre took to Twitter to brag about beating Angle.

An Olympic gold medal, a hall of fame career. Accolades that would normally guarantee victory against a “normal” man. But know that I’m not a “normal man.” If you step into the ring with me, I will hurt you, I will humble you, and I will beat you. #Raw

— Drew McIntyre (@DMcIntyreWWE) November 6, 2018