Kurt Angle Is Signing With Bellator, But It’s Not What You Think

On Wednesday, former WWE Champion and Olympic gold medalist Kurt Angle (along with former UFC star and WWE Intercontinental Champion Ken Shamrock) began hyping “big news” and a “huge announcement” regarding the upcoming Bellator 145 event, set to take place on Friday, November 6. Here’s what Angle had to say:

That, of course, led to speculation that Angle was signing with the company to compete as a fighter. Angle’s flirted with the idea of becoming an MMA fighter for years, including almost appearing on The Ultimate Fighter 10 back in 2009. Plus, Angle has already announced that he’ll be taking a break from pro wrestling when his contract with TNA ends. The news started trending, which caused a lot of folks (including Bleacher Report’s Jeremy Botter) to go, “Hey, wait a minute…”

https://twitter.com/jeremybotter/status/659430308006129664

As it turns out, Angle is signing with Bellator. Literally. Bellator’s bringing him in as part of their Official Bellator Fan Fest, and Angle will be signing autographs at a Dave & Busters. If there’s one thing Kurt learned from his time in TNA, it’s how to hype an absolutely brutal “big announcement.” Via the press release:

Santa Monica (Oct. 28, 2015) – On November 5, combat sports fans from all around the country will converge on the Dave & Busters in Maryland Heights, Missouri for the “Official Bellator Fan Fest,” where they can meet several of their favorite athletes and receive photos and autographs. Bellator officials announced today that TNA superstar, former WWE superstar and Olympic Gold Medalist Kurt Angle will join the epic line up, which is already packed with star power the likes of Kimbo Slice, Liam McGeary, Royce Gracie, Ken Shamrock and Tito Ortiz.

So, is Kurt Angle ever getting an MMA fight? Is that one time he got shown up by Daniel Puder the closest we’ll ever get? He says he wants to go into teaching when he’s done with wrestling, but it’s Kurt Angle, so who knows?