[2001-09-23-WWF-Unforgiven] Steve Austin vs Kurt Angle

[BigVanCrush]

So the follow up to the super classic at SummerSlam isn't quite on the same level. The heat isn't quite there and the hate isn't as palpable as it was in the previous match and both of those things hurt this match a bit. Angle is the aggressive challenger who knows he had Austin beat last time and goes all out early on, throwing Austin off the stage and smashing his head into the post like Austin did to Angle at SummerSlam. Angle exposes the concrete so he can piledrive Austin but it never happens. He and Austin take a couple of bumps onto the concrete that largely don't mean anything in the grand scheme of the match, they're kind of just there. The finisher stealing reminds me of when my cousins and I would do that shit against each other in No Mercy. I'm not a huge fan of the finish of this one. Kurt wins via submission but Austin's hand is under the rope, so the babyface challenger wins the title in his hometown but it's not a clean win. That doesn't sit right with me. On the whole, this is a damn good main event that had the impossible task of living up to the first match. Worth seeking out if you liked the SummerSlam match but don't go in expecting anything near as good. ****

[ohtani's jacket]

Underrated return match. Austin threw Angle's medals off a bridge into the Detroit River, so Angle kidnapped Austin and threatened to throw him off a bridge as well. Austin was humiliated and ended up throwing Angle off the stage on RAW. The first half of this match is an intense brawl that builds to Angle throwing Austin off the Unforgiven stage. I quite liked that section of the match even though it was done to death in the Attitude Era. The second half of the match is mostly in ring and builds toward the finish. I have to admit, I didn't know what the finish of this was heading into the match. I assumed it would be another screw job, so I was surprised by the result. Really good match even though they quickly reversed the result.