The bombshell was dropped this past Monday on Raw. After weeks of backstage segments showing Angle looking worried and anxious, as well as some mysterious interactions with Corey Graves, we finally got the answer as to what has been bothering the Olympic gold medalist.
He’s a dad.
Well, OK, we already knew that. It’s well known that he has five children. But this time, he’s a dad with a different woman who we’ll presumably never meet, and the child is none other than former American Alpha member Jason Jordan.
Credit to WWE, the two of them actually share a lot of similarities. They look fairly similar, they have the same body type, and similar pre-WWE accolades. If this were 30 years ago, when people didn’t have such easy access to information, fans might actually believe Jordan was Angle’s son.
So while this is definitely a good fit, the question looms. Where do they go from here? How does WWE turn this into something that makes the weeks of speculation and build up worthwhile? Will Jason Jordan be a champion soon? Better yet, will Jason Jordan be Universal Champion soon?
Alright, maybe that’s a stretch. Nevertheless, there are several ways WWE could maximise this storyline which they’ve already put so much time and effort into.
#5 Make sure he appears on Raw
You’d think this one would be a no-brainer. WWE spent all this time building up to the big reveal that Jordan is Angle’s son, now he’s going to be a featured player, right? You would certainly hope so, but time will tell.
Jordan was doing absolutely nothing on SmackDown as part of American Alpha. That likely contributed to the decision to switch things up with him, but it makes you wonder; if WWE is so high on Jordan that they’re going to make him Angle’s son, why wasn’t he at least appearing on TV on SmackDown?
But maybe those days are behind him. This is a new beginning for Jordan. And with this new beginning, WWE needs to make sure he feels like a big deal. There was a noticeable lack of reaction from the Nashville crowd as Jordan made his way to the ring, and that can be remedied by familiarising him with the RAW audience.
Jordan needs to be on RAW week in and week out, and he needs to be winning matches. This is the definitive, necessary first step in making the most out of this storyline.
# 4 Give him meaningful feuds
One thing that can kill a superstar’s momentum faster than anything else is meaningless feuds. No matter how interesting you are, no one is going to pay attention if you’re facing irrelevant opponents constantly.
Just look at Nia Jax: she destroyed jobbers for weeks and people couldn’t have cared less about her. Even Braun Strowman’s act got a bit tiresome as he faced jobbers week in and week out. And let’s not forget Finn Balor who, despite being one of the most interesting and talented superstars on the roster, has been forgettable of late thanks to his feud with Elias Samson.
Sure, a few to start out is fine. It’ll establish Jordan as a winner. But after a couple weeks, he should move on from the jobbers and move on to something meaningful. It doesn’t have to be a title feud right away, but it shouldn’t be Curt Hawkins either.
Sadly, most of RAW’s bigger Superstars are occupied right now and will be until SummerSlam at the earliest. But hopefully sooner than later, Jordan will be able to feud with the likes of The Miz, Dean Ambrose, or Samoa Joe as he ascends to eventual main event status.
#3 He should pursue the Intercontinental title
The Intercontinental title is one of the most prestigious and storied championships in WWE, likely only second behind the WWE title. It’s known as the stepping stone to the world championship, and Jason Jordan should cross this stepping stone in the near future.
With Jordan being introduced as Angle’s son, it’s clear WWE has big plans for him. That could involve a world title pursuit, or it could not. That much remains to be seen. But giving him this kind of a rub almost certainly means they haven’t ruled it out.
But before he gets there, he should be legitimised by going after the Intercontinental title, regardless if it’s The Miz, Dean Ambrose, or the Yeti holding it. Guys like Jinder Mahal suffer when they’re catapulted to the top too fast too soon. This would help Jordan avoid that fate.
He’s already been a champion in WWE, but a singles title is the next logical step in Jordan’s ascension. It’ll test how he does in the spotlight and what kind of matches he can put on, especially now that he can no longer just be “the hot tag guy”.
#2 Turn Jordan heel
This one almost feels inevitable. Kurt Angle mentioned in his documentary that when he first came to WWE, he figured his “American hero” gimmick would make him a natural babyface. But Vince McMahon said the opposite, that Angle should be a heel and come across as being above the fans, that he’s better than them.
Jordan, conveniently, fits the exact same mould. Not only is he a chiselled athlete who could say he’s better than the fans based on that alone, but now he has the bloodline. One of the most heelish parts of Charlotte’s character was the fact that she called herself “genetically superior” because of her dad Ric Flair. Jordan can say the same kinds of things.
He can be above the fans who are just ordinary people, while Jordan was born into a wrestling family and destined for greatness. That will get him over much more easily than just being a generic babyface who’s good (er, decent) at wrestling.
Jordan should come out to the ring and verbally destroy his former partner Chad Gable. He could take the Big Cass route and say Gable was holding him back. Then he should emphasise that he’s guaranteed to be successful and that he doesn’t need the fans. It just makes sense given the fact that he’s now Angle’s son.
#1 Have Kurt Angle play favourites
What better way to turn Jordan heel than having Angle give him opportunities he doesn’t deserve?
This would complicate Angle’s character a bit. We probably don’t want him to turn heel along with his son simply because the heel authority figure trope is extremely played out. We don’t need Kurt Angle to basically turn into a bald version of Stephanie McMahon.
But he could definitely play favourites a bit and just be oblivious (or in denial) that he’s doing so. Have him give Jordan and an Intercontinental title shot at SummerSlam; or ignore the fact that his son is cheating to win matches; show him backstage hyping and congratulating his son to no end.
This would make Jordan even more entitled than he already is. There are also few things that fans hate more than guys getting opportunities that they don’t feel they deserve. Just take a look at Roman Reigns, who fans (wrongfully) believe has just been handed everything he’s gotten. They hate him.
Give Jordan some of that heat and he’ll excel as a superstar. He’ll easily step beyond the status of “guy who used to be in American Alpha who isn’t really that great at any one thing”.
