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Eddie Guerrero vs. Kurt Angle was a match-up made for a pro wrestling ring. Two guys who could flat-out go in the ring.

Plus, the evolution of Eddie's character over time by adding a certain charisma and charm to his in-ring work coupled with Angle's flat-out wrestling skills made this a great match-up.

"I think one of the reasons that the Eddie Guerrero and Kurt Angle rivalry worked was because they were such different people," Michael Cole says on the DVD. "Kurt was more uptight. He was more of a stuffed-shirt type where Eddie was really loose and wanted to have fun. And that really came into play during their rivalry."

The DVD includes just one of the Eddie vs. Angle series of matches, and today I'm looking at their April 14, 2005 match from Smackdown where the winner was to advance to a potential title match against then-WWE champion John Cena following WrestleMania 21 when Cena won his first World Title.

On that April 2005 Smackdown, Eddie and Angle produced 18 minutes of stellar television inside the ring. Although the ending was heavy on storyline to set up the impending Eddie heel turn and feud against Rey Mysterio, the match itself was just plain amazing.

Angle was somewhat healthy (if Angle ever was healthy in WWE), and capable of those world-class matches fans expected from him. Eddie was still riding a wave of momentum from his WWE Title run the previous April and both men respected each other's in-ring abilities.

"It's hard not to have a good match when you're in the ring with a tremendous talent like Kurt," Eddie wrote in his autobiography in reference to their WrestleMania 20 match the prior year. "Very few wrestlers have his natural gifts, especially considering the relatively short time he's been a professional."

The key to sitting back and watching the match is understanding the significance. It was one of Eddie's last great one-on-one matches prior to his death six months later.

He had the program with Rey Mysterio in the months that followed, but the Angle match truly captured Eddie's essence as a pro wrestler.

Eddie could hang with the top technical wrestlers like Dean Malenko. He could fly around the ring like a cruiserweight. He could connect with the audience like John Cena. He could tell a story like Shawn Michaels. He could advance a storyline within a match on behalf of the company. And he could deliver amazing highspots and sell nearfalls like Kurt Angle.

Eddie could do it all in the ring. This April 2005 match is certainly one of the top five matches on the DVD that is a must-see piece of how to put on a WWE main event style pro wrestling match.

Over the course of 25 days, I will be reviewing the "Viva La Raza" Eddie Guerrero DVD recently put out by WWE. I'll be looking at the significance of each of the 25 matches on the DVD as well as establishing the context of events that were occurring at the time of each match.

EDDIE GUERRERO DVD REVIEW ARTICLE LIST

-- Day 22 - JBL cage match; Kurt Angle mirror image.
-- Day 21 - Sickest Match Ever vs. JBL.
-- Day 20 - Eddie as True Champion; vs. Rey Mysterio.
-- Day 19 - Eddie's Greatest Moment as WWE champion.
-- Day 18 - Guerrero Family Rivalry.
-- Day 17 - John Cena learns wrestling psychology.
-- Day 16 - The life-saving bond with Chavo Guerrero
-- Day 15 - Must-See Match of the DVD vs. Edge.
-- Day 14 - Working with Jeff Hardy.
-- Day 13 - RVD match; Eddie overcomes personal pain.
-- Day 12 - Matt Hardy match; void in life unfulfilled.
-- Day 11 - WWE debut against Chris Jericho.
-- Day 10 - Personal tragedy with Vickie Guerrero's public commentary.
-- Day 9 - Battle with Juvi; personal issues bubbling below surface.
-- Day 8 - WCW front office issues and vs. Ultimo Dragon.
-- Day 7 - Eddie the in-ring Technician vs. Dean Malenko.
-- Day 6 - Rey Mysterio classic and character adjustment.
-- Day 5 - vs. Chris Jericho and no one cared.
-- Day 4 - Rubbing shoulders with Ric Flair.
-- Day 3 - Stealing the show at Starrcade '95.
-- Day 2 - Breakthrough in ECW - Eddie vs. Dean Malenko.
-- Day 1 - influence of Art Barr; Eddie vs. 2 Cold Scorpio.
-- Intro on DVD review series.

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