10 Reasons Why You Need To Respect The Great Khali

9. The Good Punjabi Prison Match

Great Khali Triple H
WWE

Lost in empty criticisms by many that never even took the time to watch either of the first two incarnations, the Punjabi Prison stipulation was roundly mocked when added to the Randy Orton/Jinder Mahal WWE Title clash as the headline attraction of the company's Battleground pay-per-view.

It had been just under a decade since the company had assembled the mammoth bamboo double cage, meaning at least one generation of fans had never experienced the match first hand, and several others possibly never considered going back and watching the two originals buried within the depths of the mid-2000s WWE Network archives.

Whilst The Undertaker and The Big Show were hung out to dry by the gimmick when Khali failed a late wellness test before July 2006's Great American Bash supercard, Dave Batista was more fortunate when he tackled the giant the following October. The two had a memorable and satisfying affair, far superior to the snoozer assembled by the comparatively nimble Mahal/Orton pairing.

Khali was an ex-World Champion by this point, having actually lost the title to 'The Animal' during arguably Batista's best ever year. Not only did the structure completely suit the nature of the lengthy feud, it also provided a satisfying payoff when the Champion leapt across the gulf between the inner and outer cages to dramatically overtake the Challenger as he gingerly clambered down.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett