10 Reasons Why You Need To Respect The Great Khali
2. The Champ
It's important to watch Great Khali matches through a certain lens if one is to find significant enjoyment from the simplistic attacks and partially immobile manoeuvrability, but if a single encounter belongs on any positive list strictly on merit alone, it's his legendary June 2007 clash with John Cena.
Closing the book on his main event career on Monday Night Raw just before he'd jump to Smackdown and score their World Title on his first night back, Khali represented a proving ground of sorts for 'The Champ', who was midway through a renaissance as a wrestler following outstanding matches with Umaga, Shawn Michaels and others earlier that year.
It represented a turning point in Cena's career as much as it did Khali's, with 'Big Match John' finally showing himself as a general worthy of the lengthy WWE Title reign he was then in the middle of, and his large challenger highlighting how he could be carried to something very serviceable with the right performer.
Yet again, Khali unleashed the magic of doing a lot with a little that's so often lost in the modern era, but both men were throwbacks to a time where it was still the backbone of the craft.