The Great Khali and Kane are said to be banged up and hurting a lot lately. Khali’s mobility as of late has been bad while Kane is hurting but not letting it effect his in-ring work. NXT Rookie Conor O’Brian, before being eliminated, was nursing a knee injury. He had ice on his knee a lot at last week’s WWE TV tapings.
An odd situation happened after Tuesday’s WWE SmackDown tapings in Des Moines, Iowa. After SmackDown ended, Mark Henry came out for a dark main event that was advertised to be Christian vs. Randy Orton. Henry entered the ring and just waited as no opponent ever came out. Henry waited for around five minutes before finally beginning to cut a promo to the crowd. Each time Henry would begin to speak, the microphones were cut.
Instead of getting a promo accomplished, Henry began to taunt some fans at ringside. After 15 minutes of this going on, ring announcer Tony Chimel announced that while fans waited for Mark Henry’s opponent, WWE thanks the fans for attending.
Henry’s music started playing for a few minutes before stopping. Hornswoggle’s music then hit but he never came out. After a few minutes of that, The Great Khali’s old theme music played but again, nobody came out. Khali’s music stopped and Vince McMahon’s music played but as expected, he didn’t come out either. After about 20 minutes since SmackDown ended, Henry got tired of waiting for an opponent and walked to the back. No word yet on what happened but it sounds like WWE was playing a big rib on Henry.
Jinder Mahal made his WWE main roster debut on Friday's SmackDown in a segment with Ranjin Singh and The Great Khali, talking in Punjabi. Several readers sent word that Khali and Singh asked Mahal what he was doing on SmackDown. He replied that he was now on the roster and plans to be there for a long time. When Mahal walked off, Khali and Singh talked about how good it was to see him in WWE.
As the date for the WWE's biggest annual event gets closer and closer, it's always fun to look back and the good, and the not-so-good, of what makes WrestleMania the biggest event of the year. No other wrestling event in the world is watched, broken down, or comes under as much attention as Mania, which is why the company invests as much time and money as they do into it.
Today, instead of the good, I will break down the bad, and give you my WORST 10 all-time WrestleMania Matches of the last 26 years. The matches are in no set order, as these truly were all stinkers in my book.
1. WrestleMania II: Adrian Adonis defeats Uncle Elmer - This was to the point where Adonis (Keith Franke), who at one point was a very solid worker and heel, had gone the "Gorgeous George" route, and had also balloned to well over 300 pounds. His character garnered more attention than his skills, and this match with the tubby Elmer (Stan Frazier) was one for the birds. Thankfully for these two now deceased grapplers, this bout only lasted 3:25.
2. WrestleMania IV: Ultimate Warrior defeats Hercules - Neither of these two guys will ever go down as good workers, but this match of muscleheads was tough to watch, as was the entire feud for that matter. Herc was actually the better "wrestler" in the feud, which is not saying much. Warrior was nothing more than a muscle bound goof that never deserved the push that he eventually got, leading to main eventing WM VI. This 4:29 match that saw Warrior win when he lifted his shoulder after a half-nelson suplex is one to fast forward through if you ever watch this Mania in full.
3. WrestleMania V: The Red Rooster defeats Bobby Heenan - Not much needs to be said about this garbage, other than the :32 seconds it took Rooster (Terry Taylor) to win the match was about :30 seconds too long. Add the Brookyln Brawler in for a little post-match attack, and you have all the eyesores you can handle for one day.
4. WrestleMania X: Bam Bam Bigelow and Luna Vachon defeated Doink the Clown (Ray Apollo) and Dink in a "Mixed Tag Team match" - Ugly. That's about all you can say about anytime you have a "Mixed Tag," but add the awful clown comedy of Doink and his small mascot - Dink, and this just over six-minute match is one you'll want to forget.
5. WrestleMania XII: Roddy Piper defeated Goldust (w/Marlena) in a "Hollywood Backlot Brawl" - Talk about the dark ages for the WWE. This was supposed to be a parody of the O.J.Simpson car chase, where Piper chased Goldust around and it was shown on the large screen back at the arena. Awful. Needless to say that they kept cutting to this "match", and everytime they did it got worse and worse.
6. WrestleMania VII: Tenryu and Kitao defeated Demolition (Crush and Smash) (w/Mr. Fuji) - To me, Mania is supposed to be about feuds ending or starting, and wrestlers getting their shot at the big time. That's why having two wrestlers on the card that basically no one knew, or never really heard from again in Tenryu and Kitao fight for 4:44 beating an established team like Demolition was one of the bigger head scratchers of the last 23 years of booking of the event.
7. WrestleMania XVI: T & A (Test and Albert) (w/Trish Stratus) defeated Head Cheese (Al Snow and Steve Blackman) (w/Chester McCheeserton) - Ugh. Three of the four wrestlers in this match are downright bad workers, which made this thing ugly to watch from the word go. This Mania was bizarre in the fact where all the matches were tags or six-man matches, and this one may have been the worst of the bunch.
8. WrestleMania XXI: Akebono defeated The Big Show in a Sumo Match - A one-minute match that was very much a gimmick, but also very unnecessary. Again, no real reason to put one of your bigger names in a gimmick match with an unknown and make him lose. Hey wait, isn't that going to probably happen again this year? Hmmm.
9. WrestleMania XXV: 25-Diva battle royal to crown Miss WrestleMania - This would have been a solid put together match, but instead they made it a farce with the throwing in of Santino Marella dressed like a woman calling himself Santina. I would have like to have seen 25 divas from the past and present really being allowed to go at it.
10. WrestleMania IX: The Undertaker (w/Paul Bearer) defeated Giant Gonzales (w/Harvey Wippleman) by disqualification - While Taker is still undefeated at Mania, this had to be the worst of his Mania wins. First off, Gonzales is just downright awful, and then you had it where Taker actually took a beating from him, only to make a return after the DQ. This one Taker fans won't ever want to relive.
In an interview with SkySports, Kane hinted that he could possibly be facing The Great Khali later this month at Summerslam. Kane said, "I don't have a match made yet, but The Great Khali and I have been crossing paths. If I was to speculate I would say yes I have a match with The Great Khali but that hasn't been made yet.” Kane also reflects back on previous Summerslam’s in the interview, which you can read at this link.
The latest WWE entry into "mainstream" Hollywood (if you want to call it that) will take place tonight on RAW when former horse-piss drinker and "Jackass" leader Johnny Knoxville comes on the show to have a "fight" with moster The Great Khali. If you missed how this all came about, Knoxville has some sort of show on MTV, and Khali was on and Knoxville questioned how big Khali's privates are.
Typical Knoxville, but the 7+ foot, 400+ pound Khali didn't like the unprofessional line of questions, and stormed off the set. While it likely was real at the start, Vince McMahon took the incident and is running with it, and now Khali has been on the last few shows making out with women (quite the site) and proving just how much of a "man" he really is.
At the same time, he has called out Knoxville, and you can bet with money on the table that Knoxville will show up tonight, as the company is sending out releases to check out the show and see just in fact if Knoxville shows up or not. Gee, I wonder. Don't forget that the entire "Jackass" crew are no strangers to the WWE and being in a WWE ring.
It was just two years ago that a deal was done where the cast of the TV show was booked in a match at SummerSlam against Umaga and another wrestler. The match was pulled when Knoxville, who at the time was making a movie or two in Hollywood, said he didn't want to be involved. Now, with Knoxville being an afterthought when it comes to being involved with Hollywood projects, he suddenly is more than willing to be on the show.
So how will this end? Knoxville will probably have a verbal exchange with Khali, and the two will then have a match at the upcoming PPV - Cyber Sunday, where they will have three choices of what type of match it will be that is "choosen" by the fans. Could this be good? Maybe, but I wouldn't put much stock into making it must see TV for a Monday.
Preview:Is SmackDown on a highway to Hell? August 17, 2008
At SummerSlam, Edge faced a returning Undertaker in an epic Hell in a Cell Match. The Rated-R Superstar vowed to show The Deadman the "purest form of hell." But after one of one of WWE’s most brutal matches, it was the legendary Phenom who sent the Ultimate Opportunist into the great inferno. With Undertaker back on SmackDown, will SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero – or anyone else – be safe from his vengeful scourge?
WWE Champion Triple H reigned supreme over The Great Khali, defying the odds by hitting the Pedigree in his very first match with the Punjabi Giant at SummerSlam. Now, The Game must defend his title in a five-man WWE Championship Scramble Match at Unforgiven.
This week on SmackDown, it will be none other than The Great Khali and Jeff Hardy who will compete in an Unforgiven WWE Championship Scramble Qualifying Match for an opportunity to face The King of Kings for his crown. What other SmackDown Superstars might get an opportunity to compete for a chance at the WWE Championship at Unforgiven?
Witness the fallout from SummerSlam on SmackDown on The CW Network at 8/7 CT.
The WWE presents its annual biggest PPV of the summer this weekend - SummerSlam. The show takes place Sunday 8pm est from the Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. While this is usually a show with a lot of build and high profile matches, this years offering seems a bit lacking, despite the fact they have thrown some major superstars together in trying to draw a big buyrate. With that, here is the breakdown for the show.
Edge vs Undertaker (Hell in a Cell) - This will likley be the main event, and for what it's worth - it should be. It will be the first time we've seen Taker since he "retired" a few months back after a loss to Edge at One Night Stand. Now he's back thanks to Vickie Guerrero, and this should be a blood bath. Both these men work well together, and they are wise to put this on as the main. Both these guys are at the top of their game, and this one should be a very solid main event despite not much on the line.
World Heavyweight Champion C.M. Punk vs JBL - We've seen this one before, as Punk took on JBL the night he won the strap, so they must feel they can keep it fresh. Keeping JBL in the title picture is a bit of a head scratcher, but they must feel that he still has value and can give Punk a solid match. No way I can see JBL winning the belt here, as Punk walks out with a successful defense of the World Heavyweight Title.
WWE Champion Triple H vs The Great Khali - Let's hope they keep this one short. With not much else going on in the title scene, they threw this together in hopes of making it legit, but not many are buying Khali as a serious contender for the belt, and for good reason. The company gave HHH some time off to be with wife Steph McMahon for the birth of their second child, and because of that, we have to deal with this, which should be a short 7-8 minute squash with HHH winning clean.
ECW Champion Mark Henry vs Matt Hardy - Hardy dropped the US Title at last month's PPV offering to set up this feud that we knew was coming when Hardy was moved and Henry got the belt. The ECW brand has been a bit better with the infusion of young talent, and while Henry does not deserve to carry the torch of this title, look for a win here to simply continue this feud till Hardy finally does win his first major heavyweight title. Batista vs John Cena - They are pushing this as the "first time ever" for these two, and many felt we wouldn't see this till Mania. I predict we still might, as I can easily see a no-decision here, allowing them to keep this fresh as the build for Mania 25 starts in full in the next two-three months. From here I see a slow build for Batista going back to heel to build towards a big grudge match with a title involved with Cena at Mania.
MVP vs Jeff Hardy - These two just had a match at a PPV a few months back, but this time they are actually going though with a program, so I wouldnt' doubt if they drag this out a little. On the other hand, this could be a "one and done" and then they could move Hardy into the title picture with Triple H after he takes care of Khali. Down the road Hardy will have a title shot, and I think it's going to be sooner than later, meaning he wins clean here.
Beth Phoenix and Santino Marella vs Kofi Kingston and Mickie James (IC and Women's Belt on the line) - Kind of a silly way to have two belts decided, but for whatever reason they decided to have these four in a match and put not one but two belts up. I can likely see one of the belts changing hands, and the way it should go down is Marella, finally admitting his crush on Phoenix, helps her win the womens belt and forgo's the IC belt. That's the most logical way of it playing out anyway.
WWE is looking to get as much out of The Great Khali while they still can. The belief is that he won't be with the company for the long haul due to his ailing knees, as they continue to give him problems. Khali was said to not be too aggressive in rehab during his last round of knee surgeries. Nowadays, Khali struggles to get around and people are questioning his long term future in the business.
The countdown to SummerSlam starts in earnest tonight on RAW, and already there has been quite a bit of chatter about the SmackDown title match between Triple H and The Great Khali, and basically what the heck is the company thinking on this one? Our co-editor John Sefcik is so distraught about this match he's told me he'll boycott even watching it and will take in a restroom break or slurpee at the Conseco Fieldhouse when we're there for the event.
While I am not that upset about the booking, it's rather clear that the direction they are going in right now is to take the Hell in a Cell match between Edge and Undertaker and push that to the main event status for the card instead of the title match, which all in all is a good decision. There is also something that has not been talked about in these circles, and that is I would expect HHH to miss at least one TV taping as wife Stephanie is due to give birth any day now, and it's rather hard to have a heavy build to a program with the champ not at TV.
This (HHH-Khali) is clearly a program that should last a month until we put the Edge-Taker feud to rest, then get back on track with a heavier title program for Unforgiven in September in Cleveland. Not to start looking too far ahead, but there is already that underlying tone to a HHH-Taker match somewhere down the road, as described on the WWE's website a few days back.
For now, suffer through a quick Khali-HHH title match at SummerSlam, and then watch as the company puts that to bed and moves on to bigger and better soon thereafter.
BBC News out of the U.K. has an article on The Great Khali today, which you can read at this link. Khali claims that he lives a modest lifestyle, and that he can't afford a customized car. "I have no fancy villa or cars," he said. "I live in a simple home and do not have the money to order a customized car that would fit my size." Khali believes that Americans had a hard time with his character at first. "Americans could not imagine someone from India in WWE," Khali said. "They are now actually having a lot of fun." Khali also reveals some of the ring names that were pitched to him prior to his WWE debut in April 2006. Khali himself proposed the name 'Big Bhima', which he got from an Indian movie. The names 'Giant Singh' and 'Lord Shiva' were also discussed, but ultimately rejected due to concerns that they would offend Indians. Khali ended up taking his name from Kali, an Indian goddess with destructive powers.
Atlantic City, N.J., is the gambling capital of the east coast, and when Friday Night SmackDown rolls in this week, there will be a lot of wheeling and dealing on the boardwalk.
This Friday is "Championship Friday", as all three SmackDown titles – the World Heavyweight Championship, the United States Championship and the WWE Tag Team Championship – will be on the line for a blockbuster edition of Friday Night SmackDown!
Ever since winning the gold from Edge at WrestleMania XXIV, World Heavyweight Champion Undertaker has forged a path of destruction through WWE. But, this Friday he will face the 7-foot-3 behemoth, The Great Khali. The Deadman has battled many giant Superstars over the years, but what will happen when he tangles with the Punjabi giant?
At Backlash, United States Champion Matt Hardy finally got what he wanted – revenge against MVP, and in the process, the United States Championship. With a chance to regain the title this Friday night, what will SmackDown’s Franchise Playa be willing to do? As reigning champion, how tenaciously will Hardy fight to keep what is finally his?
In the remaining championship battle, WWE Tag Team Champions The Miz & John Morrison will defend the gold against Jimmy Wang Yang & Shannon Moore. The champions have defeated Moore & Yang in a pair of non-title matches this month, but just last week, "The Redneck" defeated Morrison on ECW and "The Reject" pinned The Miz on SmackDown. With the title finally on the line on SmackDown, which duo will come out on top when it really counts?
For weeks now, Colin Delaney has been vying for a coveted WWE contract. He gets another shot next Tuesday night on the 100th edition of ECW when he faces ECW General Manager Armando Estrada. But before that battle, Estrada has brokered a deal with SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero to have the young upstart face undefeated superpower Vladimir Kozlov this Friday night. With Kozlov crushing all of his opponents, what kind of shape will Delaney be in after he crosses paths with the powerful Russian?
And, after debuting on color commentary for SmackDown at Backlash, "Hardcore Legend" and three-time WWE Champion Mick Foley will be coming to Friday nights for good.
Don't miss Foley's debut, three championship matches and much more on a special championship edition of Friday Night SmackDown, 8/7 CT on The CW Network.
The Great Khali has been battling ongoing problems in his knees and has been struggling to get around recently, reports prowrestling.NET. Some of his colleagues believe that he needs surgery on both knees. Khali previously underwent knee surgeries back in late 2006, which put him out of action for about three months. Khali is scheduled to make a trip back home to India, so it could not have come at a better time.
The Great Khali will return his native village in Himachal on April 26
NAHAN: The Great Khali,the famous wrestler of WWE is returning to india this month. He will reach at his native village Dhariana in Sirmour of Himachal Pardesh. His younger brother Inder singh told that the Khali will reach here on April 26 this month.
But he will first reach at Jallandhar to report his Punjab Police office. During his stay he will stay at least one month in his village.
The Great Khali's real name is Dalip Singh Rana. He was born on 27th August 1972 in a poor family of the Dhirana village in Himachal Pradesh, his parents weren't as tall as he is today, but his Grandfather was a tall person of over Six Feet Six inches.
He had Seven other brothers and sisters, and was the third oldest among them in age. He didn't attend much school due to poverty but because of his exceptional growth and power, he started working as a Roadside stone breaker at a young age on daily wages to provide bread for his poor family. As he grew up he started playing various sports and prooved to be a really good sportsman.
The backstage word among those I spoke to was that Floyd Mayweather Jr. was raving to everyone about how much fun he had wrestling Big Show last night and would love to come back. The feeling backstage was that the bout was entertaining and both did a great job.
The consensus among everyone seems to be that Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels was the match of the night. I don't know how it came across on television, but I will never forget the site of Ric Flair walking the aisle to the ring as golden fireworks erupted in the background of the stadium. What a truly wonderful moment.
From: Wrestling Observer Newsletter
A while ago, WWE had a storyline idea where Gary Hart (who passed away last week) would form a heel stable called 'Black Friday Management' with Umaga as the main star. The stable would have had a criminal vibe as Hart would be dressed with a mob style business suit. Also, the plan was for him to be independent of WWE on television, and he'd be presented as a recruiter of international talent for the company. They also wanted him to be accompanied by an Asian girl based on the Catholic School Girl assassin character in the movie Kill Bill. The entire storyline plan never got off the ground because Hart angered Vince McMahon back in 1989. When John "Earthquake" Tenta was starting out in WWE, they had plans to use Gary Hart as his manager. On the day of Hart's scheduled WWE debut, he showed up at the airport in the city of his debut taping, but no one from the company came to pick him up. When someone finally did, he arrived to the arena mad about his treatment. Hart got into an argument with a road agent and left the building, pretty much bailing on WWE. A few days later, an upset McMahon called Hart, noting he bought him a plane ticket to come to work. Hart reacted by saying that he would send him a check for the ticket. Hart sent the check, but McMahon never cashed it in. Also, in recent years there were some feelers sent out to him about working with the developmental wrestlers, or helping out on the creative team. Hart would answer them by saying that he wouldn't last a month in the company. However, he had expressed interest in recent years about joining WWE as a manager. People on creative such as Dusty Rhodes, Michael Hayes and Court Bauer would remark at times that The Great Khali or Umaga would be much more effective if they had Hart as the mouthpiece.
Big Show was told that he was staying heel after WrestleMania to work a title program with Undertaker.
Another storyline idea being tossed around is a Big Show vs. Great Khali program, although that probably won't be taking place until later in the year.
The Great Khali's translator/manager, Ranjin Singh, is going to be off television indefinitely. Singh was "injured" this past Sunday at No Way Out. According to an article on WWE.com, Singh sustained a fractured patella after he was kicked from the entrance of the Elimination Chamber to the ground by Undertaker at No Way Out. According to the article, Singh also shattered his knee cap in three different places when he landed hard on the ground. According to the article, doctors say Singh will require surgery to repair the injury, and there is no timetable on when he'll be able to return. Singh is actually fine as this is just a storyline. No word yet if this was simply a way to write his character off of television.
I know we are still three plus months away, but the writing seems on the wall for some of the matches that we'll see at the big one - WrestleMania 24. The massive event in Orlando is going to try and pull out all the stops, and here are some quick match predictions based on the events currently going on in the WWE:
WWE Title Match - Triple H (C) vs Batista
This one has been teased a few times already. The setup is that HHH wins the belt from Orton at the Rumble or possibly No Way Out, and then Batista, now the ex-champ on SmackDown, wins the Rumble to set up the title shot. World Heavyweight Title Match - Edge (C) vs Undertaker
Right now this one is the most obvious match on the card, as for the next 3 months Edge and Vicki Guerrero make life tough for Taker, stopping him at every turn. Then Taker wins the Elimination Chamber match at No Way Out, forcing the title match. ECW Title Match - C.M. Punk (C) vs Shelton Benjamin
This could be the best ECW title match they have put out there since the brand started. Punk is solid, and Benjamin still has all the talent in the world, which would make this a very good match. I hope they let this build and give this match at least 10-12 minutes on the show and don't rush it.
The Great Khali vs Hulk Hogan
Setup on last Monday's RAW 15th Anniversary, as Hogan saved Hornswoggle from Khali, yet never did what we all know he is going to end up doing to Khali - slamming him. Can't see this angle going any other way, and Khali's stock will be that of gimmick jobber to lose to the Hall of Fame Hogan.
Chris Jericho vs JBL
Match set up on Armageddon and on the Tribute to the Troops show, a match that will be better with the promos then it will be in the ring in my opinion. They really should save it for Mania, as JBL's first match back in over a year and a half should not be a TV match or even at the Rumble or No Way Out. They can really let this build if they want, and they should.
WWE Women's Title Match - Beth Phoenix (C) vs Candice Michelle
Basic solid women's title match with Phoenix putting the belt up against the former champ in Michelle who wants revenge for the injury that Phoenix "caused" her that sidelined her.
- WWE, on the heels of signing and using with a decent amount of success Dusty Rhodes' son, has signed another son of a in-ring star. Reports say that Reid Flair, son of Ric Flair, has been signed to a WWE developmental deal. Reid will report to Florida Championship Wrestling after the holidays. You might remember Reid if you watched some of the later years of WCW, as in one angle many would like to forget, he had his head shaved by Vince Russo back in 2000.
- The following is from www.f4online.com: Dave Kapoor a.k.a. Ranjin Singh, the translator for The Great Khali, was scolded by Stephanie McMahon on Monday night after Raw.
In the final segment on Raw where a bunch of people came out, drank drinks and pretty much broke kayfabe, Stephanie felt Kapoor was having too much fun. The broadcast showed a shot of him smiling and having a good time, just like most everyone else.
After the show, Stephanie called him over and told him that his behavior was highly unprofessional. She also intimated that if he didn't take "the job of a lifetime" seriously that he could very well be let go by WWE. Stephanie also added that someone on creative shouldn't be an on-screen character (he's a member of the creative team). Stephanie said that she went to bat for him in the past, and that he'd he better not screw it up.
- WWE has Smackdown/ECW tapings after Wrestlemania on 4/1 at the American Airlines Arena in Miami.
