Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and Pro-Wrestling have had a long and storied relationship with one another, with both sports witnessing their respective stars trying their hand at the other.
Several combat sports Superstars such as Brock Lesnar, Bobby Lashley, Ken Shamrock and several others have found success inside the cage as well as the squared-circle.
Now although WWE has had more than its fair share of giants over the years, a giant that stands as the odd man out is ex-WWE superstar, Hollywood part-timer and Bollywood-hopeful – Dalip Singh Rana.
Known to WWE and pro-wrestling fans as the Great Khali, this man got by on the biggest stage of pro-wrestling in spite of being a less-than-stellar athlete and a lumbering giant without any discernable mic-skills.
Nevertheless, today we take a look at a few MMA Heavyweight and Super-Heavyweight fighters that would’ve definitely played Khali’s WWE role better than the Punjabi Playboy himself. Looking at you Vince!
Here are a few examples:
#5 Stefan ‘Skyscraper’ Struve
Dalip Singh Rana aka ‘The Great Khali’ has always been criticised for moving as though his feet were stuck in the sand, merely plodding through the motions inside the squared circle.
Let’s face it, Khali was a terrible athlete in his New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW) days as well as all through his 2006-2014 run in the WWE.
On the other hand, when you take someone like Stefan Struve (6’11.5” tall), you have an athletic giant with excellent movement and speed that would put most Lightweights to shame. Struve is a former Cage Gladiators World Heavyweight champion and also has legitimate experience in the sport of kick-boxing.
Also read: 5 most extreme pro wrestlers that would've survived MMA easily
Furthermore, he holds notable wins over the current UFC Heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic as well as the former Pride Heavyweight champion and Interim-UFC Heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.
With credentials like that, coupled with his excellent mobility, Stefan ‘Skyscraper’ Struve would have been a prized possession for Vince and co over at WWE instead of the plodding and non-athletic Khali.
In fact, even as of today, the WWE shouldn’t think twice before cutting Struve a sweet deal and enticing him to jump ship from the UFC to WWE. Struve would be an instant hit on RAW or SmackDown and a surefire success to draw in pro-wrestling fans.
Up next we take a look at some of the more notorious Khali-replacements, including 7+ feet giants as well as America’s homegrown Goliaths.
#4 Cory 'LA Giant' Peterson
Apart from Khali’s lack of mobility, yet another significant criticism regarding the ‘Punjabi Playboy’ was his inability to learn and speak proper English in spite of spending more than a decade of travelling and working in English-speaking countries.
Not only that, even though he did develop a basic understanding of the language as evidenced by several WWE promo-segments (the Khali kiss-cam, et al), his mic-skills were terrible, even in his native language of Hindi!
Enter Corey ‘LA Giant’ Peterson - a lower-tier MMA fighter with a professional MMA record of 2-1; best known for losing to Heavyweight MMA legend Sergei Kharitonov.
Peterson was an MMA pro for merely a year (2004) but was 7’0’ tall with vocabulary skills that would put Khali’s translator Ranjin Singh to shame.
Although he wasn’t a great MMA fighter, he was more than capable of besting Khali’s zombie-like manoeuvres and certainly wouldn’t bring the sheer awkwardness that the Indian giant brought to the WWE ring.
With Khali being billed as 7’3” by the WWE and the ‘LA Giant’ standing at 7’0”, the head-honchos at the WWE HQ could have utilised the American giant in several storylines that Khali participated in, including his initial run as a heel as well as the post-2008 ‘Playboy’ gimmick.
Picture an English-speaking American giant in place of Khali’s non-audible babble in rivalries against Dolph Ziggler, Kane, Batista, Rey Mysterio and several others. Which brings us to...
#3 Rob Longcoy
Standing at 7’0” tall and weighing in at more than 380 pounds, American Super-heavyweight Rob Longcoy fights out of Ohio boasting a pro-MMA record of 1 win and 2 losses with all 3 fights in 2015.
Despite his terrible MMA record, it goes without saying that the Ohio native is not only more intimidating than Khali, but is also more than capable of one-upping the ex-WWE Heavyweight champion’s in-ring moves.
The WWE creative team could have easily blended in Longcoy on the SmackDown roster as one of their coveted monster heels.
If a zombie of a man like Khali can pull off wrestling moves such as the Powerbomb, the Vice Grip or the Brain Chop, a young and athletic Super-heavyweight like Longcoy would certainly be more than capable of executing the said manoeuvres, making them seem all the more impressive to pro-wrestling fans.
Rob Longcoy, a true Super Heavyweight, would easily put the ‘Punjabi Nightmare’ to shame and would’ve been an excellent replacement for the Indian pro-wrestler. Let’s take a look at two of the best alternatives to WWE’s Khali character, up next.
#2 ‘The Techno Goliath’ Hong-Man Choi
Choi Hong-Man is a South-Korean former Ssireum (Korean folkstyle) wrestler, kickboxer and MMA fighter.
Standing over 7’2” tall and weighing in at over 330 pounds (150 kgs), ‘The Techno Goliath’ is no stranger to hardcore MMA fans. If you are a pure pro-wrestling follower, take note, this man is one of pro wrestling's biggest missed opportunities of the past 2 decades.
Having fought some of MMA and combat sports’ biggest names such as Fedor Emelianenko, Ray Sefo, Badr Hari, Semmy Schilt and many more, Hong-Man could’ve been everything that WWE executives had hoped that Khali would be.
Now, granted that his mic skills were just as bad, if not worse than the Punjabi giant; he would’ve more than made up for it by his gigantic presence and impressive resume of wins over legitimate MMA HW fighters.
Apart from potential matchups inside the squared-circle, Hong-Man is no less of a ‘Playboy’ than the ‘Punjabi Playboy’ having appeared in several TV shows alongside his music gig with supermodel Kang Soo Hee.
Besides, in 2009, he made his movie debut in the Japanese movie Goemon. Potential rivalries against fellow big men such as the Undertaker, Big Show or Mark Henry wouldn’t have been out of the question for the South-Korean giant.
‘The Techno Goliath’ would’ve most certainly outshined Khali had he been approached by WWE creative in the mid-2000s. Up next, we take a look at the man who is not only an MMA legend, but also a larger-than-life personality who’d dwarf the Indian giant’s presence.
#1 Semmy ‘Hightower’ Schilt
The King of our list – Semmy ‘Hightower’ Schilt is an MMA and kickboxing legend, boasting several titles in the sports of karate, MMA and pro kickboxing. Standing at about 6’11” tall, his fighting skills are as intimidating as his physical presence.
Having appeared in a number of movies including the Hollywood franchise ‘The Transporter’s’ trilogy; Schilt would be no stranger to MMA and kickboxing fans. Although he retired from professional fighting in 2013, at the time of Khali’s dominant entry into the WWE ‘Hightower’ was at the top of his game.
In addition to being a legitimately skilled fighter, Schilt also had a friendly and casual demeanour that would have been a perfect fit for a monster babyface run in numerous WWE storylines.
One can’t help but picture Schilt challenging Unmasked Kane or a monster heel version of the Big Show on a RAW or SmackDown segment. That would have been way better than the Great Khali’s entrance and matchups that featured an awkward silence throughout the jam-packed arenas at WWE’s weekly shows.
Struve, the ‘LA Giant’, the 7’0” tall and 380-pound Longcoy, Pride FC veteran Hong-Man Choi or Semmy Schilt. Despite the presence of several such intimidating and strong giants in the combat sports scene, why the WWE chose to stick with Khali for about a decade is truly baffling.
Nevertheless, keep up with our combat tradition and write to me about scary giants who you think would’ve been a better fit for WWE than... ahem... The Punjabi Playboy.
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