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NJPW announced last December that Japanese wrestling legend Killer Khan had died at the age of 76. WWE Hall of Famer Ted DiBiase spoke about working with Khan in Japan on "Everybody's Got a Pod."
"I know I worked with him several times here [in America]," DiBiase said. "Probably more in Japan, and probably a lot during the time that me and Stan Hansen were teamed up ... Bruiser Brody and Stan Hansen, they were the two most recognizable [and] famous foreign wrestlers in all of Japan. And Brody jumped ship, and he left All Japan Pro Wrestling and went to New Japan. That doesn't happen very often. Loyalty is a big thing in Japan. And so Stan needed a new partner and came to me, and he says, 'Do you want the spot?' And I said, 'Are you kidding? Do I want the spot?' ... But back to Killer Khan ... Great guy, though. The thing I remember the most about him [is] that he was a very likable guy. Very jovial."
DiBiase and Khan first faced each other in January 1980 at a Mid-South Wrestling event in Baton Rogue, Louisiana. They would continue to cross paths in the months that followed, feuding over the Mid-South North American Championship. They also faced off in two Lights Out matches during that period. Five years later, DiBiase and Khan worked against each other in various tag team matches for AJPW. In 1986, the pair had their final one-on-one bout at AJPW's Champion Carnival 1996 event, with DiBiase defeating Khan via disqualification in an NWA United National Championship Decision League match. The last time they performed in the same ring together was in a Battle Royal at a WWE house show in November 1987.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Everybody's Got A Pod" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
