Mark Henry's induction to the WWE Hall of Fame in 2014 was the climax of a great journey. He survived some pretty bad gimmicks in the WWE. Many of his former personas could've tanked his career, but he, instead, rose above them and became a world champion with a great legacy.
Like his evolving career, Henry's skills in the ring also evolved in time. Whether he was in a stable or part of a tag team, he also shined bright no matter how good (or awful) his tag team partner was. This list will examine some of the best (and worst) tag partners of Mark Henry's illustrious wrestling career.
10 Best: The Rock
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The Rock and Mark Henry both owe a ton of their long-term success to The Nation of Domination. The faction helped both of them move from forgettable gimmicks to a spot as "real talent." Of the other members of the Nation that Henry tagged with, D-Lo Brown, Faarooq, and Kama Mustafa, Henry's matches with the Rock stand out.
The two were clearly generational talents, and it showed in the ring every time they competed against other stars of the Attitude Era. Although Henry never held the tag team titles, the Rock would have been a great partner to have a run with.
9 Worst: Jack Swagger
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Jack Swagger is often remembered as one of the worst WWE world champions of all time. John Cena is one of the nicest wrestlers to ever live and even HE refused to drop the title to Swagger, while Jack held the Money in the Bank briefcase.
Henry's last days as an active wrestler in the WWE were filled with awful tag team matches, but this one stands out. The two had zero chemistry and Swagger was one of the few former world champions Henry did not compete well next to.
8 Best: Big E
Big E was one of the best tag partners of Mark Henry's last days in the WWE. The pair teamed up quite a few times on television and deserved a pay-per-view moment. The two big men were a dominant squad and Henry helped add a new layer to Big E's character who had begun to plateau.
As a unit, Big E and Henry defeated The Real Americans (Antonio Cesaro & Jack Swagger), Randy Orton and Sheamus, and 3MB (Drew McIntyre, Heath Slater & Jinder Mahal) in a handicap match.
7 Worst: Rodney Mack
Rodney Mack is a forgotten WWE superstar who was once a member of Teddy Long's Thuggin' And Buggin' Enterprises. Henry's time with this faction was a low point in his career.
The two competed multiple times on Raw and every one of their matches was forgettable. Everything about this stable felt odd, and it wasn't a good tag team situation for Henry.
6 Best: The Big Show
Although The Big Show versus Mark Henry felt like a no-brainer match in the 90s, the two didn't compete in a televised WWE match until 2008. The two were finally matched up in a monster tag team unit in 2013.
At the time, the pairing did a lot to add new life to the career of both former world champions. The two competed against (and defeated) The Shield and The Wyatt Family during their run as a unit.
5 Worst: Matt Striker
In 2007, Mark Henry was expected to bring new life to WWE's ECW reboot. The show was such a disaster that there was very little Henry could do to move the needle. One of the biggest issues with the company was the introduction of bland superstars like Matt Striker.
His "teacher" gimmick never seemed to fit the program, and he also seemed like an odd match for Mark Henry. The two competed in a few tag team matches that were as forgettable as Henry's time with the ECW reboot.
4 Best: Kane
"The Big Red Machine" and "The World's Strongest Man" were absolute forces in the ring. The two did not spend enough time as a tag team unit. The WWE finally paired the two stars together in 2008 and the results were amazing.
The only flaw with the booking of Kane and Henry as a unit was they never competed against any other "beastly" opponents. They did defeat top talent like Kofi Kingston, Rey Mysterio, and Matt Hardy as a team.
3 Worst: Lucky Cannon
Lucky Cannon flopped not once, but twice in NXT. In 2010, Henry began competing in NXT to help put new talent over. His worst moments in NXT all feature Lucky Cannon as a tag team partner.
They struggled to ever find a flow and all of their matches are awful. Cannon's career in the WWE never took off, and he hasn't wrestled since 2011.
2 Best: Randy Orton
Randy Orton and Mark Henry have been teaming up since Orton's developmental days in OVW. Henry was also one of the first tag team partners of Orton's career.
These early matches showcased the potential for Orton to be a star, and he surpassed Henry on the card in just a few years. One of the best tag matches of Henry's career happened in 2006 when he and Orton defeated Kurt Angle and Rey Mysterio.
1 Worst: The Great Khali
Khali and Mark Henry have teamed up a few times and not even Henry's great talent could help Khali stand out as a performer. Despite the clear potential to be a dominant force as a unit, most of their matches were huge wastes of time.
Khali didn't tag well with anyone, but his matches with Henry were awful. The pair only got one victory as a unit, and it was in a handicap match against Chavo Guerrero.