Hulk's Evil Mentor Revealed the One Way To Beat Him in a Fist Fight
The Hulk met his match when Bruce Banner’s old mentor turned evil and found a way to single-handedly beat the Hulk in a fistfight. This strategy was employed in 1998’s The Rampaging Hulk #2. The issue was written by Glenn Greenberg and penciled by Rick Leonardi, with inking by Dan Green, color by Tom Smith, and letters by Bill Oakley.
With General Ross hot on his tail, Bruce returned to his alma mater, Desert State University, in the hopes of getting help from his old mentor Professor Geoffrey Crawford. Bruce discovered Crawford suffering from a rare degenerative disease, but still committed to conducting research on his teleportation technology. Crawford shocked his former student by revealing he believed his invention could rid Bruce of the Hulk by isolating the gamma genes in his DNA and then teleporting Bruce without them. But Crawford had a hidden agenda. He planned to first use the device on himself while inserting the same gamma genes into his own DNA. The plan was for Crawford to gain Bruce’s unique regenerative abilities and cure his disease.
In The Rampaging Hulk #2, it works. Not only is Crawford cured but he also turns into his own version of a gamma monster. Naming himself Ravage, Crawford seems to have actually retained his intellect, compared to the Hulk who is pretty much a mindless beast as the two fight. Because he still has his smarts, Crawford is able to strategize during the brawl. He theorizes that since the Hulk gets stronger the angrier he gets, the best way to beat him is to pound him hard and fast, never giving him the chance to recover. If the Hulk can be defeated before his rage enhances his body, he can be taken down - a theory Ravage proves by winning their battle fair and square.
This strategy is something of a one-trick pony, however, since while the Hulk might be dumb, but he does have a memory. When Ravage and Hulk face off in the very next issue, Hulk remembers getting beaten by Ravage. In fact, he remembers that Ravage trying to humiliate him by breaking his neck. So when Banner transforms into Hulk, the Green Goliath is angrier than normal and building fast. Ravage doesn’t have a chance to employ his strategy before Hulk is already on top of him like a wild animal.
Ravage isn’t the only Hulk foe to use this strategy, though. In Juggernaut #2, the Hulk faced off against Juggernaut. During the fight, the mutant D-Cell was able to use her powers to slow Hulk down. With Hulk’s body (and cells) physically moving slower, he wasn’t able to generate enough rage in a timely manner, leaving himself open to an uppercut from Juggernaut. D-Cell even mentions during the fight that the Hulk is physically stronger than Juggernaut by a lot. But his strength is reliant on his anger. No anger, no Hulk.
While Hulk is often treated as an unstoppable force in Marvel Comics, his strength is incredibly variable and reliant on his emotional state. Beating Hulk in a fight generally depends on having unique powers or technology that can offer some advantage, but for those rare enemies with gamma-level brains and brawn, it can be done with pure strength. Hulk may be the strongest one there is, but Ravage managed to find a reliable way for superstrong villains to take down the Green Goliath that's remained surprisingly consistent across the rest of his comic history.