These two fought for the first time in The Incredible Hulk #172. This fight was given entirely too little space in the comic considering the sheer epic of this battle but I'm going to try to detail it as best I can. In this issue The Juggernaut is brought back to Earth from another dimension by a Hulkbuster attempt to banish the Savage Hulk from this plane of reality. The first attempt brings The Juggernaut to Earth and banishes Hulk. The Hulkbusters said that Juggernaut looked even more powerful than Hulk so they immediately tried to send him back. However this attempt only caused the Hulk to be brought back alongside The Juggernaut. Together Juggernaut and Hulk break out of the special cell and go their own way.

Cain has apparently gone a little mad during his dimensional exile and decides he wants to rule mankind. And he felt a good way to start his reign of terror was to kill a family of tourists driving along the highway. When he grabbed the father,Hulk leapt in to intervene.

The stage for battle was now set and Hulk started it off by charging into The Juggernaut's back. The Juggernaut responds by giving the Hulk a ram of his own which knocked him over a butte. Not relenting,Cain then rushes -through- the butte and battered Hulk against another one. Hulk manages to down The Juggernaut with a two-fisted hammer while Cain was bent over from ramming him. Hulk then ripped up the rock bed Cain's body was on and sent him flying out of sight.

The Hulk stood there thinking The Juggernaut vanguished but Cain is peering at Hulk from above on a cliff thinking to himself how that since no physical force can stop him that the Hulk was doomed. Cain then comes torpedoing down on Hulk slamming him to the ground. As The Juggernaut loomed over him Hulk tells him that he's been knocked down before but he always gets up. A point he emphasizes by raising to one knee and backpunching The Juggernaut. The Juggernaut then says that that might be true,but he's never fought anyone like him. Someone who while the Hulk was growing tired and his attacks getting weaker,remains fresh and only gets stronger. A point he emphasizes by taking Hulk's fatigued backhand like nothing and kicking Hulk to the ground. He then tells Hulk only because he considers Hulk nearly his equal in power that he was going to be quick about killing him. He wanted Hulk to rule with him and didn't really want to destroy him but he had to. An act he said he was going to perform by breaking Hulk's neck.

The Juggernaut grabs the Hulk by his face and hair to twist his neck and the Hulk screams in pain and anger. With a rage-induced escalation in strength the Hulk then reaches back and grabs Cain by the helmet and uses it to spin him around. Hulk says he's going to throw Juggernaut back to the base. The force separates Cain from his helmet and his body goes crashing into a mountain. Hulk,certain The Juggernaut is done with after that one tosses the helmet aside and turns to walk away. At this point The Juggernaut thinks to himself and reaches the conclusion that Hulk's mind is too simple to comprehend that he cannot be stopped. With Hulk seemingly oblivious that he is unscathed The Juggernaut poises to attack him from behind.

Then,just by the sheerest and most hilarious coincidence,Professor Xavier,Marvel Girl,and Cyclops show up having just been driving by. With few words,Professor X and Jean Grey give the helmetless Juggernaut a double psi-blast while Cyclops(I guess for theatrical effect) used his optic beams. Needless to say Cain fell like a sack of potatoes. And thanks to Cyclops,a smoking sack of potatoes.

Favorite Fight Quote:"UHHH!"-The Juggernaut,as the X-Men popped up completely out of the blue an unloaded on him as he about to nail an unsuspecting Hulk.

*The Juggernaut later fought a team consisting of the Savage Hulk again and a young kid who'd gained possession of the gem of Cyttorak in a mostly off-panel battle revealed in Avengers:West Coast #64. The kid apparently vanquished The Juggernaut with a beam from the gem.

**The Juggernaut fought the Merged Hulk in The Incredible Hulk#402 but while it was pretty good it doesn't rank in the Top 5 Juggernaut battles. Cain attacked the Hulk while wearing streetclothes instead of the Juggernaut armor so that the Hulk would not know who he was. By the time Hulk realized he was fighting someone that powerful it was too late and he'd found himself being beaten senseless. The Red Skull had to order Cain to stop before he pummelled the Hulk to death.

***Juggernaut and Hulk fought again,sorta,in The Incredible Hulk #457. I say "sorta" because what he fought wasn't really Hulk as we know him,but War,the horseman of Apocalypse. As War Hulk's strength was boosted significantly by Celestial technology which enabled him to draw as much power as he needed on command from the entire Heroes Reborn universe. And just for icing,Apocalypse also bestowed War with Celestial weaponry of untold power. Needless to say The Juggernaut didn't stand up too shiningly against a deck that stacked and pretty much just got knocked around. An opportunity for a classic battle pretty much tossed away in favor of a rather pointless mismatch. Very disappointing.