Whether or not King Kong is the MonsterVerse's strongest kaiju (that question should be answered in the upcoming Godzilla Vs. Kong), it seems safe to say he's at least the MonsterVerse's strongest ape. But who better to usurp a king than a prince -- specifically, Dragon Ball Z's Prince of All Saiyans, Vegeta.
When Vegeta first arrived on Earth during the Saiyan Saga, he could transform into an unstoppable Oozaru (or Great Ape) form. In a battle with Vegeta -- as he was during the Saiyan Saga, pre-tail cutting -- could Kong emerge the victor, or would Skull Island bow to a new Prince?
Kong's Strength Vs. Oozaru Vegeta's Strength
By comparing Vegeta's raw power to Kong's, it's clear Vegeta's strength, even at this early point in Dragon Ball Z, is superior to Kong's circa Kong: Skull Island. It's harder to make an accurate comparison yet with Kong's strength in Godzilla vs. Kong, as Kong's strength has increased over the decades, but he's got a lot of catching up to do to match Oozaru Vegeta.
Kong can break chains and rip trees from the ground, but Oozaru Vegeta manages to smash rock pillars with his fists without difficulty, and these pillars are far denser than just trees. Vegeta is able to overpower Goku's strength in his bare fists -- which is impressive, considering Goku's raw might following his training with King Kai. Kong may be strong and growing stronger, but can he break mountains with one punch as Oozaru Vegeta can?
Where Kong and Vegeta appear roughly equal is in their incredible feats of speed. While Oozaru Vegeta lacks the blinding speed that Vegeta would become known for in the years to follow, he's still a surprisingly limber gorilla. However, he's never too fast for the naked eye to see, indicating his raw speed is comparable to Kong's. This means that Vegeta won't be too fast for Kong to hit, even if Vegeta's hits land far harder.
Vegeta's Raw Energy Vs. Kong's Ingenuity
Vegeta retains his intelligence when transforming into an Oozaru, but even with all his wit, he might lack Kong's intuitive fighting style. Vegeta fights primarily with his bare fists and energy attacks, whereas Kong incorporates weapons into his fighting style. The question is which is more effective in battle: Kong's weapons or Vegeta's power?
In the Godzilla vs. Kong trailer, Kong manages to negate Godzilla's raw atomic power using his tools -- and when he lacks tools, he can still evade Godzilla's attacks. If Kong can stand up against Godzilla's atomic breath, surely he could figure out a way to evade or weave around Oozaru Vegeta's ki attacks.
However, Kong primarily uses crude weaponry, like tree-spears or custom axes, and Vegeta could likely withstand almost any attacks from such tools. There is one major exception -- if Kong strikes Vegeta's tail, then that's the end of his Oozaru form. However, Vegeta can most likely resist, counter or even destroy any weapons used against him with his own energy blasts. Unless Kong targets Vegeta's tail, Vegeta's raw power is probably enough to overpower any weapon Kong crafts.
Kong's Many Weaknesses Vs. Vegeta's One Big Weakness
Kong has more weaknesses than Oozaru Vegeta. In Kong: Skull Island, Samuel L Jackson's Preston Packard was able to injure Kong with explosives and Vietnam-era weaponry. While Kong is unaffected by bullets, flames burn his skin enough to cause him injury -- and Vegeta's energy blasts are far more powerful than that. At this stage, Vegeta's ki attacks are either comparable or stronger than MonsterVerse Godzilla's atomic breath, though it is hard to determine which is stronger.
By comparison, Vegeta can take far more punishment. While his eye is injured by an energy blast in his Oozaru form, the only things that can demonstrably injure his body are high-level energy blasts, such as the Destructo Disk. On top of that, Vegeta is armed in Saiyan Armor -- a lightweight uniform that can ward off almost any attack. Even under the extreme force of Goku's Spirit Bomb, the armor mostly maintained its integrity -- it was seriously damaged, but still took more punishment than Kong is capable of dealing with.
Again, the huge factor that changes the entire dynamic between Vegeta and Kong is Vegeta's tail. Saiyans' tails are extra vulnerable. In Dragon Ball Z, this weakness ultimately allows Oozaru Vegeta to be defeated by Yajirobe, one of the weakest main characters in the series. Vegeta is taken off-guard by Yajirobe's katana, a slash of which brings the Saiyan abruptly down to Earth.
Oozaru Vegeta Vs. King Kong - Who Is The Ultimate Winner?
At a glance, Oozaru Vegeta would appear to have the edge over King Kong in almost every regard. He's stronger and capable of far more destructive power, and Kong's clever usage of weapons ultimately can't offer him competition against Vegeta's intense ki attacks.
Despite this, Kong would most likely win this battle because he would have the sense to figure out Vegeta's great weakness -- his tail -- and cut it off. At the very least, he could grab hold of it and throw Vegeta by it. Either way, that tail gives Kong a huge advantage, one made all the easier to use given how Vegeta tends to fight at close-range.
Given this, it seems likely that Kong would defend his "King of the Apes" title from his princely challenger. Once Kong uncovers Vegeta's weakness and gets in range of it, Vegeta would easily be beaten. While Vegeta post-Saiyan Saga power-ups would destroy Kong, at this stage in Vegeta's life, Kong would beat him... though it would still be an intense fight.
