Greg Valentine & "Rowdy" Roddy Piper - Why We Beat the S**t Out of Each Other in NWA Wrestling

Greg Valentine & "Rowdy" Roddy Piper talk about their insane dog collar matches in NWA Wrestling, especially the infamous encounter at Starrcade 1983. Full shoot ➤ TitleMatchNetwork.com
Produced, licensed & distributed by Title Match Media LLC. Enjoy the full Greg "The Hammer" Valentine & "Rowdy" Roddy Piper shoot interviews on our streaming subscription service, TitleMatchNetwork.com.
Title Match Media LLC digitally remastered the original raw footage, including color correction and advanced audio editing specifically for this KZbin release.
Before they arrived in WWE (known as WWF back then) Greg "The Hammer" Valentine & "Rowdy" Roddy Piper had some legendary brawls in NWA Wrestling. The culmination of their feud occurred in the Starrcade 1983 dog collar match where Roddy Piper gigged his ear so bad he almost lost it forever! Hear from both WWE legends as they relive those infamous dog collar matches.
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[@TitleMatchWrestling]

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[@ThunderFist1978]

Having met Roddy Piper myself, I can confirm Valentine’s assessment of what s great guy he was. I have met my share of wrestlers over the years, and Piper was easily one of the warmest, welcoming people I have ever met.

[@gerardraney4227]

I can attest to that about Piper. I gave him a birthday card with something inside of it. He shook my hand pulled me into his chest and hugged me. Strong son of a gun! I felt as if I were in a match with him

[@Maxx_d13]

You met a professional wrestler, they are either going to be a dick because they’re tired and aren’t in the mood or they’ll be very nice because they want to come off as a good professional. You didn’t meet the real roddy piper you idiot.

[@jasondewald7340]

Wish I could’ve met him. He was always my favorite. Jealous.

[@bluebeard6189]

I will never forget when I was a small child, and I saw a Rowdy Roddy Piper who I loved because my older brother love Hulk Hogan. My father immediately started screaming "hey Piper, hey Piper" I can only assume that he thought great I'm about to have a problem with another fan and to be honest my dad looked like trouble, giant beard Harley t-shirt. Because the Rowdy one just turned around and yelled "What the fuck do you want". The moment my father said "My kid loves you" He looked at me and suddenly turned into the nicest guy in the world. To this day that was the most meaningful handshake I ever got.

[@jamesanderson1179]

That was a cool story.

[@piteusx8440]

Back in the day, Piper said he literally had to watch his back from fans. They hated him because he was such a great heel. I'm sure he had his guard up. However, if you ever listened to him ... he's an incredible family man who truly loved his kids. His children say he was an incredible father. So yeah ... no surprise he was nice to you.

[@philipferrante3717]

One of the most memorable matches still talked today Piper Valentine Dog Collar Match Starrcade 1983 Flair for the Gold

[@philipferrante3717]

@John Doe they need to bring those specialty matches back the bull rope match russian chain the scaffold match even the triple tower of doom match

[@yoholmes273]

You could live to be 1000 years old & you still would never find two talents on the level as Roddy Piper & Greg The Hammer.

[@Brando-Lee3725]

I dont care what anybody says , nobody can touch Piper on the mic . Hes so charasmatic and out there in the way he spoke ! Whether its on the broadcast booth , promo or just in real life ! this man was fantastic . There is no one like that these days . One of a kind . RIP Roddy . A staple of my childhood in the 80s and beyond .

[@whodey5103]

What a great talker he was😊. May he rest in greatness.

[@kenneththomas2032]

The HAMMER . One of the toughest for real

[@OscillatorCollective]

PIPER vs VALENTINE is one of the greatest rivalries of all time...

[@ScottieFarrowelvisKong]

I remember having to read about alot of those rivalries in the wrestling magazines. The territories were locked down tight and (at least until cable kicked in), you wouldn't know about a wrestler unless they 1) wrestled local (televised local 2) read about it. Luckily St Louis was one of the premier wrestling cities and a "tossed salad" of nationwide talent. I love the era of the internet and instant info but I do miss the mystique of the old days of wrestling

[@OscillatorCollective]

@@ScottieFarrowelvisKong that’s totally true. I grew up in Houston, so I was lucky. Paul Bousch ran a very variety filled wrestling promotion. I got to go when I was really young like in the mid 80s so I got to see a lot of different guys from all over, until Vince bought him out in the late 80s, so I got to see Hogan too. WCCW was really big here too so that was my go to promotion for a long time , until like you said cable became bigger then I could watch JCP NWA and the stuff from the Carolinas, some Mid-South too. I really miss the territory days.

[@thomasdonlin5456]

@@OscillatorCollective I’m glad to see you mention Houston Wrestling and Paul Beosch. My favorite was Jose Lothario and “hated” El Gran Markus. 😬

[@MasamuneStreams]

I agree 1000%. I was born in '86 so their rivalry was slightly before my time but Roddy Piper was the first wrestler that made me an official fan of wrestling. My dad would buy me Roddy Piper action figures and tell me stories about his matches with Greg Valentine in the early 80's before I was born and I romanticized the fued in my mind until the internet began to get popular then I started watching videos of their old matches. Their matches to this day are some of the most brutal and realistic matches ever. And then learning later in life that all of their matches were purely adlibbed just completely blew my mind. I'll love and respect both Roddy and Valentine forever. They're both the epitome of wrestling royalty in my eyes.

[@OscillatorCollective]

@@MasamuneStreams yeah...really good stuff.

[@zemmons5000]

I've seen multiple shoots with piper and he always seems like It almost hurts to break kayfabe

[@1950Grendel]

"Brutal matches but I really enjoyed 'em." A true Old School wrestling statement.

[@seanmcclure]

I always liked Greg. I felt like I was watching a real dude. I watched him when I was a kid growing up and I believed he was dangerous. I believed that shinguard could really hurt somebody. When I got older I realized he was someone who truly cared about the business. Still love him. I love Roddy piper too. Brutus beefcake, Randy Savage, Hogan, and all of those guys made me believe they were superhuman and that it was real. They were my heroes as a kid.

[@mking9446I]

Not just your heros my man. A generation of kids.

[@MegaSammy70]

Greg Valentine was a great heel during that period.

[@l4dengun186]

Yup, I hated him 😂

[@MrZombiejoe]

There's Nothing Like WRESTLING HISTORY On KZbin!!!

[@rustynblue1862]

RIGHT?

[@boardammo1593]

I found out why Hammer's so easy to listen to compared to others. He answers the questions clearly without going on a tangent LOL! 😁

[@marcianocastillo9501]

Owners didn't care about the wrestlers they just cared about the money they made them💯💯

[@TheSportsfan35]

@marciano castillo, you mean promoters right?I mean, as much as Vince today in 2021 thinks he owns the talent, he along with any of the promoters back during the territory days didn't own anybody.

[@MegaSammy70]

Not all of them were terrible..I heard the most best promoters as far as how they treated their wrestlers were Paul Boesch,Don Owen,and to a certain degree Jim Crockett Jr.

[@SciaticaDrums]

Piper and Valentine were the truest, most real, nicest guys. RIP, Roddy.

[@michaelward5370]

Growing up in Scotland, I didn't see much American wrestling until we got SKY TV in 1990!! I started watching WWF just after the Royal Rumble that year, and I was instantly loved Rowdy Roddie Piper because he claimed to be from Glasgow!! Loved him, the guy is a Legend!!!🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[@AbulImranHatim]

Yea but he was originally a Canadian

[@michaelward5370]

@@AbulImranHatim, yeah, I know that! That's why I said "claimed to be" from Glasgow!!

[@AbulImranHatim]

@@michaelward5370 hats off to you

[@michaelward5370]

@@AbulImranHatim, thank you!!

[@patrickkelley6212]

Probably the most vicious feud in wrestling history. I still remember the dog collar match they had.

[@jscottrockford]

I like the way Valentine always says “worked with” when he talks about other wrestlers.....it’s entertainment, and these guys are great at what they do 👍

[@MajorCaptainCabron]

RIP Roddy, you ruled !!!

[@thehellyousay]

I watched that 1st dog collar match. Been a fan of rowdy Roddy for decades.

[@mdhotstuff]

That was one of the matches that put the newer NWA JCP on the map. And no doubt, it caught the attention of Vince McMahon....It wasn't long after that, that both men were in the WWF. In fact there is a Piper's Pit, where the guest is Greg Valentine.. and it starts off awkward because they are supposed to be enemies, but ends with them being friends

[@jamiemark]

Very interesting, and very unusual for the WWF to acknowledge something that was done elsewhere.

[@robbernath]

​@@jamiemarkthat's not what the OP said. He indicated it was a bit awkward for the performers because in another wrestling promotion, they had a completely different involvement with each other. I imagine it's a bit difficult for them to break that mindset and effectively reset into another angle somewhere else.

[@laroshea4611]

Two legends of my childhood

[@eddielopez3041]

The dog collar matches between these two all time greats were the very first wrestling matches I saw.

[@jeffreyb6165]

I love it when 2 wrestlers can corroborate their stories as opposed to telephone.....telegram.....tella wrestler versions. 😄RIP Roddy.

[@OdintheGermanShepherd]

No doubt!!

[@kyalien]

When I wrestled, the closer I was to the wrestler I was wrestling, the harder we would hit. There was a trust there between us and the risks we took were bigger because we could trust each other to protect each other.

[@Doctor-Stoppage]

Ain't nobody wanna hear yer jail stories, boy! 💪😁😆

[@chazsmith7324]

The Lich Of Poor Sound SHUT THE FUCK UP LOSER!

[@chazsmith7324]

The Lich Of Poor Sound Excellent English BTW, BOY!

[@OscillatorCollective]

Christopher Longhurst yeah, usually the best matches/feuds are between good friends...

[@drumrocka]

I train Muay Thai, and the sentiment is the same. The closer we are, the harder we go. It’s a respect thing.

[@tamatihohepatekuru8782]

Love hearing these stories from the Hammer most respect

[@raymondphillips7107]

I watched the dog collar match a hundred times on VHS! Classic match.

[@jimmycrackcorn4902]

I got Valentine's autograph in the late 80s when i was 12 yrs old. Huntsville Alabama

[@HammerOfJustice124]

You know you put in your time when Greg the frickin Hammer Valentine says he’s got more respect for you than most of the people he’s worked with. I remember seeing the match when Valentine whacked him with the belt and I remember sweating myself while watching it.

[@the1rawdawg]

Their Dog Collar matches back in the day were classic.

[@christopherbako]

45 minutes....of Piper & Valentine. That must be an ass kicker.

[@andymassingham]

I saw Piper go 30 min as heel with no letup. Around ‘81. Believe me...it was brutal and everyone was stunned. Different times.

[@christopherbako]

@@andymassingham It was about 6 years before I bought the mags...let alone see a Vhs.

[@jironthunder7519]

2 legends 1 story.. the match that made me uneasy: dog collar match!!!!

[@909cool-oagents4]

Valentine dosent get the credit he deserves-I think because he’s been around so long people forget when he was younger-same as buddy Roberts who was dale valentine at one time

[@KClouisville]

I think it's also probably that his best work was done before his WWF stuff....but WWF was the biggest stage he was ever on.

[@gdirty7380]

@@KClouisville yea by the time he got to wwf, it was around that era of like macho and hogan and warrior, and the giant guys like one man gang/akeem, eathquake, big bossman ( people forget he weighed around 400lbs in his early days)..i think valentine just wasnt appreciated because that era of wrestling was targeted towards kids more. i know i didnt care for him back then. he wasnt really tall or super muscular, he wasnt very colorful as a character, he wasnt really flashy as a wrestler. but when i got older and watched old wwf ppvs on dvd, i realized how great of a wrestler he was. reminds me of dean malenko

[@chuckcookus]

No ego so he was willing to really sell a bump

[@KingKhanate1997]

I think it was Adam from Cultaholic who said it best. For as much success as Valentine had, he’d have had even more if he was born 10 years earlier and had the chance to be true territory heel. I think he could’ve been a great draw.

[@meryatathagres1998]

@@gdirty7380 He did have a huge story with Tito Santana, and another major one in tag team with Brutus Beefcake. These were around the time of first wrestlemanias.

[@roadspectre7655]

I remember they beat the crap out of each others on that match and also the mid atlanta 83. Wrestlers were incredible during the 80s and 90s. Really miss those time. Matches seems so legit as they really put the efforts and heart in every match.

[@vultureguy33]

Way more hardcore than 99% of "hardcore" matches

[@brianconnelly1238]

I've seen a lot of Greg Valentine shoots, one thing I've always taken away from them, Gtrg Valentine seems like a very genuine guy

[@barneyrubble736]

Hammer! Hammer! Hammer! Hammer! :) I loved watching Piper in any match, but Hammer was always "on". I'm remembering watching Hammer tag teaming under Cornett managing... Piper and "da Hammer" always entertaining. :)

[@stripmin41]

Roddy Piper was in my mind the greatest wrestler of all time a true tough guy.

[@rickb.9067]

Both Piper and Valentine... new how to put on a show, they knew what the fans wanted. You play to the fans , you sell to the fans. The fans make you who you are... and Piper and Valentine understood that and they played on that.

[@mikejejenich-pb5zx]

They beat the crap outa each other in that match. 👋🤣. Dog 🐶 collar match was brutal

[@brownbear6819]

Legendary bouts, platinum

[@bertspivey3214]

Until now I thought Piper's ear was legitimately damaged in the match. I always thought Valentine hit him too hard. I had no idea Piper bladed the side of his head. That's quite a sell.

[@MrDjklj73]

They did make it look real. I remember reading a P.W.I. magazine they had a diagram of the inside of a ear saying it was Pipers' ear . Wrestling now will never be like Wrestling from back in the day.

[@rickybobbyroode9814]

Yeah it’s way better now. No more garbage matches like Hogan vs Warrior. Back then the characters were better but the in ring work was beyond trash.

[@MrDjklj73]

@@rickybobbyroode9814 You're right about Hogan. I grew up watching N.W.A. that's were the Piper and Valetine feud began right in my Hometown of Greensboro N.C. WWF. were at their best during the attitude era without Hulk Hogan and the circus that they brought into wrestling.

[@justafanofnerdculture7602]

MrDjklj73 I remember that article from PWI! I remember feeling bad for Piper getting his ear busted up like that.

[@MrDjklj73]

@@justafanofnerdculture7602 Exactly 💯

[@vultureguy33]

That dog collar match is still one of the best matches of all time

[@pantangela]

Coherent or not you just can't hate Piper. Still sad though I miss him of the early to mid 80s. He was always a better suited heel. As a face in late 80s to his return he was good but lost so much steam. No Matter R.I.P. Piper

[@evanabbott2737]

People love saying “oh look! I know he’s drugged up in this interview! Look how high he is!” I think that’s just how he always was..! Drugs or no drugs, that was his personality, he was a unique personality.🙄 R.I.P. 🙏❤️

[@jason-hy8ci]

​@evanabbott2737 I knew someone who talked just like Piper does In this interview, he was VERY intelligent, and different, and many people thought he was drunk, and or drugged up all the time also, "We mock what we don't understand", shame.

[@dougfredricks2017]

I do remember on NWA back in the day. Greg:"This is the Year of Pipers Ear!" 😆

[@Bearwolf13]

One of my all time favorite matches...

[@jeffmon6357]

When I smoke weed I find myself watching Greg's interviews and love em all. Always loved wrestling....started watching just after wrestlemania 1

[@michaelcorkery7108]

I saw Piper and Valentine do dog collar rematch in Fayetteville NC at the Cumberland County Arena. Just as brutal as the one at Starrcade. I saw Starrcade in that arena on the closed Circuit Screen. $10.00.

[@greatzoglo]

Piper and valentine, two of my favorites. They gave epic matches.

[@Kevin-cy4qn]

Starcade '83, if you've ever watched the Flair vs. Harley Race, ALL that blood in the ring was from the Greg Valentine vs. Roddy Pipe, Dog Collar Match! U could hardly see the HUGE YELLOW NWA LETTERS in the middle of the ring! That's how much blood & how distracting it was! Not to mention 1 of the greatest matches of ALL TIME, & HANDS DOWN the GREATEST Dog Collar Match EVER

[@unclefugnutz3356]

Piper was so GREAT

[@CatherineBurk]

Saw them fight in Havelock, N.C. in 1983

[@grimlightwildoutdoors]

Rowdy is the true meaning of the word legend as is Valentine ❤️👏🏻👍

[@jimsinister13]

Roddy piper and Greg valentine would have made a great tag team. ahhh, in an alternate reality , right ?

[@patrickfennell6372]

Both could play super heels.

[@turtlebutter6401]

He still looks awesome and still has the hair!!!

[@patuno335]

You do know he’s dead now right?

[@battlestarmarc]

Piper valentine was a great feud. Should have continued in the wwf.

[@AldershotDave]

I didn't realise that Piper cut his own ear in that match!!

[@alanr4263]

Greg the Hammer Great wrestler grew up watching the Hammer

[@traum640]

Watching Roddy like this is so hard.

[@Wu_36]

R.I.P. Piper

[@billycarrion475]

I was there two weeks prior Piper won the US belt with back to back airplane spins

[@JamesBond-uz2dm]

Rowdy Roddy Piper is Canadian, I can tell by the accent. Western Canada is full of wrestling fans. I think they had their own league.

[@sethdunavant1831]

He got that dog collar from his tag team partner Killer Brooks in pacific NW big time wrestling in the 70ies,,,he musta been 18 years old

[@cliffroberts1774]

The Golden years

[@kevinlynn2456]

I watch the dog collar match on dailymotion between the two and from what I read they had the most brutal bloody feud that lead up the there match at the first starrcade also the main event was flair vs race in a cage for the nwa world heavyweight championship. But that dog collar match was brutal. The nwa in 1983 has few brutal and bloodiest feuds I think of tommy rich vs mad dog buzz sawyer, then roddy piper vs Greg Valentine. I don’t know about Florida feuds in that year

[@lutherportnoi1611]

miss pipes soooooo much!

[@milesdufourny4813]

Greg should have called him "VanGogh" after that.

[@CT-nb5lm]

I loved both of em

[@fredgardner2870]

We had to do it 19 more times.......... holy shit batman

[@jdizzlefoshizzlealldizzle]

He always reminded me of Marla Hooch from "A League of Their Own"

[@arriuscalpurniuspiso]

We love you Hammer Valentine ❤️

[@jetcitysinatra7300]

Is Piper buzzed here? I know Piper was so into character that he was afraid to be himself like Greg is because the Character is what made Piper famous.

[@jugghead82]

Man Legends

[@oneyedthing]

If HHH had smaller nose he'd be Greg Valentine

[@JerichoMile4]

Greg Valentine and Rod Piper tough wrestlers ‼️😬🤕

[@michaelnivens6267]

Rest In peace Roddy

[@deebee9917]

piper looks great here....rip piper

[@chriscawthorn1873]

Pain killered right out.

[@Mike-xe1pn]

Dang.... I love how off kilter the two of them are. Makes a great interview.

[@Joker-qr5se]

Can we get a Roddy Piper movie where Mark Walberg plays him ?

[@dustyttrain]

Piper strikes me as a little scary. There is something not quite right between his ears

[@unclecreed2986]

He had a lot of bad stuff happen to him in his life like Jake the Snake

[@adrianmixit1998]

Where can i see this match?

[@4EyedAnimation]

Roddy Piper tells a story like an industrial clothes dryer

[@rebbur1tew1]

Didn't zipper lose a piece of his ear in one of those altercations.

[@vickmcfadden833]

Damn he looks exactly the same same exact face same exact haircut

[@mrknowitalllt1]

just how small was piper when he started wrestling because everybody mentions that

[@jongggrowss4202]

I don’t think he has a bad thing to say about anyone lol the hammer he was great

[@christopherbako]

Valentines hands looked just like my dads...Short sausage fingers.

[@anthonyobrien63]

The 80 s wrestling best way to describe 80 s professional wrestling . cocaine its a hell of drug. They were so messed up back then funny not like its not messed up now. Just say no kids .

[@HearBobbyRoar]

I listened to a voice-mail of Piper, when he was with WCW, calling a wrestling promoter/trainer where I from, yelling and asking about hooking him up with cocaine. Over half of my memories of personally dealing with famous wrestlers were dealing with drugs. Jake the Snake relapsed on crack when he was personally with me. One of the craziest stories ever.

[@dennisbrown1811]

Piper was light years ahead

[@msoi215]

#RIPHotRod

[@lino580nunya5]

Chris Robinson 🙏🙏🙏

[@ericnickerson1060]

God I miss the rowdy one

[@bobnewfart7630]

Yeah wrestling was not so fake back in those days

[@johnobrien1759]

Piper can not tell a story, he’s all over the place.

[@Gibson1976uk]

shame how some of the wresters were champs in previous companies etc. but didn't get much or anything in the WWF/WWE!

[@benwood7174]

Piper was the very best

[@gibby100]

Johnny Fargo!

[@benperchalski4825]

Yea i could completely agree with piper. 19 more times come on man it was supposed to a one time deal