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"Bad Guy" Makes Good Moves

Posted: Apr 13th 2007 By: CMBurnham

Veteran pro wrestler Greg "The Hammer" Valentine didn't have his own cartoon, wasn't offered a VH1 reality show and never battled in a one-on-one championship match at a Wrestlemania event.

But if you were between the ages of 10 and 15 in the mid-1980s, chances are you hated Greg "The Hammer" Valentine.

And Valentine is honored that you did.

"There's a lot of Hammer fans out there, they love the rough style. They respect me," the 55-year-old Valentine says about his almost career-long role as a "heel," or bad guy. "I guess that's where I was most useful. That's where I drew money. I enjoyed it in my younger career, and I still enjoy it."

But these days Valentine executes his signature elbow drop on the independent circuit as a star name in smaller venues, an ongoing tour that has him slated as the top card April 22 at the Delaware National Guard Armory in Prices Corner.

And as a living legend, Valentine is often cheered by the fans, whether he's doing his usual dirty deeds or not.

"I don't change anything when I become a fan favorite," said Valentine, whose real name is Greg Wisniski. "Take me as you take me. If you don't like me I'm fine with that, too."

For those culturally impaired individuals not familiar with Mr. Valentine's career, "The Hammer" had about a two-decade run as a top name in several big-time wrestling leagues, including the National Wrestling Alliance, World Championship Wrestling and, most notably, Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation through the duration of its explosion in the 1980s.

No, he hasn't spent a ton of time as The Guy, but he's a legend. He's tag-teamed with Ric Flair, rumbled with Randy "Macho Man" Savage and put his signature figure-four leglock on Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat.

His wars with Tito Santana over the WWF's Intercontinental Championships are the stuff of legend -- cage matches, bloody faces, matches that went the distance -- and represent his all-time favorite feud.

"We had a real chemistry going," Valentine said of Santana, who sometimes rocks the ring at the Delaware National Guard Armory. "They were beautiful matches that we were proud of."

Speaking of chemistry, that's how Valentine stuffed his turnbuckle -- as the captain of championship tag teams.

Almost any casual wrestling fan will remember his run with Brutus "The Barber" Beefcake from 1986 to 1987. The so-called "Dream Team" buzzsawed through countless fan favorites, including the British Bulldogs and the U.S. Express.

The tag team recently reunited at an event in Gloucester, Mass., where they beat up a few French-Canadian guys and then humiliated them in classic form when Beefcake gave one of their valets a haircut.

"I would rather have him as my partner than beat on him," Valentine said. "He doesn't really like to wrestle me, because I chop hard."

Valentine said the independent circuit is perfect for the older legends, guys who want to control their scripts and maximize their exposure. Valentine said that's probably why his old buddy Hulk Hogan is about to do his first independent show next month.

And it's why Valentine would like to see Flair leave the WWE for the greener indie pastures. Flair might still be in the WWE, but the former champion is paying for it.

"If I turn it on, I just see him out there getting his head stomped by the younger guys," Valentine said. "It's kind of crap. I don't like the way they're treating him."

Treatment has always been big with Valentine. Other than dying his hair black while teamed with The Honky Tonk Man, he's always refused to do anything gimmicky, preferring to focus on his wrestling moves in the ring. He even once quit the WWF after writers told him to "kidnap" the British Bulldogs' mascot, Matilda.

"In the dressing rooms, there was a snake, a bird, a turtle, a dog. I go, 'Geez, what's happening to our business? It really is a circus.' "

He sees that circus as the beginning of a slope into the cheese that the now-WWE is today.

"I see some good matches," he said. "They're all in good shape, but all it is is a bunch of stunts. They don't tell a story."

And that's how Valentine plans to keep wrestling until he simply can't anymore. He heeded the advice of his father, late wrestling great Johnny Valentine, who said to never do crazy things for the fans and keep your action in the ring.

Those kinds of stunts got WWF star Mick Foley injured. And they got Owen Hart killed.

"Don't even mention that," Valentine said. "I've been in cage matches, dog collar matches ... I've never jumped off the top rope into the crowd. I've just been really blessed from the guy upstairs."