Greg "The Hammer" Valentine was a formidable competitor, renowned for his rugged and unyielding approach to wrestling. As a top-ranked Superstar across three decades, he built upon the legacy of his legendary father, Johnny Valentine, who had passed away. Throughout his illustrious career, Valentine accumulated a plethora of championships in various eras of sports-entertainment history, competing in the NWA, WCW, and WWE.
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, Valentine oscillated between the NWA and WWE, establishing himself as a force to be reckoned with. He held the NWA Mid-Atlantic World Tag Team Title alongside Ric Flair and the WWE World Tag Team Title with Brutus Beefcake. As a singles competitor, Valentine won the United States Championship in the NWA and the Intercontinental Championship in WWE.
One of the most impressive aspects of Valentine's career was his ability to compete in two groundbreaking events: the first Starrcade, where he defeated "Rowdy" Roddy Piper in a Dog Collar Match to win the United States Championship, and the first WrestleMania, where he successfully defended the Intercontinental Championship against Junkyard Dog.
After departing WWE, Valentine made frequent appearances on WCW Monday Nitro as late as 1997 and returned to compete on WWE Monday Night Raw in 2005, a remarkable 35 years after his debut match. Valentine's hard-hitting style in the ring has left an indelible mark on the sport, and he is part of an elite group of WWE Hall of Famers, including "Nature Boys" Flair and Buddy Rogers, who helped popularize the figure-four leglock.
