Snuka feuded with "Magnificent" Don Muraco in 1983, which began after Snuka entered the ring for a preliminary match while Muraco, the Intercontinental Champion, was being interviewed. Muraco, enraged at the perceived lack of respect, confronted Snuka at ringside, triggering a wild brawl. This feud led to a defining moment of Snuka's career on October 17, 1983, in a steel cage match at Madison Square Garden. The match ended in a loss for the Superfly, but afterward he dragged Muraco back into the ring and connected with the most famous Superfly Splash of his career, off the top of the 15-foot (4.6 m) high steel cage. Future wrestling stars The Sandman, Mick Foley, Tommy Dreamer, and Bubba Ray Dudley were all in attendance at the event and cite this match as the reason they decided to aggressively pursue professional wrestling
In June 1984, Snuka became embroiled in an intense feud with one of the WWF's top villains, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper. In a segment of Piper's Pit, Piper brought bananas, pineapples, and coconuts to the interview to make Snuka "feel more at home" but said he did not get a tree for Snuka to "climb up and down like a monkey." Piper then proceeded to smash a coconut on his head when he turned his back momentarily. The attack led to a series of grudge matches between the two that were played out over venues across the US throughout the summer of 1984. The remainder of Snuka's initial WWF stint would see him frequently tangling with Piper one way or another, often via tag matches or wrestling Piper's closest ally, Bob Orton, Jr. Snuka defeated Orton at The War to Settle the Score and put Orton's left arm in a cast for over a year. The feud played a small part in the first ever WrestleMania in March 1985, when Snuka acted as a cornerman for Hulk Hogan and Mr. T when they faced Piper and Paul Orndorff (with Orton in their corner). The Superfly vanished from the WWF in August 1985, though he still appeared in cartoon form when Hulk Hogan's Rock'n' Wrestling premiered the following month.
