“He Tried To Pull Stuff”: Sammy Hagar “Literally” Wanted To Break David Lee Roth’s Neck During 2002 Tour

On April 30th, Sammy Hagar will take the stage in Las Vegas for his Best of All Worlds residency. Due to the success that followed his 2024 tour of the same name, the residency will bring the rocker to Sin City. Thrilled to kick off his show, Hagar’s concert will feature some throwbacks to Van Halen classics. And with the new residency just around the corner, the rocker recently took a look back to when he toured alongside David Lee Roth in 2002 and how he wanted to break his “Neck.”

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Back in 2002, Roth and Hagar decided to join forces for the Song for Song, the Heavyweight Champs of Rock and Roll tour. The tour centered around the idea that Hagar and Roth would trade who took the stage first. Switching off with each new show, apparently, Roth didn’t follow through with the plan. 

Speaking with Rolling Stone, Hagar insisted, “He tried to pull stuff on the Sam and Dave tour. The nights when he was opening, when we flip-flopped…which I would never do again. I would never bother. But look, I’m not an opening act for anybody.” Revealing how Roth would switch at the last minute, the singer continued, “On those nights, he would call in and say, the bus broke down, 10 minutes before he was supposed to go on. And because I care about my fans, I would go on. And I did that about four times. I wanted to break the guy’s f**kin’ neck.”

[RELATED: Sammy Hagar’s Simple Plea to Alex Van Halen: “Just Leave Me Alone”]

Sammy Hagar Would Still Perform With David Lee Roth

Always keeping the fans at the forefront of his thoughts, Hagar never wanted to disappoint them. But even when he went first, he explained how Roth struggled as a headliner. “The stupidest thing is, he did the worst when he headlined. He couldn’t follow me with a band of kids playing Eddie [Van Halen’s] guitar solo note for note and playing ‘Eruption’ and s**t. He did his whole Van Halen show from 1983, and I’m going, ‘What an idiot!’ He should have represented himself a little more like who he was as a solo artist.”

While not Hagar’s favorite moment during his career, he didn’t rule out the possibility of joining forces with Roth in the future. But he promised, “The circumstances would have to be right.”

(Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images for Stagecoach)