WATCH: WWE pays a Heartfelt Tribute to Hall of Famer Pat Patterson on SmackDown

WWE SmackDown’s tonight episode opened with a tribute to Late wrestling legend, Pat Patterson. This is the first main roster to air since his tragic demise. However, previously WWE NXT did pay a tribute to the legend in their own way.

As soon as the Friday Night SmackDown episode aired, it showed a graphic to Patterson while the Superstars alongside Vince McMahon and Gerald Brisco stood on the ramp. While everyone was waiting silently on the ramp, a ten-bell salute played in the arena.

The tribute ended with a ‘Thank You’ chat as the cameras panned the WWE ThunderDome audience.

Apart from that, WWE placed Pat Patterson’s original Inter-Continental Championship belt at ringside. To anyone who does not get the reference, Patterson was the very first Inter-Continental Champion.

Pat Patterson passed away at a Miami hospital on 2nd December 2020, after battling cancer in the recent past. The entire WWE Universe has been grieving his demise ever since.

Pat Patterson has several achievements to his name

Pat Patterson was not just another Superstar in the ring. He has contributed much more to WWE than only providing entertaining content to the audience.

The Late Superstar was a trusted stooge of Vince McMahon. He became a commentator and later an Official. In fact, he took on the role of a commentator while he was still an in-ring performer. This was possible given his excellent skills when he was using the mic.

Patterson is the oldest WWE Champion to have walked the ring. Back in June 200, he secured the Hardcore Championship from Crash Holly after a pin victory. Even though he held the title for a week, it was enough to mark him in the books of history.

Furthermore, WWE credits Pat Patterson for coming up with the idea for Royal Rumble matches original format. The event, as we see today, has been expanded upon and changed.

Apart from these, Patterson had secured several championships back in this day. He was an absolute legend inside the ring, and had efficiently risen to the top of the WWE ladder.

He broke past another boundary when he came out as the first openly gay superstar in WWE. However, the company never used this as an angle for a storyline.