In 1979, WWE established the Intercontinental Championship, claiming that Pat Patterson defeated Johnny Rodz in the finals of a fictional tournament in Rio de Janeiro. Patterson was simply awarded the IC title, while three months later he lost the North American Heavyweight Championship he previously held.
in an episodeSomething for wrestlingJohn “Bradshaw” Layfield explained that Rio de Janeiro was chosen as the location for the fictional tournament for a very specific reason.
“In case you didn’t know, the reason I chose Rio de Janeiro (Vince McMahon) is because Pat couldn’t say it,” JBL announced. “It’s a true story. He chose Rio de Janeiro because Pat couldn’t say it because of his French accent. Yeah, yeah, it was all Pat’s rib.”
Patterson would become an important part of WWE until his death in December 2020, remaining an integral part of NXT’s Performance Center as well as the mind behind the Royal Rumble match. Paul “Triple H” Levesque even claimed that he was second only to McMahon during his tenure as WWE President.. Levesque also said Patterson is also someone he considers influential in the wrestling industry, praising the late veteran for his work in the San Francisco area.
Today, Patterson’s legacy continues with the Intercontinental Championship, currently held by Chad Gable at the time of writing. after winning the belt against then-champion Penta on Night 2 of SummerSlam in August. Gable is set to defend the belt against Penta’s brother Ray Phoenix this upcoming RAW.
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