3 Ups & 7 Downs From WWE Raw (Dec 7)

by Scott Carlson

1. Heartfelt Tributes For Pat Patterson

Pat Patterson tribute
WWE.com

In WWF/E history, few figures are more influential than Pat Patterson.

More than just the first Intercontinental Champion, Patterson basically invented one of the company’s most iconic matches, the Royal Rumble. He also was a master at booking those Rumbles and other matches, with a deep understanding of how to build tension and drama and manage the flow of the in-ring action. Patterson was a giant behind the scenes, providing up-and-coming wrestlers with advice that helped their careers immensely.

We got to see numerous tweets memorializing Patterson from current and former WWE superstars, and the requisite video package featured countless never-seen photos of Pat with Hall-of-Famers like Andre the Giant, Hulk Hogan, Bobby Heenan, the Grand Wizard, Gorilla Monsoon, “Classy” Freddie Blassie and Bruno Sammartino.

All in all, it was a great example of something WWE almost always does right.

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Contributor
Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.