Did Pat Patterson actually leave the WWE in the 2000's on account of HHH?

[AegonTargaryen]

In the comments section on the page "Breaking News: Vince McMahon Makes Major Change to the WWE Royal Rumble Match ", I read these comments, "Yeah cause we're all dying for Triple H to hold the title again for the 20th time. Ratings will fall under 2 permanently if this happens ", and " Which, if memory serves me correctly, is what caused Patterson to leave WWE in the early 2000's. He stated the focus was too much on HHH and him as champ was hurting ratings".

The first thing that came to my mind was an image of that Brisco guy, whom, weirdly enough, I have always thought of upon hearing "Patterson" ! But I am aware that those two were the stooges and part of many a funny segments which also involved the likes of Austin, Kane, and Vince Mcmahon himself.

Now, I had no idea back in the 2000s that wrestling was scripted and therefore, "fake", Let alone know about such things as backstage politics, and whether or not Pat Patterson left on account of too much emphasis on HHH. Therefore, I'd like to ask you guys, is it true ?

 

[AJ1981]

Apparently this was true. I remember reading an article in Powerslam years ago about what happened. It was around late 2002,early 2003 and Pat had become concerned about TV ratings, live show attendance and crowd reactions. He started taking notes at tapings and house shows noting who was over and who was not and created a detailed report into the then state of WWE. The conclusion of this report was that Triple H was being pushed to the detriment of the company and that his appearances on TV should be scaled back to allow others to shine.
Knowing how this information would be received Pat apparently requested a private meeting with Vince to go over the report hoping Vince's business sense would overcome his family ties. In Pat's eyes HHH was hurting WWE and he was convinced he could make Vince see that.
When he got to the meeting he not only found Vince but Stephanie and Hunter as well. As the story goes to Pat's credit he didn't bottle it and calmly explained his report and its conclusions and Vince apparently told him he would take his suggestions under advisement. Shortly after this it is said HHH made it clear he no longer wanted Pat involved in laying out or advising his matches. Apparently Pat had been somewhat naive about everything, he was just trying to do what he thought was best for the company. Hurt by the McMahons reactions Pat decided to retire but he would be convinced to return within 18 months as WWE needed his layout and finish abilities where he remains to this day.

 

[Richard Blonoff]

I have heard that Patterson left WWE due to feeling slighted when he took the reports to Vince, but it was around that same time that he was accused of sexual harassment against other male employees for at least the second time in his WWE run. The first time was in in '92, and he was fired over the acquisitions, only to be rehired when the charges were dropped.

It is entirely possible that the timing of the two events are just coincidence, it is also possible that the Triple H reports were just a convenient excuse for him to retire and avoid further negative consequences from the harassment allegations.

 

[EastCoastFan]

I always thought Vince fired Patterson for saying HHH was the problem in 2004 (as opposed to Patterson walking). Thanks for clarifying that for me!

 

[Wald]

Apparently this was true. I remember reading an article in Powerslam years ago about what happened. It was around late 2002,early 2003 and Pat had become concerned about TV ratings, live show attendance and crowd reactions. He started taking notes at tapings and house shows noting who was over and who was not and created a detailed report into the then state of WWE. The conclusion of this report was that Triple H was being pushed to the detriment of the company and that his appearances on TV should be scaled back to allow others to shine.
Knowing how this information would be received Pat apparently requested a private meeting with Vince to go over the report hoping Vince's business sense would overcome his family ties. In Pat's eyes HHH was hurting WWE and he was convinced he could make Vince see that.
When he got to the meeting he not only found Vince but Stephanie and Hunter as well. As the story goes to Pat's credit he didn't bottle it and calmly explained his report and its conclusions and Vince apparently told him he would take his suggestions under advisement. Shortly after this it is said HHH made it clear he no longer wanted Pat involved in laying out or advising his matches. Apparently Pat had been somewhat naive about everything, he was just trying to do what he thought was best for the company. Hurt by the McMahons reactions Pat decided to retire but he would be convinced to return within 18 months as WWE needed his layout and finish abilities where he remains to this day.

All of that with the added kicker that apparently Pat was asked to compile those reports by Vince as a means of tracking what was and what was not going wrong with the company.

Around 2005 a noted columnist on another wrestling site actually compiled a spreadsheet of ratings to prove/disprove whether Triple H as champion was ratings poison and he found that it actually was true. That within a couple of weeks of Triple H holding the belt the ratings would steadily drop and would rise again when he lost it. Rinse and repeat for multiple reigns and the stats clearly showed that Triple H shouldn't have been let near the world title and probably wouldn't have been but for his marriage to Stephanie

 

[Last Man Standing]

Back in the 2000's there were those in the IWC who would blame Triple H if they had a cold. Chances are anything you read is more likely assumptions made by a jaded fan. So I wouldn't put much stock into anything you read unless it comes from Patterson, Vince, or Triple H.

Plus I doubt Patterson would have been so bold after everything he has been accused of over the years. If you believe the reports, he's lucky to have a job.

Patterson comes from the old school way of booking. So I doubt he would have a problem with the booking of Triple H's World title reigns considering they were more less copying the booking from Flair's early 80's NWA reigns. Triple H had Evolution. Flair had the Horsemen. Both were stripped down to their underwear by opponents. The Triple H/Booker T feud was a carbon copy of the Flair/JYD feud. By making the fans yearn for a title change, it made the moment Benoit dethroned him mean so much more. Same with Batista the following year. It's classic booking 101.

 

[Kodo Sawaki]

My friend also tryed to stood up against bosses family. Needles to say, that didnt end up good for him. So kids, dont do that, almost always ends up badly.

As for Pat, maybe he was right, maybe he was not. It was transitional time in WWE with 2 biggest stars in Austin and Rock on their way of the company. Could be any number of things including that people were not very fond of HHH then.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

Back in the 2000's there were those in the IWC who would blame Triple H if they had a cold. Chances are anything you read is more likely assumptions made by a jaded fan. So I wouldn't put much stock into anything you read unless it comes from Patterson, Vince, or Triple H.

Plus I doubt Patterson would have been so bold after everything he has been accused of over the years. If you believe the reports, he's lucky to have a job.

Patterson comes from the old school way of booking. So I doubt he would have a problem with the booking of Triple H's World title reigns considering they were more less copying the booking from Flair's early 80's NWA reigns. Triple H had Evolution. Flair had the Horsemen. Both were stripped down to their underwear by opponents. The Triple H/Booker T feud was a carbon copy of the Flair/JYD feud. By making the fans yearn for a title change, it made the moment Benoit dethroned him mean so much more. Same with Batista the following year. It's classic booking 101.

Wasn't here also an announcer that left because he didn't like the direction of the company specifically with Triple H? I forgot who it was though.

I think it's safe to say that after all the shoots, backstage stories, and such that Triple H used his political power backstage to put his agenda put kept others down. Now even if let's say half of those stories or shoots were true that's still a lot of stories about him that points to his backstage politics.

I always found it weird that when Triple H and Jericho were on the same show, Jericho never came close to the World Title. It was only when Triple H took time off on RAW or when Triple H was drafted to Smackdown that Jericho got those title shots and in an era when even Hardcore Holly could get a World Title feud on PPV, something just felt fishy. Also it's no secret that Triple H also put Jericho down when Jericho debuted in 99 and Triple H buried Jericho on a real interview around the time of WMX8.

It's said that Triple H has always been pretty insecure and protective of his spot in the WWE. A lot acknowledge him as a Top guy but never the level of Rock and Austin and perhaps he felt he needed to dominate RAW for 2 or 3 years to solidify him on that spot. But it was also during a period where Smackdown was beating RAW in the ratings while Triple H was World Champion, so it does indicate somewhat how much of a draw he was when the B-Show was doing better than the flagship show which you are a face on.

I can't really blame him for that I mean it doesn't take away his passion for the business yet it also does not mean he didn't use politics backstage to get himself and his buddies over and put others down.

 

[Jonyboyuk2]

After the boom period of Stone Cold, Rock, HHH, Mankind and Kurt Angle in 2000/2001 - around the same time as WCW invasion angle- WWE looked to Brock Lesnar to retain the fans interest. They also looked at Eddie G and Benoit and whilst it was successful to an extent - fan interest was on the decline. In 2004 Vince sent Pat Patterson out on the road to evaluate what was wrong with WWE at the time. His report warned "too much HHH" which was very true indeed. They tried to make Batista and Randy Orton the next break out stars and, whilst successful, they never made it to the popularity of Rock or Stone cold (but in fainess, who does?). In the end Cena was the fans choice (and still is). However, apparently the HHH remark got tension in the booking team meetings and Pat Patterson decided it was time to call it a day - the guy is a legend and NOBODY can put a match together like Pat. Ask HBK, Ask Bret, ask Kurt, ask Rock, ask Taker, ask HHH.. nobody is a better booker of a match than Pat - he is a true visionary.

 

[Wald]

Back in the 2000's there were those in the IWC who would blame Triple H if they had a cold. Chances are anything you read is more likely assumptions made by a jaded fan. So I wouldn't put much stock into anything you read unless it comes from Patterson, Vince, or Triple H.

Plus I doubt Patterson would have been so bold after everything he has been accused of over the years. If you believe the reports, he's lucky to have a job.

Patterson comes from the old school way of booking. So I doubt he would have a problem with the booking of Triple H's World title reigns considering they were more less copying the booking from Flair's early 80's NWA reigns. Triple H had Evolution. Flair had the Horsemen. Both were stripped down to their underwear by opponents. The Triple H/Booker T feud was a carbon copy of the Flair/JYD feud. By making the fans yearn for a title change, it made the moment Benoit dethroned him mean so much more. Same with Batista the following year. It's classic booking 101.

The Patterson report was more about the on-screen time Triple H occupied than title runs. If I remember correctly, he basically analyised a few weeks worth of Raw and saw that Triple H would normally be in the opening talking segment (10-15 mins), have a few backstage segments (lets say 5-10 mins in total) and be involved in a match at the end (another 10-15 mins). Sometimes he was on screen for more than that too, like having a second in-ring segment (lets say another 5 mins).

So in a show that runs about 90 minutes in total you'd have one character take up anywhere from 25 to 45 mins. If it is the top side number than that means that Raw was 50% Triple H, which it often either was or felt like it was and that was what Patterson was saying was the problem. With ratings going down than the answer was more varied segments rather than never give Triple H the title again.

Not sure what the problem with that idea is, particularly if stats were showing falling ratings during those multiple segments.

 

[Xpyred013]

In the comments section on the page "Breaking News: Vince McMahon Makes Major Change to the WWE Royal Rumble Match ", I read these comments, "Yeah cause we're all dying for Triple H to hold the title again for the 20th time. Ratings will fall under 2 permanently if this happens ", and " Which, if memory serves me correctly, is what caused Patterson to leave WWE in the early 2000's. He stated the focus was too much on HHH and him as champ was hurting ratings".

The first thing that came to my mind was an image of that Brisco guy, whom, weirdly enough, I have always thought of upon hearing "Patterson" ! But I am aware that those two were the stooges and part of many a funny segments which also involved the likes of Austin, Kane, and Vince Mcmahon himself.

Now, I had no idea back in the 2000s that wrestling was scripted and therefore, "fake", Let alone know about such things as backstage politics, and whether or not Pat Patterson left on account of too much emphasis on HHH. Therefore, I'd like to ask you guys, is it true ?

Lol. This is the first time I have ever seen anyone quote one of my comments and make a thread about it.
The only reason i even made that comment was because I recalled hearing nonsense about Patterson and HHH way back in the day and I had to google it. A google search game me the info that you quoted.

 

[AegonTargaryen]

Lol. This is the first time I have ever seen anyone quote one of my comments and make a thread about it.
The only reason i even made that comment was because I recalled hearing nonsense about Patterson and HHH way back in the day and I had to google it. A google search game me the info that you quoted.

lol, yes. I made a thread because I was intrigued upon reading the comment you made..and wanted to know if it was true.

Turns out, yes it's a bit true.

HHH's image from that time and overall constitutes one of those contentious issues in Wrestling, so one tends to either hate him or respect him for his contributions.

I'm of the opinion that, regardless of Pat Patterson's findings/opinions during that time, HHH does seem to have had buried or otherwise kept other wrestlers below him.

I had firmly believed back then that Rob Van Dam was talented enough and charismatic enough and okay enough on the microphone to be given the WHC. But he wasn't. Heck, the dude was so over during the Invasion Angle itself that the audiences(on any Smackdown or Raw from that time) can be heard effusively chanting for him, even against Austin and Rock.

The same can be said about Booker T. Deserved the WHC in 2003. Never got it.

Also, Chris Jericho. I'm not saying that Chris Jericho was the best choice to be made "the face of Raw" or WHC, especially after his debacle/lacklustre of a championship run as the first undisputed champion. But it's obvious he was consistently held back and forced to be in the mid-card between 2002-2005. One wonders what would have become of him had he never left and returned as he did in 2007. Would he have been allowed to change his character and become hot enough to win the world title 4 times?

 

[THTRobtaylor]

lol, yes. I made a thread because I was intrigued upon reading the comment you made..and wanted to know if it was true.

Turns out, yes it's a bit true.

HHH's image from that time and overall constitutes one of those contentious issues in Wrestling, so one tends to either hate him or respect him for his contributions.

I'm of the opinion that, regardless of Pat Patterson's findings/opinions during that time, HHH does seem to have had buried or otherwise kept other wrestlers below him.

I had firmly believed back then that Rob Van Dam was talented enough and charismatic enough and okay enough on the microphone to be given the WHC. But he wasn't. Heck, the dude was so over during the Invasion Angle itself that the audiences(on any Smackdown or Raw from that time) can be heard effusively chanting for him, even against Austin and Rock.

The same can be said about Booker T. Deserved the WHC in 2003. Never got it.

Also, Chris Jericho. I'm not saying that Chris Jericho was the best choice to be made "the face of Raw" or WHC, especially after his debacle/lacklustre of a championship run as the first undisputed champion. But it's obvious he was consistently held back and forced to be in the mid-card between 2002-2005. One wonders what would have become of him had he never left and returned as he did in 2007. Would he have been allowed to change his character and become hot enough to win the world title 4 times?

Jericho absolutely was a victim of Trips, he "won" the title to a huge pop and then had to give it back in 2000 and was ADVERTISED in Foley's place for the 4 way at Mania 2000... Trips nixed it. Did it hurt Jericho long term, arguably no... but he is the best name I can remember of someone who was really held back by Trips.

As for Pat... you have to take the scandals into account. There may have been accusations, but remember this is the time the "sheets" and IWC is beginning to really take a hold. There was an added pressure on Pat as an "out" gay man who had previously been accused, if cleared of wrong doing.

I could easily see the reaction to the reports being a "well, between this and the stress of worrying what is gonna be said about me, I'm gonna hang it up".

I can see Trips also regretting falling out with Pat... negative things aside, he's the kind of guy who after a while would probably get what Pat was trying to do and realise it wasn't personal and losing him from the company over it was bad.

 

[rmp0012002]

Patterson was a long time booker and oversaw a lot for the company and he did it old school. HHH says he's old school but that takes a backseat to his ego, which was on display by the finish of the Royal Rumble. It fed his ego by putting the belt on himself but people still won't care for Reigns as champion when he beats HHH at WM.