The Rock posts his heartbreaking tribute to Pat Patterson

This morning, WWE and the wrestling world in general, lost a legend of the sport in Hall of Famer Pat Patterson. The first-ever Intercontinental Champion and the man who helped create and book countless Royal Rumbles over the last several decades has sadly passed away.

The first openly gay wrestler in WWE history, Pat Patterson was a trailblazer for future generations of talent to be proud and unashamed of who they are. Without Patterson's courage, some wrestlers would have probably never embraced their sexuality.

Since Pat Patterson's passing this morning, the professional wrestling world has converged on social media to pay tribute and share memories of the WWE Hall of Famer.

The Rock gives his tribute to Pat Patterson on Instagram

This afternoon on Instagram, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson posted an incredibly emotional and heartfelt tribute to his long-time friend Pat Patterson, if you haven't already seen it, get your tissues ready...

"Rest in love, Pat. You’ll be missed 💔

Rough phone calls to get this morning to tell me, our dear family member, Pat Patterson who was my pro wrestling mentor and father figure has passed away.

A @wwe hall of famer, TRUE trailblazer and one of the most brilliantly creative wrestling minds the industry has ever known.

He was also responsible for calling Vince McMahon when I was training to become a pro wrestler (my $7 bucks days) and said, “Vince you gotta see this kid work in the ring”.

Vince flew me to RAW a few weeks later and I had my first match EVER in Corpus Christie, Texas.

The rest is history and years later, here I am writing this post.

* cue Sinatra’s MY WAY (Pat’s favorite to sing)

...I’ve lived a life that’s full,

I traveled each and every highway

But more, much more than this

I did it my way...

Love you, Pat.

And THANK YOU.

I’ll see you down the road 🥃🖤"

Everyone here at SK Wrestling is extremely saddened by the passing of Pat Patterson, and his family and friends are in our thoughts during this trying time.

What are your favorite Pat Patterson memories? What moments in his career can you reflect upon today that make you smile? Let us know in the comments section below and share your feelings on the legend that is Pat Patterson.