Pat Patterson as the very FIRST Intercontinental Champion...it just sounds RIGHT! | WWE Network

On April 21, 1980 after being awarded the WWF Intercontinental Championship in a phantom tournament, champion Pat Patterson’s inaugural reign ends at the hands of “The World’s Strongest Man” Ken Patera at Madison Square Garden. The belt had been commissioned on September 1, 1979 to replace the short-lived WWF North American championship. In storyline, the North American champion Patterson had defeated the South American titleholder in Rio de Janeiro to form the Intercontinental crown. In reality