Former WWWF Champion and WWE Hall of Famer Bruno Sammartino has passed away on Wednesday at the age of 82. Sammartino reportedly passed in a hospital in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Sammartino will go down as one of the greatest WWE Champions of all time, holding the then-WWWF Championship for a cumulative period of 11 years in two separate reigns from 1963 to 1971 and from 1972 to 1976.
Sammartino is also known for his classic rivalries with the likes of fellow WWE Hall of Famers Superstar Billy Graham and Larry Zbyzsko, headlining Shea Stadium in New York City with Zbyzsko in 1980.
After decades of bad feelings between Sammartino and WWE following his exit from the company in 1987, Sammartino returned in 2013 as the headliner of the 2013 WWE Hall of Fame class and has since appeared at several WWE events as an ambassador for the company.
WWE posted the following on Twitter on Wednesday about Sammartino’s passing.
WWE is saddened to learn that WWE Hall of Famer Bruno Sammartino has passed away at age 82. https://t.co/B8nUabP0oh
— WWE (@WWE) April 18, 2018
Paul “Triple H” Levesque also commented on the passing of Sammartino as he was heavily involved in mending the relationship between Sammartino and WWE.
Devastated to hear the passing of a true icon, legend, great, honest and wonderful man…
A true friend…and one of the toughest people I've ever met.
My thoughts are with his entire family. #RIPBrunoSammartino #AmericanDream— Triple H (@TripleH) April 18, 2018
On behalf of all the staff of Wrestleview.com, we send out our condolences to the family and friends of Sammartino during this tough time.