Tony Khan Mourns Loss of AEW Wrestler Pac
AEW and Ring of Honor owner Tony Khan became emotional while paying tribute to wrestler Benjamin Satterley, known as Pac, following his unexpected death.
AEW and Ring of Honor owner Tony Khan became emotional while paying tribute to wrestler Benjamin Satterley, known as Pac, ahead of Monday’s taping of Ring of Honor in Jacksonville, Florida.
Khan spoke about Satterley, who died at the age of 40, calling him someone who “optimized the very best of wrestling and the very best of humanity” and “one of the best people” he ever knew. Ring of Honor held a 10-bell salute in his memory.
“Ben was an absolutely fantastic wrestler and an absolutely fantastic human being. A great person to work with and a great person to spend time with,” Khan stated. He added that Satterley “set his mind to being one of the greatest wrestlers of all time and I believe he succeeded in that.”
Satterley, who also performed in WWE as Neville from 2012 to 2018, had been with AEW since its inception in 2019. He last competed at the AEW All Out pay-per-view event in Chicago on Saturday night, losing to AEW national champion Andrade. He also appeared during the main event.
Satterley was discovered slumped over in his car outside a CAVA restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois, on Sunday. He was pronounced dead at 4:08 p.m. The Des Plaines Police Department stated there were no indications of foul play and that the circumstances surrounding his death are not considered suspicious. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s office has stated that a cause of death is pending further testing.
Khan announced that the upcoming AEW Dynamite show on Wednesday from Pittsburgh will be a tribute to Pac. This follows a similar tribute show recently held for Andy “The Butcher” Williams, who died on September 5 at the age of 48.
Tributes poured in from across the wrestling community for Satterley. Khan reflected on Satterley’s personal qualities, saying, “You’ll hear a lot about what a wonderful person Ben was this week, because frankly I’ve never met a person who was more beloved by his peers and his friends. It was such a pleasure to spend time with Ben outside of wrestling as well. Whether it was having dinner or watching a football match or traveling. Ben is a very first-class person and he left behind a lovely wife and a lot of great friends and a legacy that will last forever.”