Wheel of Fortune host Pat Sajak tackles contestant in incredibly bizarre moment

If you tuned into Wheel of Fortune mid episode, you might have been lucky enough to catch host Pat Sajak tackling a contestant in an odd spectacle.

Earlier this year in a March episode of the show, 76-year-old TV legend Pat Sajak took it upon himself to take the show in a slightly unexpected direction.

Wheel of Fortune’s star player that episode, Fred, revealed some details about himself, most notably that he was a professional wrestler.

As well as this, he was a bar trivia host and a drama teacher - but his wrestling vocation will become more important later.

Fred detailed that he isn’t paid well to wrestle but does it just for the fun of the sport.

It was a pretty successful night for Fred as he won numerous rounds during the Hawaii-themed episode, with him solving the ‘Pineapple upside-down cake’ puzzle.

After guessing countless words correctly, Sajak can be heard joking: “Well, the Fred Fletcher Jackson show continues.”

NBC

Fred’s clean sweep meant he was able to progress to the final round with $5,700 in the bank. The two other guests could barely get a word in edgeways and Sajak gave a hilarious apology to them, before jokingly calling Fred a ‘brute’ for doing so well.

“To you two, I want to say it happens sometimes – someone just gets really hot,” Sajak says.

“Just because he’s a professional wrestler… You want me to body slam him for you? I can do that.”

Fred took home an extra $40,000 after guessing the final phrase ‘His mind is wandering’ correctly and Sajak – who has hosted the show since 1981 – was in shock.

In keeping with his promise to the two unfortunate guests from earlier, Sajak grabs and tries to tackle Fred while the audience watch and applaud.

NBC

Thankfully, the hilarious moment was all in good fun and Fred survived long enough to take home his $75,800 earnings.

Before being humorously tackled, Fred flexed his biceps happily after guessing the final phrase.

His father, who joined him onstage shortly after his final winning moment, stood and watched as Sajak grabbed his son from behind.

“Why didn’t he body slam Pat?” one fan quipped in the comments.

A second viewer wrote: “Fred is a part-time wrestler, so Pat joined with his prowess.”

While another commenter shared: “That was a good one!! The end was so funny.”

Topics: Film and TV, US News

Gerrard Kaonga

Gerrard is a Journalist at UNILAD and has dived headfirst into covering everything from breaking global stories to trending entertainment news. He has a bachelors in English Literature from Brunel University and has written across a number of different national and international publications. Most notably the Financial Times, Daily Express, Evening Standard and Newsweek.