Pat Sajak has the rest of Season 41 to get through before he retires from Wheel of Fortune, but some fans of the show think he needs to dip out early.
The longtime game show host announced on June 12, 2023, that Season 41 of Wheel of Fortune would be his last.
As Monsters and Critics previously reported, Ryan Seacrest will take over the reins next year upon Pat’s retirement.
With the end of his career on the horizon, some Wheel of Fortune viewers think Pat is growing tired of his position.
In recent months, Pat has displayed some behavior on-air and backstage that has some Wheel of Fortune viewers thinking he needs to hang it up before Season 41 comes to an end.
Some of the comments Pat has made to the contestants have been considered a bit controversial, so some believe that perhaps it’s time for him to retire a bit sooner than planned.
Wheel of Fortune viewers call out Pat Sajak’s recent behavior: ‘Retire early bud!’
Over on X, formerly Twitter, one such Wheel of Fortune viewer shared a gif of Pat reacting negatively during an episode of Wheel of Fortune as he slammed his hand in frustration and exclaimed, “I’ve had it!”
The caption above the tweet read, “Pat Sajak is tired of the s**t. Retire early bud!”
Another fan of the show shared their take on Pat’s recent comments to a contestant by the name of Vince Jennings, who struggled to solve a puzzle during the November 27 episode.
After Vince finally guessed correctly, Pat snarkily told him, “You were bound to get there eventually. There are only so many words in the English language.”
In response, the Wheel of Fortune viewer took to X, where they quoted Pat’s response, adding, “Pat Sajak cooked him. COOKED.”
Pat Sajak critics imply he disparages Wheel of Fortune contestants
Earlier this month, Pat came under fire from another Wheel of Fortune fan who took a shot at the iconic game show host for seemingly belittling contestants.
“Nobody lets you know you’re stupid more subtly than Pat Sajak,” they wrote on X.
In another instance, as Monsters and Critics reported, a recent Wheel of Fortune contestant called out Pat for some comments the 77-year-old made backstage.
“In between one of the commercial breaks, Pat came up to me and said, ‘You know, Michael, this is my show, right?'” the contestant, Michael Colen, shared with The Sun.
Although Pat’s comments came across as stern, Michael took them in stride.
Michael added that he took Pat’s comments to be a “heads up” and “friendly banter” rather than the somber warning it appeared to be.
Longtime Wheel of Fortune viewers know that Pat is somewhat of a jokester with contestants, and his comments are made in jest, but it’s clear they’ve rubbed some viewers the wrong way.
When Ryan becomes the new sheriff in town next summer, we’ll see if Wheel of Fortune fans will favor his hosting style over Pat’s.
Wheel of Fortune airs weeknights on ABC.