Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater is changing an iconic trick’s name to honor its creator

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 and 2 will be updating the name of the “mute grab” to honor the creator of the move, Chris Weddle.

Tony Hawk took to Instagram to explain the reasons for the change, citing the inventor of the move. When the grab was originally named in 1981, it was debuted by Weddle, who is deaf. The trick was thusly named after the skater in a roundabout and ultimately mistaken way. The community at the time “referred to him as the ‘quiet, mute guy,’” Hawk explained in a recent social media post.

“So it became known as the mute air, and we all went along with it in our naive youth,” he continued.

As the years went by, Hawk continued to chat with Weddle — who still skates — about the trick and its origins.

“He has been very gracious in his response but it is obvious that a different name would have honored his legacy, as he is hearing impaired but not lacking speech,” Hawk said.

Weddle told Hawk he would “rather named it the ‘deaf’ or ‘Weddle’ grab if given the choice,” as he wasn’t mute in the first place. And so, going forward in the upcoming games, the trick will be renamed to “The Weddle Grab,” much to Weddle’s approval.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 and 2 will be released on Sept. 4 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows PC. A demo is coming soon, which our reviewer described as “the Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater I remember.”