With WWE Battleground only a week away, changes could still happen.
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The big day is finally here as WWE’s brand extension draft will take place from the DCU Center in Worcester, MA during the first edition of SmackDown Live and it promises to change the company as we know it.
The draft selections were interesting.
The New Day will be the longest reigning WWE tag team champions in history on Sunday, and since the belts aren’t on the line, they don’t need the win.
Raw would receive a heavy dose of the top names.
In kayfabe terms, there was no explanations, but, in reality, the decision was made to keep NXT strong as a brand, but still the inclusion of Rawley over names such as Tye Dillinger and Austin Aries have been met generally negatively.
Crossfit Jesus himself, Seth Rollins was drafted as first pick in the WWE Draft, heading over to Monday RAW.
Shane fired back by drafting 15-time WWE champion John Cena, who will continue his fued with AJ Styles on SmackDown.
NXT’s one-hour length always feels too short, but SmackDown’s two-hour window is flawless – and they now have a diverse roster of established stars (Cena and Randy Orton), veteran guys who needed a mixup to the format (Del Rio, Kalisto), and exciting new faces. They went with Dean Ambrose in the first round. This appearance will let him be back just before the Battleground event.
Stephanie started things off with a surprise announcement that Hall of Famer and hardcore legend Mick Foley would become the new general manager of Raw.
After being drafted to Monday Night Raw on Tuesday, Cesaro went off script to rant about the way the WWE is being managed. Their other picks in the second round included Roman Reigns and the imposing Brock Lesnar – whose time in the UFC will definitely cause shivers down anyones spine. Ryder, however, has been showing signs of a career revival in 2016, with his brief Intercontinental title reign, and his successful feud with Sheamus leading to a shot for Rusev’s United States title at Battleground.
With speculation that the brand split will result in two world championships, the title match could feature an inconclusive finish.
-Sasha Banks and Becky Lynch beat Charlotte and Dana Brooke by DQ when Natalya came out and beat down Becky.
I still have a few questions about the draft as far as going further. Rounding out Smackdown’s women’s division is Eva Marie and Naomi. That’s not to say Alexa Bliss and Carmella aren’t, but they’re still developing.
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This isn’t even a contest. Later on, he was pinned clean by Chris Jericho and was the 28th draft pick, selected for RAW. While Styles lost The Club in the draft, his spot is significantly greater being the number two pick for Smackdown, and with its very limited roster. NXT colour commentator, Corey Graves will now join Michael Cole & Bryon Saxton, while former World Champion JBL moves over to Tuesday nights to join the Smackdown team of David Otunga and Mauro Ranallo.
