On Tuesday, July 19, WWE held its first draft. The company’s entire roster was drafted to either Smackdown or Raw, and Smackdown–moving forward–will air live, and the wrestlers will be locked into those shows for the foreseeable future.
There were a few huge surprises, and a few head-scratching moments. Let’s take a look at the winners and losers of this draft.
Winner: Seth Rollins (Raw)
Seth Rollins ended up being the first draft for Raw. He’s going to be the top-talent, on WWE’s flagship show, for the foreseeable future.
Loser: Bayley and WWE Fans (NXT)
Six NXT stars were drafted, and none of them were the former NXT Women’s Champion, Bayley. There are still rumblings that she’ll get brought up after Summerslam. But for now, NXT fans need a hug.
Winner: Finn Bálor (Raw)
Finn Bálor is finally here, and he’s on Raw. He went in the first round, as Raw’s 5th pick. However, how will that affect The Club, considering Bálor was the original leader of The Bullet Club?
Loser: The Club (Split)
Speaking of The Club, AJ Styles was drafted to Smackdown, while Anderson and Gallows were drafted to Raw. Could that mean Bálor will take over, or will WWE just completely avoid him dealing with the rest of The Club?
Winner: Nia Jax (Raw)
One NXT star making her way to the main roster is Nia Jax. While she may have the worst entrance music in recent memory, her size and strength make her a great performer in the ring. Who doesn’t want to see Jax toss the other wrestlers around the ring with ease?
Loser: Braun Strowman (Raw)
Braun Strowman was drafted to Raw, but Bray Watt and Erick Rowen were drafted to Smackdown. The Wyatt Family is severed, and with Luke Harper injured and sending out cryptic tweets, Strowman is going to have to stand on his own.
Winner: The New Day (Raw)
There were lots of rumors that The New Day was going to get split up during the draft. Alas, the rumors were wrong, and the power of positivity remains within the stable, for now.
Loser: The Lucha Dragons (Split)
This was a bit of a shocker. With the tag team division so strong, no one expected the Lucha Dragons to be split up. Kalisto is headed to Smackdown, and Sin Cara is off to Raw. They’ve both had solo careers, but they truly shine as a team.
Winner: Raw’s Women’s Division
Raw’s roster is heavy with former NXT superstars, with Alicia Fox being the only wrestler who didn’t come out of the developmental system. It’s a stacked and diverse roster with a lot of talent.
Loser: Heath Slater (Undrafted)
In all honesty, we wanted to put Heath Slater not getting drafted in the “Winner” section because it will lead to some hilarious backstage antics, much like the time he wanted to answer John Cena’s open challenge. Slater’s reaction on the WWE Network was pretty priceless. Regardless, the One Man Band is without a home.
Winner: Dean Ambrose (Smackdown)
While Rollins is Raw’s top superstar, Smackdown has the WWE Champion. Ambrose was the second superstar drafted, and hopefully, this means the return of the Ambrose Asylum.
Loser: Becky Lynch (Smackdown)
Becky Lynch has really come around since being called up from NXT. However, the one thing fans have been dying to see, the Four Horsewomen working together, will not happen right away. Bayley wasn’t drafted, and Lynch is on Smackdown, with Banks and Charlotte on Raw.
Winner: The United States and Intercontinental Championships
Because superstars appeared on both Raw and Smackdown, the United States and Intercontinental Championships felt like they didn’t serve a purpose. Sure, they’re mid-card belts, but there are two of them. Now, Rusev and the US belt will appear on Raw, and Miz and the IC belt will appear on Smackdown, giving each show it’s own, individual championship.
Loser: Cesaro (Raw)
Cesaro has a strong fanbase for a good reason. He’s awesome in the ring, his entrance is fantastic, and he’s fun. However, he went in the 6th round to Raw. Both Randy Orton and Neville were drafted before him, and they’ve been injured. Why did he go so late? Yes, we’re aware this is wrestling, and it’s scripted, but why wasn’t he drafted higher?
Winner: American Alpha (Smackdown)
Smackdown is about to get a taste of what a great tag team looks like. While the WWE roster is stacked with solid teams, Justin Jordan and Chad Gable–American Alpha–have been tearing it up in NXT.
Loser: Carmella (Smackdown)
It’s great to see Carmella get called up to Smackdown, but Enzo and Big Cass are headed to Raw. Carmella has done some great work on her own at NXT, but fans would love to see her reunited the tag duo that’s been tearing it up on television.
Overall Winner: Smackdown
For quite a few years, Smackdown has been a WWE show that’s more filler than anything else. It’s been a ton of Raw recaps and matches that don’t matter. Plus, it was pre-recorded, so you could look up the results before the show aired.
Now, it’s live on Tuesday nights, has it’s own championship belt, and a really solid roster. Hopefully, the show will stop all the recap of Monday nights and actually focus on building an identity. This is what WWE fans have been wanting for a long while.
Overall Loser: WWE Fans’ Spare Time
Raw is three hours long, and so much of that is recap from earlier in the show. Smackdown is two hours long. That’s five hours a week of wrestling, since Smackdown–prior to the draft–wasn’t something fans had to watch.
There’s also rumors spreading that there will be even more PPVs after Summerslam, to accommodate both shows. While nothing has been confirmed, it will cause casual fans to choose one of the shows, instead of both. Hopefully, WWE will figure out that the first step to keeping fans around is to cut back an hour on Raw and limit the amount of recapping.