The TV schedule on USANetwork.com is advertising the June 11th edition of Raw as "RAW PRESENTS: THE WWE DRAFT SPECIAL." The show will be three hours long as it will start at 8:00 p.m. WWE cancelled a SmackDown/ECW house show in Ocean City, Maryland that was scheduled for that night because they needed talent from all three brands present at Raw on the same night.
This should benefit ECW the most as it needs a new influx of established folks like an Angle or a Big Show. SmackDown and Raw both need new faces with DX shelved and a significant contingent of SD stars are out (Taker, Kennedy, Booker T).
I like this idea and have medium-height hopes for it.
"To be the man, you gotta beat demands." -- The Lovely Mrs. Tracker
I kind of wonder where they're going with ECW, since the writing seems to be on the wall that the brand will be shelved after the TV deal with Sci-Fi runs out at the end of the year. I'd expect Lashley to be moved onto one of the two big brands. Maybe ECW will become the place for guys who just want to wrestle and don't mind being the big fish in the small pond. Benoit? Finlay?
Kennedy and Booker (plus, the forgotten man Rey Mysterio) will all be back in a month or two, so Smackdown should be okay in the short run. Rey and Kennedy could both feud with Edge for the SD title, while I could see Booker moved over to Raw for a feud with Cena and (another forgotten man) Santino over the IC belt.
Originally posted by AlexThey never did get around to it last year, did they? I also wonder whatever happened to the search for the new Raw general manager.
I figure Coach will draft for RAW. But who will be the ECW figurehead?
Originally posted by AlexThey never did get around to it last year, did they? I also wonder whatever happened to the search for the new Raw general manager.
I figure Coach will draft for RAW. But who will be the ECW figurehead?
Let's not kid ourselves, when has the draft ever been used to help Smackdown. The purpose of the draft has always been to make Raw better and the fact that this comes soon after HBK got injured makes me think they are definitely shuffling people to Raw at Smackdown's expense.
My money is on Rey going to Raw and that one out of Kennedy/Edge will too. Smackdown will probably get someone useless like Orton.
I'll pass on the smark answer, and just wonder what good a talent shuffle is going to do when the problem is too many top-level talents being injured? Nobody cares if Viscera goes to Smackdown.
Hopefully the cycle of PPVs stacked on top of each other will slow down, and they can start building midcard feuds again, rather than giving you five title matches every third week or so. I don't think the new tri-branded PPV scheme will seem so bad if they can get back to keeping the TV shows separated again.
And if this leads to the return of Monday Night Jericho, that might get me to forgive them for much of the last two months.
Kennedy, Cor Von, Mysterio, Matt Hardy and Snitsky to Raw. Punk, Lashley, Nitro, Orton and Flair to SmackDown. Kenny, Umaga, Carlito, Finlay and Hornswoggle to ECW.
I eagerly await these being completely wrong.
To those who say people wouldn't look; they wouldn't be interested; they're too complacent, indifferent and insulated, I can only reply: There is, in one reporter's opinion, considerable evidence against that contention. But even if they are right, what have they got to lose? Because if they are right, and this instrument is good for nothing but to entertain, amuse and insulate, then the tube is flickering now and we will soon see that the whole struggle is lost. This instrument can teach, it can illuminate; yes, and it can even inspire. But it can do so only to the extent that humans are determined to use it to those ends. Otherwise it is merely wires, and lights, in a box.-Edward R. Murrow
Benoit could sure use a switch, although I'm not sure if I like him going to Raw as cannon fodder for Helmsley.
Umaga to ECW makes a lot of sense. The playing field would seem more level for his opponets in hardcore style matches.
I think the Flair/Carlito program would do a lot better on a show like Smackdown but that would require moving Torrie as well and that just seems to rigged.
If they move Finaly I'll be really sad, because he is really a great player to have in the uppercard on Smackdown.
A Johnny Nitro move would be nice. Maybe he could add some life to the Cruiser Division.
Originally posted by BigDaddyLocoA Johnny Nitro move would be nice. Maybe he could add some life to the Cruiser Division.
I was thinking the same thing but I was thinking higher than that. Nitro is former tag team and IC champion and even had a mini feud with Cena, he's bigger than Cruiser title. I was thinking let him feud for the US Title and eventually give him a trial World Title run since he's probably the next young guy in line after Kennedy.
What about moving JBL to RAW and J.R. to SD? Vince wants to get rid of J.R. as THE voice of RAW anyway and JBL is great right now! But a combination of JBL and the King?? Maybe they could just switch the whole teams?
I haven't watched an episode of TNA since their first Monday night episode years ago, so I can't say much as a TNA fan. However, their current roster page on their site is sad.