WWE Planning Another Draft After Wrestlemania?

Many have said the 2016 WWE brand split was arguably the company's most important decision of the [...]

By Brandon Gnetz

Many have said the 2016 WWE brand split was arguably the company's most important decision of the past five years. It appears they will be looking to recapture that magic this year with a 2017 Draft. Bryan Alvarez mentioned on a recent installment of Wrestling Observer that the draft will most-likely take place sometime in June, well after WrestleMania and before the next big event, SummerSlam. Wrestling Observer Newsletter editor Dave Meltzer was asked about this on Twitter and confirmed the rumors.

WWE reinstated the brand split back in July last year after quietly dissolving it in 2011. The move was done to increase Smackdownratings, as the USA Network had been unhappy with the dwindling numbers that the show was providing. With the brand split, the roster was effectively divided.

With the brand split, WWE also brought back brand exclusive pay-per-views. With the exception of the Big Four (Royal Rumble, Wrestlemania, Summerslam, and Survivor Series) and potentially Money in the Bank, pay-per-views have exclusively featured only one brand. Smackdown hosted the first exclusive pay-per-view since 2007 with Backlash, and their other pay-per-views include No Mercy, and Tables, Ladders, and Chairs. Raw hosted Clash of Champions, Hell in a Cell, and Roadblock: End of the Line. Survivor Series saw both brands compete in traditional Survivor Series elimination matches between members of both rosters.

During Vince McMahon's fourth-quarter earnings call he praised WWE's brand extension. McMahon said they are seeing crossover with RAW and SmackDown viewers but were also introducing new viewers to SmackDown, which is something that was not happening before the split.

Vince spoke about how the brand split will allow for opportunities to keep talents fresh as they go from brand to brand, saying it's hard to create new stars with just one show but the brand split allows other talents to get a chance to climb the ladder of success. He then used Roman Reigns potentially jumping to SmackDown as an example.

While it seems hard to believe they would completely revamp each roster, it's possible WWE could do a scaled down version of the initial brand split draft that would leave each brand's champions exempt from switching shows. Obviously, the Red and Blue belts will stay with their respective shows.

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