WWE Reveals Draft Pool and New Champion Rules for Raw and SmackDown

WWE reveals the full draft pool for Raw and SmackDown as well as new Champion rules and draft availability for NXT superstars

By Matthew Aguilar

The WWE Draft officially kicks off on this week's SmackDown and continues through to next Monday's Raw, and now WWE has revealed the rules and full draft pools for the big event. You can find the full draft pool below, and you might be surprised to find that a few big names are missing. That's because WWE has changed the eligibility for Champions this time around, so current Champions will be sticking to their current brands. That means Cody Rhodes, Bayley, A-Town Down Under, and Logan Paul will all stay on SmackDown, while Damian Priest, Becky Lynch, Awesome Truth, and Sami Zayn will stay on Raw.

There is one exception to that rule regarding the Women's Tag Team Champions though, as Asuka and Kairi Sane are eligible for the draft despite being able to move between all brands. If they lose the Titles at some point they will revert to their drafted brand. There will also be NXT superstars eligible for both night's draft pools, throwing a few wild cards into the mix. 

With several stories already in progress, it's also important to note that the new rosters will not take effect until Monday, May 6th, which is after Backlash France. You can find the full rules and the complete draft pools for both nights of the draft below.

WWE Draft 2024 Rules

  • Champions on each brand will be protected and are not eligible to be drafted. As a result, Damian Priest, Becky Lynch, Awesome Truth and Sami Zayn will remain on Raw. Cody Rhodes, Bayley, A-Town Down Under and Logan Paul will remain on SmackDown.
  • Even though their status as champions allows them to go to both brands, WWE Women's Tag Team Champions Asuka and Kairi Sane are eligible to be drafted. They will be assigned to that brand if they lose the titles.
  • Friday's SmackDown will feature four rounds of draft picks being announced. Each round will consist of the brands making two picks apiece for a total of 16 picks being announced (8 for SmackDown and 8 for Raw).
  • Monday's Raw will feature six rounds of draft picks being announced. Each round will consist of the brands making two picks apiece for a total of 24 picks (12 for Raw and 12 for SmackDown).
  • SmackDown will have the first pick on Friday, and Raw will have first pick on Monday.

FRIDAY'S AVAILABLE DRAFT POOL

  • AJ Styles
  • Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn
  • Alpha Academy (Chad Gable, Otis, Akira Tozawa and Maxxine Dupri)
  • Andrade
  • Bianca Belair
  • Bron Breakker
  • Cedric Alexander and Ashante "Thee" Adonis
  • Ivar
  • Jey Uso
  • LA Knight
  • Liv Morgan
  • Nia Jax
  • Randy Orton
  • Ricochet
  • Seth Rollins
  • Shayna Baszler
  • Sheamus
  • The Bloodline (Roman Reigns, Solo Sikoa, "MFT" Tama Tonga and Paul Heyman)
  • The O.C. (Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson and Michin)
  • Zoey Stark
  • * NXT Superstars will be eligible to be drafted.

MONDAY'S AVAILABLE DRAFT POOL

#DIY
Apollo Crews
Braun Strowman
Bronson Reed
Candice LeRae and Indi Hartwell
Chelsea Green and Piper Niven
CM Punk
The Creed Brothers (Julius Creed, Brutus Creed and Ivy Nile)
Damage CTRL (IYO SKY, Dakota Kai and Kabuki Warriors)
Drew McIntyre
Final Testament (Karrion Kross, AOP, Scarlett and Paul Ellering)
Giovanni Vinci
Imperium (Gunther and Ludwig Kaiser)
Jade Cargill
Judgment Day (Finn Bálor, Dominik Mysterio and JD McDonagh)
Kayden Carter and Katana Chance
Kevin Owens
Legado del Fantasma (Santos Escobar, Angel, Berto and Elektra Lopez)
LWO (Rey Mysterio, Carlito, Dragon Lee, Cruz Del Toro, Joaquin Wilde and Zelina Vega)
Naomi
Natalya
New Catch Republic (Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate)
New Day (Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods)
Odyssey Jones
Pretty Deadly (Elton Prince and Kit Wilson)
Shinsuke Nakamura
Tegan Nox
The Pride (Bobby Lashley, Street Profits and B-Fab)
Tiffany Stratton
* NXT Superstars will be eligible to be drafted.

What moves do you want to see in the WWE Draft this year? Let me know on Threads and Twitter @mattaguilarcb!

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