If this is how it’s going to be, I may be better off following wrestling from the web. Ok, let’s do this. Recapping the main field of the WWE Draft for 2009.
RAW loses
WWE Women’s Champion Melina
Mr. Money In The Bank CM Punk
Kane
Chris Jericho
WWE Intercontinental Champion Rey Mysterio
RAW gets
WWE United States Champion MVP
The Big Show
Matt Hardy
WWE Champion Triple H
The Miz
WWE Divas Champion Maryse
Lose two titles, gain three. Ok, who here doesn’t see how Raw is getting absolutely the cream of the crop of talent. Sure, I do think losing Jericho, Punk, and Mysterio will be painful for the show, I also believe whole heartedly that WWE did indeed stack the talent in a major way to bolster USA Network’s top ratings grabber. The question is, however, at what cost? Smackdown’s future may be in jeopardy because of the network’s current fiscal and ratings status, but by losing what they did, Smackdown has taken a big hit, and will continue, I think to take a bigger hit, when the supplemental portion of this deal goes down later this week.
I also think that John Cena is in big trouble come Backlash. I would be shocked and stunned if the World Champion is drafted to Smackdown on wednesday, and, unless that miracle occurs, I would almost consider it locked down that Cena will fall to the Rated R Superstar, and drop the World title. It’s the only way for both shows to have world champions, and I don’t think that the WWE is going to fix this title situation via the lottery.
It was such a non-surprise when The Game returned to Raw. I only wonder why. If he went to Smackdown to ‘liven things up’, wouldn’t it be a viable conclusion to keep things in check there, at least to remain the crown jewel of the brand? I know with Taker on Smackdown, The Game will never be the “conscience” of Smackdown. Perhaps that may have been the straw that broke The Game’s back, and brought him back to Raw. We’ll never know for certain.
Speaking of the Dead Man, I don’t believe that WWE has ever truly held an “all talents eligible” draft ever. Why? Simple. Has the Undertaker ever spent a significant amount of time as a Raw superstar since the brand extension?? To the best of my knowledge, I’d say that answer is no.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, I just think WWE does some poor marketing and some misguided promotion at times. But that’s a whole different kettle of fish.
ECW loses
The Miz
ECW drafts
Vladimir Kozlov
How the mighty have fallen. Kozlov just four months ago was fighting the Game for the WWE title, and pretty much since the voting snub at Cyber Sunday, and his eventual loss to Michaels leading down the road to Wrestlemania, the push that Kozlov was getting has been halted intensely and immediately. Miz’s removal from the ECW roster is nothing short of a surprise. Not that the Miz/Morrison team has broken uip, but it appears, from this pick, that it’s Miz that WWE wants to see go solo. What also surprises me is Miz going to Raw. I would’ve thought if anyone out of this team shiold go Friple HJ
Which is kind of why this draft pick does make sense. Kozlov is not going to win any gold (or silver ) on Smackdown, he would have already.
So, on ECW, Kozlov might begin to get another push toward the ECW Championship, and a chance to find out how he can perform under the bigger lights of actually being a champion.
One thing I think is pretty certain for the Moscow Mauler. There is no return trip. If Kozlov fizzles in ECW, the next step for Oleg Prudius, Kozlov’s real name, is out the door. I won’t be surprised one bit if Stephanie wasn’t looking at this guy as potential fodder for the cutting room floor.
SMACKDOWN! loses
WWE US Champion MVP
The Big Show
WWE Champion Triple H
WWE Divas Champion Maryse
Matt Hardy
Vladimir Kozlov
SMACKDOWN! gets
WWE Women’s Champion Melina
Chris Jericho
Kane
Mr. Money In the Bank C.M. Punk
WWE Intercontinental Champion Rey Mysterio
I guess when you really sit down and try and look at this legitimately, you can say that Smackdown! hasn’t been totally bludgeoned of talent loss, but the facts are hard to dispute. Smackdown! now has no world champion, and a distinct possibility of it being the same way come thursday morning. But, on the flip side, Smackdown now has championships it has never had before, in the Intercontinental and women’s titles. It’s a bit of a thin stretch, but something to consider.
I would suspect Edge would be the highlighted talent to depart for Raw’s waves come wednesday afternoon, which would mean that the Blue and White lost two out of there three pronged all star team. That team, IMHO, consists of the Game, the Dead Man, and the Rated R Superstar. You do the math.
Rey back on Smackdown, I think is the best move. He can shine on the brand with less men who are three times the size of him. It’s a no lose situation, I think, and I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if Rey asked for this move, because I am certain I remember hearing about how Rey didn’t like the fact that he moved to Raw back last year.
If Edge stays on Smackdown after the draft, Backlash becomes very predictable. Why? Simple. WWE needs a world title on all three brands, from where I sit. Anything else makes the brand seem secondary. I know WWE is focusing on Raw, but they have to realize this.
If Edge goes to Raw this wednesday, Backlash becomes INCREDIBLY intriguing because then, although the title picture for the three brands is still up in the air, it can be said with conviction that, although Cena is likely going to retain, the chances of a title chnage increase pretty steadily if the challenger I am referring to is from another brand.
Final Thoughts
It’s surprising to me that some really big names got moved. I thought Jericho was gonna stay put. I thought they wouldn’t put themselves in a situation to make a PPV main event so incrediby predictable. I like the new titles on the new shows, but I don’t like the world title picture. I hope it changes, and changes soon.
Triple H on Smackdown. Surely, I must have been dreaming. Wait, no I’m not. It did happen, for a blink of an eye. If that wasn’t the most predictable move of this draft, I don’t know what was.
Ok, I’m done for now. I’ll be back later this week, with a recap of the full draft, and all the moves that WWE undergoes to “change and shake things up a bit.”
Thanks for reading.
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