WWE Draft will take place on inaugural Smackdown Live on Tuesday night.
WWE Draft that is necessitated with the creation of the Smackdown Live brand will be done on the new show on Tuesday (July 19). With two distinct shows spread over five hours in two days, a larger roster is required. Smackdown also goes live now as against the previous taped format.
The ninth draft in WWE history – since 2002 and first since 2011 – will throw in some questions of how the rosters will work, how championships will be divided and how pay-per-views will function going forward. These are the unanswered questions and big questions that need answering.
For the draft itself, we know the following:
| Raw | Smackdown Live | |
|---|---|---|
| Day | Monday | Tuesday |
| Runtime | 3 hours | 2 hours |
| Commissioner | Stephanie McMahon | Shane McMahon |
| General Manager | Mick Foley | Daniel Bryan |
RULES
Order of the draft: Raw will pick first and Smackdown second. And for every two Smackdown picks, Raw gets three because of it being a longer show.
Tag teams: Can be drafted as a single unit (comprising of two or three wrestlers) unless the commissioner or general manager opts to keep them separate.
NXT inclusion: Six wrestlers from NXT will be part of the draft and in all probability, they could land up at Smackdown.
OFFICIAL #WWEDraft rules are RIGHT HERE before #SmackDownLive TOMORROW NIGHT on @USA_Network! pic.twitter.com/lmRXE0UkGc
— WWE (@WWE) July 19, 2016
UNANSWERED QUESTIONS
Titles: There is no clarity on the titles for respective shows. Will there be separate titles for both shows or combined one with the title being contested on pay-per-views? Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins’ edgy finish on Monday night Raw might suggest that there will be different titles for Raw and Smackdown.
Pay-per-views: Are we going to see two pay-per-view events a month with one for Raw and one for Smackdown or will there be a co-ordinated event with matches for both shows in one event.
These are the questions that are expected to be answered on the very first Smackdown live on Tuesday night.