3 things WWE did this week to secretly hint the fans about the end of brand split

WWE re-introduced the brand split in mid-2016 to freshen up the WWE product and focus more on character development rather than extending the same feuds on different shows. This move was highly appreciated by the WWE Universe, with a major credit of the improvement going the SmackDown show.

It has been nearly 3 years since the night SmackDown aired live on a Tuesday night, and it seems like WWE wants to end the brand split now. After the Superstar Shakeup of 2019, Vince McMahon introduced the 'Wild Card" rule which has been heavily criticized because WWE is not following the rules they themselves made.

The Chairman had said that any 4 random superstars of each brand may be invited to the other brand as Wild Cards but we are getting the same superstars appear as wildcards on TV.

It looks like we are back in 2015-16 where the same storyline is the center point of both RAW and SmackDown. In this article, we will have a look at the 3 things which WWE did this week to secretly hint the fans about the brand split's end.

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#3 EIGHT SmackDown superstars appear on RAW

Is Roman Reigns a free agent?

It seems like Vince McMahon's sole purpose behind introducing the Wild Card rule was to have Roman Reigns appear on both RAW and SmackDown Live. For some reason, he believes that the Big Dog brings in higher viewership numbers hence, he has always used him as a Wild Card on RAW.

However, Vince crossed all limits this week as along with Roman Reigns, he called Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, Carmella, Xavier Woods, Dolph Ziggler, Billie Kay and Peyton Royce appear as the Wild Cards on RAW.

While on SmackDown Live, we had only 3 Wild Cards in Lacey Evans, Drew McIntyre and Bray Wyatt (the rerun of Firefly Fun House).

The fact that WWE used 8 SmackDown superstars on RAW was a slight indication that the brand split is ending.

#2 Announcement of a PPV match between superstars of RAW and SmackDown Live

Super Showdown has a 'RAW vs SmackDown' match on its card

With the way WWE has used Lars Sullivan, it is easy to forget that he is a SmackDown Live superstar. Nevertheless, WWE broke the brand split rules once again today when they announced a '3-on-1' handicap match between RAW's stable, Lucha House Party, and SmackDown's Lars Sullivan.

WWE promotes Survivor Series as the only night of the year where RAW and SmackDown collide in head-to-head competition but it seems like the theme of the Survivor Series show is going to change this year.

Personally, I was surprised by the announcement of this match because I expected the Freak to be a part of the 50-man battle royal and honestly, this handicap match could have taken place on a random RAW episode as well.

Nevertheless, the Lucha House Party has finally made it to the match card of a pay-per-view thanks to Lars Sullivan.

#1 Commencement of a 'RAW vs SmackDown' feud

What was the point of the betrayal?

On one hand, I am happy that WWE pulled off an unexpected betrayal on SmackDown by having Lacey Evans attack Charlotte Flair. But, on the other, this move puzzled me a lot because Lacey Evans is a RAW superstar while Flair is the Queen of SmackDown Live.

The WWE Universe was expecting Charlotte to feud with Bayley while Evans was expected to battle with Becky Lynch but WWE is now trying to book a storyline between Lacey and Flair.

Just like the announcement of the handicap match between Lucha House Party and Lars Sullivan, the beginning of this rivalry has broken the brand split rules. I expect Flair to show up on RAW next week and destroy Lacey Evans backstage to add a new chapter in this rivalry.

With SmackDown moving to Friday nights after the FOX deal, one can back WWE to end the brand split in the coming months.