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There was a LOT, and I mean a lot of hype around the return of Shane McMahon to WWE RAW this week, and much of it began thanks to our own Gary Cassidy. During the course of the show, several interesting things would happen, until Shane McMahon would emerge to announce the arrival of RAW Underground.
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This is how Mr. Cassidy describes RAW Underground for the uninitiated, the brand new segment of the WWE RAW presented by Shane McMahon :
"RAW Underground" is apparently the brainchild of Shane McMahon, and apparently will see WWE Superstars do battle in a ring with no ropes, in an MMA-style setting. The "fights" see talent surround the ring with a referee dressed entirely in black officiating the match where two wrestlers grapple Bloodsport-style.
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So, why was this concept introduced on the show, and what could be the rationale behind putting Shane McMahon as the face of WWE RAW Underground? I may have some answers after watching the segment on WWE RAW.
#5 Shane McMahon presents a parallel to the polished WWE RAW presentation with RAW Underground, almost like GCW Bloodsport
If anyone has seen Lucha Underground, he/she knows that the 'abandoned warehouse' vibe of the premises can be a very interesting place to host fights in, and even GCW Bloodsport has been a very interesting sort of presentation in this very realm with no ropes and a shoot-style combat style.
There is clearly an audience for this style of wrestling and WWE wants to capitalize on this growing trend, by creating new stars like Dabba-Kato and also showcasing the strength and might of The Hurt Business and the technical prowess of Dolph Ziggler in an environment we may not get to see them in.
#4 Shane McMahon returning to WWE RAW is a surefire way to boost viewership numbers
Whether or not your opinion is that WWE RAW is reaching creative peaks or valleys, the fact of the matter is that fewer people are watching WWE RAW than at any point in the history of the company. One can always create new stars from the existing WWE roster or alternatively, Vince McMahon could rely upon the stars of the past such as Shane McMahon (and Randy Orton in the WWE Championship picture) to boost ratings.
Yes, I know that a lot of the current WWE audience may not necessarily want to see Shane McMahon back on WWE RAW, but you have to understand that he is a familiar face to WWE RAW viewers around the world and when one is switching between channels, there's a big chance that someone will stop for a moment to catch a familiar face. While it may not raise viewership for WWE RAW by many millions, there's a big chance that it will go up with Shane McMahon.
#3 Shane McMahon could bring a brand new crossover audience to WWE RAW with RAW Underground
I am sure that all of us have friends who remember WWE RAW fondly from back in the day (at least if you're my age), who remember characters like Vince McMahon and Shane McMahon (long before RAW Underground) from back in the day when the product used to be a lot edgier and less 'sanitized'. And a lot of them may find the current product to be childish and not as intense as it used to be, so RAW Underground may be a way to bring back this audience.
And a majority of this audience may have satiated their bloodthirst with the violence that is inherent in MMA, moving on from the world of WWE and we all know that Shane McMahon has always been portrayed as a performer with an MMA background. This could be a great way to introduce an element of MMA to the current WWE RAW product, to bring a new audience into the mix.
#2 RAW Underground takes the action away from the WWE Performance Center if only for a while, providing a distraction
As filled to the brim that WWE RAW is with talent at the moment, and as modern and sophisticated as the WWE Performance Center is as compared to just about any facility across the world, you just cannot compare the action with the excitement of a live audience. And the best way to overcome this problem is to take the action away from the ring, if only for a little while, and well, RAW Underground is a great way to achieve this. RAW Underground also portrays familiar WWE Superstars like members of The Viking Raiders in a different environment, giving them a fresh coat of paint.
I'm assuming that everyone has watched Fight Club and indeed, loves the film, and one has to imagine that it was one of the inspirations for RAW Underground as well.
One has to assume that we will see more WWE RAW superstars on RAW Underground over the coming weeks, to present them in a more exciting manner.
#1 Shane McMahon could create a whole bunch of new superstars on WWE RAW Underground
This week, we saw the big arrival of Dabba-Kato on RAW Underground, someone that even Shane McMahon seemed to be intimidated by. This WWE star is none other than Babatunde, someone whose name you may have come across already if you watched the Greatest Royal Rumble, who was repackaged for his RAW underground appearance, making a re-debut of sorts in Shane McMahon's new brainchild.
I do not think that this is a bad idea at all, considering that not everyone in the WWE Performance Center hails from the world of independent wrestling and not everyone may be AJ Styles in the ring, at least from the word go.
To debut in the tough and uncensored world of RAW Underground would even give them a more rugged edge as compared to the rest of the WWE RAW roster.
To get the rub from Shane McMahon, one of the best known WWE characters in the world, in the year 2020, will be a massive deal for these characters.
