5 Reasons why WWE has started Superstar trades between brands

#1 A possible attempt to give SmackDown a boost

Over the years, WWE RAW has been regarded as the flagship show of the promotion, with SmackDown always being considered as the 'B' show. Last year, when Brock Lesnar won the WWE title by squashing Kofi Kingston on SmackDown's FOX premiere, many were hoping that this would result in the blue show kicking off a journey to become the 'A' show, but nothing of this sort happened. Lesnar was soon moved to RAW, and SmackDown immediately lost tons of star power with his jump to the red show.

Presently, with there being no indication of crowds returning anytime soon and ratings taking a hit every week, SmackDown will need all the star power. Someone of the stature of AJ Styles is bound to be a major addition to the blue show. It remains to be seen whether another big name follows AJ to SmackDown in the coming days. RAW will do just fine without AJ, but his presence on Friday nights will only help SmackDown regain some of its lost viewers, courtesy the large fan base Styles boasts.

About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

Know More

Edited by Kaushik Das