5 most surprising WWE Draft picks

The 2021 WWE Draft begins this week on Friday's edition of SmackDown on FOX.

The WWE Draft marks the time on the WWE calendar that the rosters of Monday Night RAW and Friday Night SmackDown respectively are "shaken up" as WWE Superstars are assigned to either the red brand or the blue brand.

This year's draft represents the sixteenth WWE Draft overall. Beginning with the initial brand extension in 2002, there have been multiple memorable draft moments, with some draft picks being more surprising than others.

Some of the biggest superstars in WWE history, including legends, champions and Hall of Famers, have made for some incredibly surprising draft picks.

Let's take a closer look at the five most surprising WWE Draft picks in WWE history.

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#5. Triple H (Drafted to SmackDown during 2008 WWE Draft)

The 2008 WWE Draft took place during the June 23 episode of Monday Night RAW in San Antonio, Texas.

The draft concept at the time revolved around superstars from either RAW, ECW or SmackDown competing in matches for draft picks for their respective brands.

The main event of the broadcast was a Tri-Branded 15-man battle royal, with five superstars from RAW, SmackDown and ECW all facing off with two draft picks for their brand hanging in the balance.

Friday Night SmackDown's Edge won the match for the blue brand. The Rated-R Superstar last eliminated Monday Night RAW's John Cena for the victory. Therefore, SmackDown received the final two televised draft picks of the evening.

After Mr. Kennedy was drafted from RAW to SmackDown, it was shockingly announced that RAW's WWE Champion Triple H would also be switching Monday Nights for Friday Nights.

Triple H had been a staple of the red brand since 2002, in addition to being the brand's champion, making his switch to SmackDown all the more surprising.

#4. Batista (Drafted to SmackDown during 2005 WWE Draft)

WWE slightly altered the format of the Draft Lottery in 2005.

Instead of the event being hosted on one night, the draft took place across the entire month of June on RAW and SmackDown. On each respective episode, the red brand and the blue brand announced their latest acquisitions.

After SmackDown's WWE Champion John Cena was drafted to Monday Night RAW in the first week, the blue brand was without a world champion.

A match was held on the June 30 episode of SmackDown to determine a new "SmackDown Champion" for the brand, which John "Bradshaw" Layfield successfully won.

However, before JBL could hold his new title, it was revealed that SmackDown no longer needed a SmackDown Champion. That was because SmackDown's final draft pick was none other than the World Heavyweight Champion from Monday Night RAW, Batista.

The Animal and the World Heavyweight Championship became exclusive to the blue brand.

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#3 The Undertaker (Drafted to RAW during 2002 WWE Draft)

The first ever WWE Draft took place on March 25, 2002 as part of the WWE Brand Extension.

After the acquisition of the company's main competitors, WCW and ECW, WWE was forced to create its own competition.

WWE divided the WWE roster in half, with WWE Superstars becoming exclusive to RAW and SmackDown respectively.

This was achieved in storylines through Vince McMahon and Ric Flair "co-owning" WWE. Through the Brand Extension, McMahon controlled SmackDown, whereas Ric Flair controlled Monday Night RAW.

In a stunning turn of events, The Nature Boy's first Draft pick for the red brand was none other than The Undertaker.

The move was shocking as The Deadman and Flair had been engaged in a vicious rivalry, culminating in The Undertaker defeating The Nature Boy at WrestleMania X-8.

The Undertaker even explicitly told McMahon to draft him to SmackDown to ensure he didn't have to continue to working with Flair. The move to RAW further enraged the WWE icon.

#2 Triple H (Drafted to SmackDown during 2004 WWE Draft)

WWE presented the second ever Draft on the March 22, 2004, edition of Monday Night RAW.

Coming off the heels of WrestleMania XX it was seen as the perfect time to once again shake up the WWE roster. In contrast to the previous WWE Draft, this was presented in the form of a lottery.

WWE Superstars were randomly selected to switch from RAW to SmackDown and vice versa throughout the broadcast by General Managers Eric Bischoff and Paul Heyman respectively.

After several low-profile selections, SmackDown General Manager Paul Heyman hit the jackpot when he randomly selected RAW's Triple H to move to SmackDown.

The selection was jaw-dropping as The Game was the centerpiece of Monday Night RAW. He also dominated the brand as its World Heavyweight Champion for the best part of two years.

However, Triple H never appeared on SmackDown. The King of Kings was quickly traded back to Monday Nights in a post-draft trade between the two brands.

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#1 John Cena (Drafted to RAW during 2005 WWE Draft)

The 2005 WWE Draft lottery kicked off in a major way on the June 6 edition of Monday Night RAW.

For weeks, the WWE Universe had been told that "nobody was exempt" and every member of the WWE roster was eligible to be drafted.

Chris Jericho announced that he would introduce the mystery first pick of the 2005 WWE Draft lottery on a special edition of The Highlight Reel to open the broadcast.

After much suspense it was revealed that SmackDown's WWE Champion John Cena was the first pick of the 2005 Draft, bringing the WWE Championship with him to Monday Night RAW.

This meant that both the WWE Champion and the World Heavyweight Champion were exclusive to the red brand.

It was a marker of even greater success for Cena, who quickly went on to become WWE's franchise player for the next decade, starting with this move to Monday Night RAW.