What was WWE RAW Underground and why was it cancelled?

One of WWE's most promising ideas in recent years was RAW Underground. The company introduced it during the pandemic era in August 2020. Quite bizarrely, however, it was canceled pretty quickly.

It seemed like Vince McMahon and company had stumbled upon a gold mine when Shane McMahon returned to Monday NIght RAW and announced RAW Underground. According to talkSPORT, RAW Underground was “legitimately a brainchild of Shane McMahon” and was “the company’s latest effort” to improve the red show's stagnating ratings.

As promising as the idea was, it only ran for a limited period of time. Today marks two years since it first debuted. If you forgot what RAW Underground was and need us to refresh your memory, we have got you covered.

RAW Underground was kind of like a Fight Club in the company. It existed for wrestlers to settle their disputes and differences in a shoot-style setting. Shane McMahon presided over the proceedings and booked fights each week. It lent some realism and authenticity to the product while it lasted.

RAW Underground had the likes of Braun Strowman, Dolph Ziggler, The Hurt Business and Shayna Baszler appearing to fight. It also introduced fans to emerging stars like Dabba-Kato and Arturo Ruas.

Why did WWE cancel RAW Underground?

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WWE pulled the plug on RAW Underground strictly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. They stopped filming RAW Underground segments because they were concerned the extras in every fight would spread the virus. It was also suggested that WWE wanted to separate the NXT Superstars who were appearing on RAW Underground from their main roster counterparts.

It also didn't help that ultimately, RAW Underground failed to capture the entire essence of real-life fights. The concept was introduced to boost RAW's viewership in its third hour. While it managed to do so for the first few days, the big viewership drops returned soon after.

RAW Underground had promise and would probably have thrived had it debuted at a different time. Let's hope we see a new and improved version somewhere down the road.