WWE To Bring Back Brand Split, Make Smackdown Live

Stephanie McMahon and Shane McMahon
Image Source: wrestlingrumors.net

Holy Booty-Os people, the WWE just announced the return of the Brand Split. If that sentence was pure goop to your ears let us explain. A few years back WWE’s two prime time TV shows, Raw and Smackdown, each had their own roster of wrestlers. If you were signed to one show, you couldn’t appear on the other without getting a slap on the wrist. So what happened, and why is it coming back?

The initial impetus for the ‘Brand Split’ all those years ago was a glut of wrestling talent. After the collapse of WCW, Vince McMahon suddenly had a lot of wrestlers on his books – enough for two separate rosters, it turned out.  So for a long time WWE operated with two world champions, one for each ‘brand’, until a few years ago when the talent dried up and the creative team seemed to sour on the idea. Who can blame them? It was dark times and the Summer of Punk had just ended with a flatulent whimper. Thanks Triple H.

So what’s happening with the new brand split? Officially, the split will kick off on Tuesday July 19, with Smackdown becoming live. That’s right, Smackdown is moving to Tuesday night and going as live as Monday Night Raw. Once again it’s going to have its own separate roster of exclusive wrestlers, and possibly its own world championship.

After the way the last brand split ended, there’s likely going to be a reasonable amount of skepticism about this move. Still, it does make WWE’s near future that bit more exciting. Which stars will land on which roster? Will their be a roster draft, like back in the day? Who will be in charge of each show and will they have distinct tones? How will Stephanie and Shane figure into all this business?

The most interesting thing in the coming weeks will be to see how WWE’s major storylines weave into this new announcement. Seeing The (Bullet) Club decide which roster to invade, or watching Kevin Owens turn Smackdown into the KO-Show could be supremely entertaining.

A more ugly question however, is whether the current WWE roster is in a position to pull off a new brand split. With what is possibly the most talent-deep roster in years, it seems like a no brainer. Unfortunately half of that talent right now is sat on the sidelines nursing one injury or another. Bray Wyatt, Randy Orton and Enzo Amore are currently struggling with injuries, with the one true savoir Seth Rollins only just returning from a disastrous knee injury.

Whatever happens, it’s going to be an interesting couple of months. Keep your eyes peeled to Cultured Vultures for more breaking news.

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