Full Details On Huge Changes To WWE Commentary Teams
All three WWE brands will undergo major commentary shake-ups.
With rumblings of new commentary line-ups for the SmackDown and Raw brands ahead of their respective 'season premieres' tomorrow and the following Monday, we now know who'll be on the call for WWE's two main roster offerings.
As revealed by Variety, the company's blue brand will see Wade Barrett receive a promotion from NXT to sit alongside Michael Cole at the announce desk. Samantha Irvin will serve as ring announcer, with Kayla Braxton and Megan Morant covering backstage interview duties for the brand.
Over on Raw, Kevin Patrick will now operate opposite Corey Graves as part of a two-man commentary team. Previously, Graves had Byron Saxton and Jimmy Smith with him as part of a three-man booth. While Saxton was utilised on NXT this week, he will be used to conduct onscreen interviews on Raw from here on out. Interestingly, Cathy Kelley is returning to the company to pick-up backstage interview duties on Raw. Where all of this leaves Jimmy Smith, that remains to be seen.
For the NXT brand, two-time WWE Hall of Famer Booker T will be joining Vic Joseph to call the action of the organisation's third brand. Alicia Taylor will continue on as ring announcer, and McKenzie Mitchell will likewise remain as NXT's backstage interviewer.
In terms of Premium Live Events, it will be Michael Cole and Corey Graves at the desk for those shows.
At present, Pat McAfee is on a hiatus from WWE to focus on ESPN's College Gameday, but the current belief is that McAfee will definitely be returning to the company once college football season is over.