6. Paul Heyman Removed As Head Writer Of Smackdown
It might seem hard to imagine these days, but there once existed a time when WWE Smackdown was far superior to WWE Raw. Not by coincidence perhaps, this time was also the period that Paul Heyman was being used as the head writer for Smackdown. From the summer of 2002 through 2003 Smackdown was spectacular. Seen by many fans as "the wrestling show" it boasted talent that included Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero and Rey Mysterio in their primes. What really made these talent was the great creative they had to work with. It was Heyman who established the thrilling tag series that was a highlight of Autumn 2002 and it was Heyman who laid the groundwork for the Angle vs Lesnar feud. Fans loved it. And then Heyman was suddenly removed from power. The fans were loving the product but WWE changed it anyway. Stephanie McMahon would end up booking Smackdown and just a year later ratings had fallen dramatically. Perhaps WWE were embarrassed that Smackdown was overshadowing Raw, or more likely it was Heyman's creative differences with Stephanie that led to the decision. The big loser in all of this was the fans.