10 Things That Are Inevitable Before WWE WrestleMania 33
4. There Will Be Roster Trades
Compare WWE’s roster today to what it looked like at this time last year and the difference is huge. The landscape has changed immeasurably in the past 12 months, and with WWE allegedly still looking for new faces to pad-out their relatively thin post-Split rosters, further changes are afoot.
There’s been talk of more NXT call-ups, old stars returning, and a slew of new signings to build up Raw’s forthcoming Cruiserweight division. These, coupled with releases and injuries, will ensure huge changes to the roster between now and WrestleMania, but WWE have another method at their disposal: roster trades.
Inter-brand trades were a semi-regular occurrence during the previous Brand Split, and several big moves have already been touted. Cesaro has been rumoured for a trade to SmackDown since publicly voicing his displeasure on Draft night, while SD is severely lacking in midcard talent and could use a handful of fresh faces from Raw to boost their ranks.
It’s early days yet, and the Split’s kinks are still being ironed-out. As WWE realise their personnel mistakes, look for them to shuffle their decks and realign the rosters with a series of trades. If handled correctly, the results should see significant changes to both Raw and SmackDown’s title scenes, allowing for more exciting, cohesive stories to be told heading towards ‘Mania.