6 Problems WWE Solved In The 2019 Draft

2. RIP The Wild Card Rule

Big beefy boys on SmackDown
WWE

The Wild Card Rule is dead, long live the Wild Card--...

No, to hell with that. Good riddance to this pointless, convoluted mess of a regulation and all the unnecessary confusion it brought to WWE programming when Vince McMahon decided he didn't want a hard brand split anymore.

Originally designed to open the doors for four acts to cross between Raw or SmackDown on any given night, the Wild Card Rule was broken on its very first night of existence. It immediately became a running joke, and while WWE generally only break it by a couple of wrestlers at a time early on, it eventually became a free for all. Things soon got to the point where it was almost impossible to keep track of who was on what brand without consulting Wikipedia or WWE.com.

But now it's gone, and we can all breathe a sigh of relief.

Will the Wild Card Rule stay dead? Chances of a revival are certainly slimmer now that SmackDown is on FOX and network officials supposedly had a say in who was drafted where. We can only hope.

Channel Manager
Channel Manager

Andy has been with WhatCulture for eight years and is currently WhatCulture's Wrestling Channel Manager. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.