How WWE Are Intentionally Killing Raw To Save SmackDown

SmackDown Live 3 Hours
WWE.com

Monday's Raw went head-to-head with an NCAA Basketball final watched by 19.63 million viewers, but one additional competitive element couldn't be held accountable for a 25+ year-on-year drop from the 3.9 million that watched the same episode in 2018. There's then the argument that wrestling fans had quite literally seen enough - WWE were encroaching on 20 hours of live original content over WrestleMania weekend on their Network. Were three more (five, including SmackDown Live) particularly palatable after that?

This latest drop again pours scorn on the three-hour era in the general. Has WWE's interest in taking mammoth rights fees in the present ultimately hampered their future? Ratings are down everywhere, and Raw isn't immune to the plummets, but at what point will television networks look elsewhere for a winner instead of backing the WWE devil they know?

USA were risk averse in their assessment of the flagship as a bankable commodity, but Fox won't be so stoic with SmackDown Live. The group will air the show live on Fridays from October 2019 having paid a small fortune for the privilege. Triple H, Stephanie McMahon and others have been up front about the "reimagined" blue brand, though history suggests the company will attempt every tried and true method before attempting to reinvent the relentlessly-turning wheel.

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Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett