Major WWE Names Scouting Performance Center Ahead Of Potential Call-Ups

Could WWE be set to freshen up Raw and SmackDown?

by Andrew Pollard
Karrion Kross
WWE.com

In the aftermath of yesterday’s six releases, it looks as if WWE is looking to quickly fill some spots on main roster programming.

As per Fightful Select, several major players have today been seen at the WWE Performance Center to assess talent ahead of possible Raw or SmackDown call-ups.

This report claims that Bruce Prichard, Canyon Ceman, John Laurinaitis, Jamie Noble and Matt Bloom were all spotted together as talents put on matches as part of the regular PC Live in-house events.

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Of course, yesterday saw WWE release Braun Strowman, Aleister Black, Lana, Ruby Riott, Buddy Murphy and Santana Garrett – five of whom were main roster talent, while Garrett was rumoured to be heading to the SmackDown brand before her release happened.

Even before this latest round of releases, WWE’s main roster programming – in particular Raw – was in need of a shot in the arm, and the need for fresh talent, new rivalries and better creative is even more prevalent in the aftermath of yesterday’s news.

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As to which NXT or Performance Center talent find themselves being shifted to Raw or SmackDown, that remains to be seen.

It’s purely speculation, but one has to imagine that current NXT Champion Karrion Kross has to be in the discussion for such a move – particularly with how the recently announced five-way NXT Title match at TakeOver: In Your House would afford Kross the perfect opportunity to drop that championship without actually being pinned or submitted.

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Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.