WWE SmackDown: 10 Things You Might Have Missed (Dec 27)

5. SmackDown Talks About Being The 'A' Show More Than Raw Does

AJ Styles Baron Corbin Dolph Ziggler
WWE.com

During the previous brand split starting in 2002, WWE instructed announcers to talk up the show they were on as being the most dominant. Naturally, Raw still considered itself WWE's flagship. Meanwhile, SmackDown was more of a brash upstart looking to steal the crown. Nothing has changed in that regard.

Since July, talk of which show is superior has been tempered somewhat. Raw focused more on Monday nights and SmackDown on Tuesdays. On this week's episode of the blue brand show, the announce team repeatedly stated their belief that SmackDown is the 'A show' in WWE's weekly lineup.

Something about this felt a little forced. At one point, JBL even said that SmackDown had managed to out draw Raw in the exact same arena.

That's a bizarre statement, almost like WWE are fighting with themselves. Brand warfare would be fine though, if it was consistent. In one of the next segments, the announcers were talking up issues between Brock Lesnar and Goldberg, both Raw stars.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.