Apparently, there’s been talks of WWE ending the brand split. Whether it’s actual chatter within the company or just rumor, the notion of this step comes after drooping ratings and a shakeup in creative. Yes, that shakeup.
Paul Heyman Being Demoted In WWE Was Scary Enough
Heyman’s run as head of RAW saw him focus heavily on pushing the younger superstars. You know, because that’s one of the main things someone in booking power should do. After all, the established, consistent stars at the top aren’t going to be around forever. They might be WWE lifers but their bodies aren’t wrestling lifers.
Booking the next generation well is important in putting them favorable positions just in case. Or even just to change the product’s focus and in-ring style. WWE’s been on this route before as it’s how we got the New Generation, the Attitude Era, and Ruthless Aggression.
Having someone who knows how important it is to invest in youth on the roster is important. Equally important is having someone who knows how to talk to most of the talent—sorry, AJ Styles—and get along with them. When the creative direction is steady or favorable, the company doesn’t have to worry about release requests.
Who knows how things will turn out with Bruce Pritchard at the helm of RAW. I say it’s 50/50 we’ll see more requests to leave and superstars taking to Twitter.
Rumor of Ending the Brand Split
Wait! We have to get back to ending the brand split. A rule of thumb with WWE is “If there’s talk that the brand split is ending, it’s ending.” USA and FOX were for an end to the brand split towards the end of 2019 and the current ratings while stable for one brand isn’t exactly ideal for WWE as a whole.
Maybe that’s why Heyman is out and Bruce is in. I’m sure it would be preferable to WWE and Vince McMahon to have someone who is unlikely to fight against ending split. Someone who can book and will just do as upper management says no questions asked.
Honestly, it seems like a horrible idea. Even with the roster cuts, WWE’s roster is still too beefy to simply run the product brandless. When there’s no brand split to give superstars both hope and a chance, we’re going to see some guys really get lost in the shuffle.
Let’s up the odds to 75/25 that we see more requests to leave should WWE go through with killing the split.
SUBSCRIBE NOW: Get The Overtimer’s Hottest Stories, Breaking News and Special Features in your email, CLICK HERE!
