This year‘s WWE Draft comes on the heels of SmackDown moving to Fox and WWE Raw staying over on USA and the NBCUniversal side of things.
in past years, WWE has experimented with the format of trading superstars between brands. The initial draft in 2002 featured Ric Flair and Vince McMahon drafting 10 individuals to their respective brands and then a supplemental draft took place on WWE.com to round out the rest of the roster.
In later years, WWE became fond of a randomizer graphic that accompanied a draft lottery format. That format was used from 2007-2011.
In 2016, WWE re-divided the brands and once again utilized a traditional draft format. This time, Shane McMahon and Daniel Bryan represented SmackDown while Stephanie McMahon and Mick Foley represented WWE Raw. This would be the last year a traditional draft format was utilized.
In recent years, WWE has favorite a Superstar Shake-Up style which just saw Random superstars make appearances on their new brands to announce their debut.
Now, WWE has issued the following release announcing the rules for this year's draft as well as many celebrity appearances, representing both Fox television and NBCUniversal television, that will be on hand for both nights of the draft::
WWE DRAFT ON FOX + USA
STAMFORD, Conn. – October 10, 2019 – A star-studded celebrity lineup of FOX and NBCUniversal personalities including Alex Rodriguez, Michael Che, Colin Jost, Christian Slater, Troy Aikman, Joe Buck and Jim Cramer will be part of the two-night WWE Draft airing live tomorrow on Friday Night SmackDown at 8 pm ET/PT on FOX and continuing this Monday, October 14 on Raw at 8/7c on USA Network.
For the first time, executives from FOX and USA Network have direct influence over the WWE Draft as it will determine the Superstars competing for either Raw or SmackDown.
Additional celebrities include: FOX MLB Analysts Kevin Burkhardt and Frank Thomas; Curt Menefee, Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long, Jimmy Johnson and Tony Gonzalez from FOX NFL Sunday; FOX NFL Analysts Ronde Barber, Charles Davis, Chris Spielman and Daryl Johnston; Big Noon Kickoff Analysts Rob Stone, Brady Quinn, Reggie Bush, Matt Leinart and Urban Meyer; FOX NFL Kickoff cast including Charissa Thompson, Michael Vick and Peter Schrager; FOX College Football Analyst Joel Klatt; as well as stars from NBCUniversal including Dulé Hill (Psych, Suits); James Roady (Psych); Marcus Lemonis (The Profit); Margaret Josephs and Melissa Gorga (Real Housewives of New Jersey); Football Night In America Analysts Rodney Harrison and Chris Simms; and Rebecca Lowe, Robbie Mustoe and Kyle Martino from Premier League Live.
WWE Draft Rules
- More than 70 Superstars, including Tag Teams, have been placed into this year’s WWE Draft pool.
- 30 Superstars will be eligible to be drafted tomorrow night while 41 Superstars will be eligible on Monday Night.
- Since Friday Night SmackDown is a two-hour show and Monday Night Raw is a three-hour show, for every two SmackDown picks, Raw will get three.
- Tag Teams will count as one pick unless FOX or USA Network specifically wants to pick one Superstar from the team.
- Any undrafted Superstars will immediately be declared free agents and able to sign with the brand of their choosing.
About FOX Sports
FOX Sports is the umbrella entity representing Fox Corporation’s wide array of multi-platform US-based sports assets. Built with brands capable of reaching more than 100 million viewers in a single weekend, the business has ownership and interests in linear television networks, digital and mobile programming, broadband platforms, multiple web sites, joint-venture businesses and several licensing relationships. FOX Sports includes the sports arm of the FOX Network as well as FS1, FS2, FOX Soccer Plus and FOX Deportes. FOX Sports’ digital properties include FOXSports.com and the FOX Sports App, which provides live streaming video of FOX Sports content, instant scores, stats and alerts to iOS and Android devices. Additionally, FOX Sports and social broadcasting platform, Caffeine, jointly own Caffeine Studios which creates exclusive eSports, sports and live entertainment content. Also included in FOX Sports’ portfolio are FOX’s interests in joint-venture businesses Big Ten Network and BTN 2Go, as well as a licensing agreement that established the FOX Sports Radio Network.About USA Network
USA Network, the #1 cable entertainment network for a record 13 years and counting, is home to the most compelling television properties in the industry. Serving a broad, passionate fanbase, USA’s diverse slate includes popular award-winning dramas, unfiltered family comedies, buzzy unscripted, weekly live WWE programming, and a portfolio of sought-after acquired series and movies. USA is part of NBCUniversal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies. NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.About WWE
WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family friendly entertainment on its television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE programming reaches more than 800 million homes worldwide in 24 languages. WWE Network, the first-ever 24/7 over-the-top premium network that includes all live pay-per-views, scheduled programming and a massive video-on-demand library, is currently available in more than 180 countries. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, London, Mexico City, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Dubai, Munich and Tokyo.Additional information on WWE (NYSE: WWE) can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com. For information on our global activities, go to wwe.com/worldwide/.
