2009 WWE Draft
Encyclopedia
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Professional wrestling promotion
A professional wrestling promotion is a company or business that regularly performs shows involving professional wrestling. Promotion also describes a role which entails management, advertising and logistics of running a wrestling event...
WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
. The Draft took place over two days: the first day was televised live for three hours on April 13; the second part, the "Supplemental Draft", was held on April 15. The first day was broadcast on WWE's program Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
on the USA Network
USA Network
USA Network is an American cable television channel launched in 1971. Once a minor player in basic cable, the network has steadily gained popularity because of breakout hits like Monk, Psych, Burn Notice, Royal Pains, Covert Affairs, White Collar, Monday Night RAW, Suits, and reruns of the various...
in the United States, and the Supplemental Draft was available on the Internet, at WWE's official website. The televised portion was held in Atlanta, Georgia at Philips Arena
Philips Arena
Philips Arena is an indoor arena in Atlanta, Georgia.Completed in 1999 to replace The Omni, at a cost of $213.5 million, it is home to the Atlanta Hawks, of the National Basketball Association, and the Atlanta Dream, of the Women's National Basketball Association...
. The 2009 WWE Draft marked the third time that the Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brand
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
s were featured in the Draft; wrestlers, general managers and commentator
Sports commentator
In sports broadcasting, a commentator gives a running commentary of a game or event in real time, usually during a live broadcast. The comments are normally a voiceover, with the sounds of the action and spectators also heard in the background. In the case of television commentary, the commentator...
s were all eligible to be drafted from the company's roster. For the televised half, matches
Professional wrestling match types
Many types of matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, can be found in the form of performing art that is professional wrestling....
determined which brand received a random draft selection. During the Supplemental Draft, brand and employee selections were made at random. Due to Draft regulations, drafted champions took their titles to their new brands, and tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
s were not exempt from being selected. As a result, the Draft impacted championships and split tag teams.
Overall, 36 draft selections were made, the most since the original draft in 2002 (which featured 57 selections). Twelve selections were made on television; six were made by Raw, five by SmackDown, and one by ECW. All of the draftees were wrestlers: 28 males (10 drafted on television) and 8 females (2 drafted on television). Raw obtained the first overall pick in the Draft by winning the first match, which resulted in the acquisition of United States Champion
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
Montel Vontavious Porter from SmackDown. Women's Champion
WWE Women's Championship
The WWE Women's Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Entertainment promotion. Created in 1956, it was the oldest active professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment history until its retirement in 2010 as a result from a unification...
Melina
Melina Perez
Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina....
from Raw was SmackDown's first selection. ECW's sole televised draft pick was Vladimir Kozlov
Oleg Prudius
Oleg Aleksandrovich Prudius is a Ukrainian American professional wrestler, also known by his ring name Vladimir Kozlov . Since competing for WWE, he won the WWE Tag Team Championships with Santino Marella on one occasion...
from SmackDown. Additionally, SmackDown's WWE Champion
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
was drafted by Raw, resulting in SmackDown's loss of its prime championship. At the end of the televised portion, the final draft choices were Intercontinental Champion
WWE Intercontinental Championship
The WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...
Rey Mysterio of Raw by SmackDown, replacing the loss of the U.S. Champion, and SmackDown's Divas Champion
WWE Divas Championship
The WWE Diva's Championship is a unified professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is competed for by WWE Divas. The championship was created by WWE in 2008, and was introduced in storyline by then-SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero as an alternative to Raw's Women's Championship...
Maryse
Maryse Ouellet
Maryse Ouellet is a Professional Glamour Model and a former professional wrestler, better known simply as Maryse. She most recently worked for WWE...
by Raw, replacing the loss of the Women's Champion.
In the Supplemental Draft, Mr. Kennedy, who was sidelined with a non-scripted shoulder injury, was drafted from SmackDown to Raw as the first (13th overall) supplemental pick. SmackDown obtained Shad Gaspard
Cryme Tyme
For animated series named Crime Time, visit Crime TimeCryme Tyme was a professional wrestling tag team that was signed to WWE.The team consisted of JTG and Shad , an over-the-top parody of stereotypical street thugs.-Early lives:Of Haitian and...
from Raw as their first (14th overall) supplemental selection. Ezekiel Jackson was ECW's first supplemental pick. Unified WWE Tag Team Champions The Colóns
The Colóns
The Colóns were a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of real-life brothers, Carlito and Primo. The team worked for World Wrestling Entertainment...
(Carlito and Primo) were drafted from SmackDown to Raw; this left SmackDown without a tag team championship
World Tag Team Championship
The World Tag Team Championship was the original professional wrestling world tag team championship contested for in World Wrestling Entertainment . It served as the premier title for tag teams in WWE from 1971 until 2002 when a second WWE Tag Team Championship was established...
(although the tag team champions can appear on all 3 brands). Brie Bella
The Bella Twins
Brianna Monique Garcia and Stephanie Nicole Garcia are American twin professional wrestlers. The twins are a professional wrestling tag team under the ring names Brie Bella and Nikki Bella, collectively referred to as The Bella Twins, and work for WWE on the Raw brand.Before being promoted to the...
(from SmackDown to Raw), Charlie Haas
Charlie Haas
Charles "Charlie" Doyle Haas II is an American professional wrestler and former collegiate amateur wrestler. He competes on the independent circuit, and is signed to Ring of Honor , where he is one-half of the reigning ROH World Tag Team Champions with Shelton Benjamin...
(from Raw to SmackDown), and Hurricane Helms
Gregory Helms
Gregory Shane Helms is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment where he wrestled as The Hurricane and Gregory Helms. He is also known for his time with World Championship Wrestling where he wrestled as "Sugar" Shane Helms...
(from SmackDown to ECW) were the final supplemental picks.
Background
In March 2002, the Brand ExtensionWWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
storyline
Narrative thread
A narrative thread, or plot thread , refers to particular elements and techniques of writing to center the story in the action or experience of characters rather than to relate a matter in a dry 'All knowing' sort of narration...
was initiated. WWE's Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
and SmackDown! television programs were made into brands that employees were assigned to work; the ECW brand was later added in 2006. With the exception of 2003, WWE has held the Draft annually since its inception.
Via its website on February 11, WWE announced that the 2009 Draft was to take place on April 13 at Philips Arena
Philips Arena
Philips Arena is an indoor arena in Atlanta, Georgia.Completed in 1999 to replace The Omni, at a cost of $213.5 million, it is home to the Atlanta Hawks, of the National Basketball Association, and the Atlanta Dream, of the Women's National Basketball Association...
in Atlanta, Georgia. All wrestlers, general managers, and commentators
Sports commentator
In sports broadcasting, a commentator gives a running commentary of a game or event in real time, usually during a live broadcast. The comments are normally a voiceover, with the sounds of the action and spectators also heard in the background. In the case of television commentary, the commentator...
were eligible to be drafted. A Supplemental Draft was announced for April 15. It was announced on the day of the televised draft that for the third consecutive year, matches
Professional wrestling match types
Many types of matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, can be found in the form of performing art that is professional wrestling....
would determine which brand received a draft pick, and that 12 superstars were to switch brands. As in previous drafts, the purpose of the 2009 WWE Draft was to increase television ratings
Audience measurement
Audience measurement measures how many people are in an audience, usually in relation to radio listenership and television viewership, but also in relation to newspaper and magazine readership and, increasingly, web traffic on websites...
of WWE programming and to refresh the roster with new storylines for each brand.
Televised draft
During Raw, 10 matches were held among representatives of the three brands to determine which would receive a draft pick; two of the matches were for two selections. Each match featured a wrestler representing their brand; if a wrestler was drafted earlier in the program, they would represent their new brand. After the matches, a computerized system, which appeared on the Raw stage TitanTronJumbotron
A JumboTron is a large-screen television using technology developed by Sony, typically used in sports stadiums and concert venues to show close-up shots of the event. Although JumboTron is a registered trademark owned by the Sony Corporation, the word jumbotron is often used by the public as a...
, randomly selected a member from the two opposing brands' roster for the winning brand.
Matches
| # | Match | Stipulation | Winner | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ECW: Evan Bourne vs. Raw: Rey Mysterio | Singles match for 1 draft pick | Raw: Rey Mysterio | ||||
| SmackDown: The Brian Kendrick vs. Raw: Kane Kane (wrestler) Glenn Thomas Jacobs is a Spanish-born American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name, Kane. He is signed to WWE, appearing on its SmackDown brand, but is currently inactive due to injury.... |
Singles match for 1 draft pick | Raw: Kane | ||||
| SmackDown: Maryse Maryse Ouellet Maryse Ouellet is a Professional Glamour Model and a former professional wrestler, better known simply as Maryse. She most recently worked for WWE... , Michelle McCool Michelle McCool Michelle Leigh McCool , is a retired American professional wrestler who is best known for her time in WWE.McCool originally worked as a middle school teacher in Palatka, Florida. She joined WWE in 2004 after participating in the 2004 WWE Diva Search. In her initial on-screen role, she acted... , and Natalya Nattie Neidhart Natalie "Nattie" Katherine Neidhart is a Canadian professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE on its SmackDown brand under the ring name Natalya.... vs. Raw: Kelly Kelly, Melina Melina Perez Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina.... , and Mickie James Mickie James Mickie Laree James , better known simply as Mickie James, is an American professional wrestler and singer of mixed Native American-Caucasian descent, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where she is a former two-time TNA Women's Knockout Champion.James began her professional... |
6-Diva WWE Diva Diva is a term used by World Wrestling Entertainment , an American professional wrestling promotion, to refer to its female talent. The term is applied to women who appear as wrestlers, managers or valets, backstage interviewers, or ring announcers.... tag team match for 1 draft pick |
SmackDown: Maryse, Michelle McCool, and Natalya | ||||
| Raw: World Heavyweight Champion John Cena John Cena John Felix Anthony Cena is an American professional wrestler, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw brand.... vs. ECW: ECW Champion Jack Swagger |
Singles match for 2 draft picks | Raw: John Cena | ||||
| SmackDown: The Great Khali vs. Raw: Santino Marella | Singles match for 1 draft pick | SmackDown: The Great Khali | ||||
| Raw: Kofi Kingston Kofi Kingston Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah , is a Ghanaian American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Kofi Kingston. He is currently signed to WWE and works on its Raw brand where he is one half of the WWE Tag Team Champions with Evan Bourne as Air Boom... vs. ECW: The Miz Mike Mizanin Michael "Mike" Gregory Mizanin is an American professional wrestler and reality television personality better known by his nickname and ring name The Miz. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand... |
Singles match for 1 draft pick | Raw: Kofi Kingston | ||||
| Raw: Big Show Paul Wight Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand.... , Cryme Tyme Cryme Tyme For animated series named Crime Time, visit Crime TimeCryme Tyme was a professional wrestling tag team that was signed to WWE.The team consisted of JTG and Shad , an over-the-top parody of stereotypical street thugs.-Early lives:Of Haitian and... , MVP, and Mike Knox Mike Knox Michael Shawn Hettinga is a American professional wrestler. He is best known for wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment as Mike Knox. He is also an avid fisherman, and fishes in his spare time.-Independent circuit :... vs. SmackDown: Carlito, Chavo Guerrero Chavo Guerrero Salvador Guerrero III , better known as Chavo Guerrero or Chavo Guerrero, Sr., is a former professional wrestler. He is known for his work in Universal Wrestling Federation , American Wrestling Association and World Wrestling Entertainment and for being the father of third generation wrestler... , Primo, R- Truth Ron Killings Ronald Aaron "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand. Since working for the company, he has been a one time United States Champion under the ring name R-Truth and a two time Hardcore Champion under the ring name K-Kwik... , and Edge) vs. ECW: Finlay Dave Finlay David John "Fit" Finlay Jr. is a Northern Irish professional wrestler and road agent. He is perhaps best known for his time in World Championship Wrestling and WWE as an active wrestler and later as a road agent... , Mark Henry Mark Henry Mark Jerrold Henry is an American professional wrestler signed with WWE, where he performs on its SmackDown brand as the reigning World Heavyweight Champion. He is a 1992 Olympian, and winner of the 2002 Arnold Strongman Classic... , Tyson Kidd, Paul Burchill Paul Burchill Paul Birchill , better known by his ring name Paul Burchill, is an English professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment , where he signed after training and debuting for the Frontier Wrestling Alliance in his home country.-Frontier Wrestling Alliance... , and Ricky Ortiz |
Tri-branded 15-man Battle royal Battle royal (professional wrestling) In professional wrestling, a battle royal is a multi-competitor match type in which wrestlers are eliminated until one is left and declared winner... for 2 draft picks |
SmackDown: Edge | ||||
| ECW: Christian vs. SmackDown: Shelton Benjamin Shelton Benjamin Shelton James Benjamin is an American professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment. Benjamin has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling in high school and at the University of Minnesota. In addition, Benjamin has acted... |
Singles match for 1 draft pick | ECW: Christian | ||||
| SmackDown: CM Punk CM Punk Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion.... vs. Raw: Matt Hardy Matt Hardy Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .... |
Singles match for 1 draft pick | Raw: Matt Hardy | ||||
| 10 | ECW: Tommy Dreamer Tommy Dreamer Thomas James "Tom" Laughlin is an American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Tommy Dreamer. He is currently working for various promotions on the independent circuit. He is best known for his time spent with Extreme Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment... vs. SmackDown: Chris Jericho Chris Jericho Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer... |
Singles match for 1 draft pick | SmackDown: Chris Jericho |
Selections
| Pick # | Brand (to) | Employee |
Role | Brand (from) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raw | Montel Vontavious Porter |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | |||||
| Raw | The Big Show Paul Wight Paul Donald Wight, Jr. , better known by his ring name, Big Show, is an American professional wrestler and actor, currently signed to WWE on its Raw brand.... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | |||||
| SmackDown | Melina Melina Perez Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina.... |
Female wrestler | Raw | |||||
| Raw | Matt Hardy Matt Hardy Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling .... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | |||||
| Raw | Triple H Triple H Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | |||||
| SmackDown | CM Punk CM Punk Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion.... |
Male wrestler | Raw | |||||
| Raw | The Miz Mike Mizanin Michael "Mike" Gregory Mizanin is an American professional wrestler and reality television personality better known by his nickname and ring name The Miz. He is currently signed to World Wrestling Entertainment on its Raw brand... |
Male wrestler | ECW | |||||
| SmackDown | Kane |
Male wrestler | Raw | |||||
| SmackDown | Chris Jericho Chris Jericho Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer... |
Male wrestler | Raw | |||||
| 10 | ECW | Vladimir Kozlov Oleg Prudius Oleg Aleksandrovich Prudius is a Ukrainian American professional wrestler, also known by his ring name Vladimir Kozlov . Since competing for WWE, he won the WWE Tag Team Championships with Santino Marella on one occasion... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 11 | Raw | Maryse Maryse Ouellet Maryse Ouellet is a Professional Glamour Model and a former professional wrestler, better known simply as Maryse. She most recently worked for WWE... |
Female wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 12 | SmackDown | Rey Mysterio |
Male wrestler | Raw |
Supplemental Draft
| Pick # | Brand (to) | Employee |
Role | Brand (from) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Raw | Mr. Kennedy |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 14 | SmackDown | Shad Gaspard Cryme Tyme For animated series named Crime Time, visit Crime TimeCryme Tyme was a professional wrestling tag team that was signed to WWE.The team consisted of JTG and Shad , an over-the-top parody of stereotypical street thugs.-Early lives:Of Haitian and... |
Male wrestler | Raw | ||||
| 15 | SmackDown | Alicia Fox |
Female wrestler | ECW | ||||
| 16 | Raw | Primo Colón |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 17 | SmackDown | Mike Knox Mike Knox Michael Shawn Hettinga is a American professional wrestler. He is best known for wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment as Mike Knox. He is also an avid fisherman, and fishes in his spare time.-Independent circuit :... |
Male wrestler | Raw | ||||
| 18 | ECW | Ezekiel Jackson |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 19 | Raw | Nikki Bella The Bella Twins Brianna Monique Garcia and Stephanie Nicole Garcia are American twin professional wrestlers. The twins are a professional wrestling tag team under the ring names Brie Bella and Nikki Bella, collectively referred to as The Bella Twins, and work for WWE on the Raw brand.Before being promoted to the... |
Female wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 20 | SmackDown | Candice Michelle Candice Michelle Candice Michelle Beckman-Ehrlich better known as Candice Michelle or just Candice, is an American model, actress, and professional wrestler best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment.... |
Female wrestler | Raw | ||||
| 21 | ECW | Zack Ryder Zack Ryder Matthew Joseph Cardona, Jr. better known by his ring name Zack Ryder, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE and works on the Raw brand as a wrestler and the SmackDown brand as an assistant to SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long.Cardona wrestled mostly with his tag... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 22 | Raw | Chavo Guerrero Chavo Guerrero, Jr. Salvador "Chavo" Guerrero IV also known as Chavo Guerrero and Chavo Guerrero, Jr., is a third generation Mexican-American professional wrestler and member of the famed Guerrero wrestling family who was well known for working with World Wrestling Entertainment and World Championship Wrestling... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 23 | SmackDown | Ricky Ortiz |
Male wrestler | ECW | ||||
| 24 | SmackDown | Layla Layla El Layla El is an English dancer, model and professional wrestler of Moroccan and Spanish descent. She is employed by WWE as a WWE Diva and appears on the SmackDown brand as Layla... |
Female wrestler | Raw | ||||
| 25 | Raw | Hornswoggle |
Male wrestler | ECW | ||||
| 26 | ECW | DH Smith Harry Smith (wrestler) Harry Smith is a Canadian professional wrestler of English descent. He is currently working for Inoki Genome Federation and is best known for his tenure in WWE, where he won the Unified Tag Team Championship along with Tyson Kidd before being released from his contract on August 5, 2011... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 27 | SmackDown | John Morrison |
Male wrestler | ECW | ||||
| 28 | Raw | Carlito |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 29 | ECW | Natalya Nattie Neidhart Natalie "Nattie" Katherine Neidhart is a Canadian professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE on its SmackDown brand under the ring name Natalya.... |
Female wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 30 | Raw | Festus Drew Hankinson Andrew "Drew" Hankinson is an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment , where he appeared under the ring names Festus and Luke Gallows... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 31 | SmackDown | JTG Cryme Tyme For animated series named Crime Time, visit Crime TimeCryme Tyme was a professional wrestling tag team that was signed to WWE.The team consisted of JTG and Shad , an over-the-top parody of stereotypical street thugs.-Early lives:Of Haitian and... |
Male wrestler | Raw | ||||
| 32 | SmackDown | Dolph Ziggler Nick Nemeth Nicholas Theodore "Nick" Nemeth is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE performing on its Raw brand under the ring name Dolph Ziggler. He is the reigning WWE United States Champion... |
Male wrestler | Raw | ||||
| 33 | Raw | The Brian Kendrick Brian Kendrick Brian David Kendrick is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling under his real name. Before joining TNA he spent several years wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment, where he wrestled under his name, as Spanky, and finally as "The" Brian Kendrick... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 34 | SmackDown | Charlie Haas Charlie Haas Charles "Charlie" Doyle Haas II is an American professional wrestler and former collegiate amateur wrestler. He competes on the independent circuit, and is signed to Ring of Honor , where he is one-half of the reigning ROH World Tag Team Champions with Shelton Benjamin... |
Male wrestler | Raw | ||||
| 35 | ECW | Hurricane Helms Gregory Helms Gregory Shane Helms is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment where he wrestled as The Hurricane and Gregory Helms. He is also known for his time with World Championship Wrestling where he wrestled as "Sugar" Shane Helms... |
Male wrestler | SmackDown | ||||
| 36 | Raw | Brie Bella The Bella Twins Brianna Monique Garcia and Stephanie Nicole Garcia are American twin professional wrestlers. The twins are a professional wrestling tag team under the ring names Brie Bella and Nikki Bella, collectively referred to as The Bella Twins, and work for WWE on the Raw brand.Before being promoted to the... |
Female wrestler | SmackDown |
Aftermath
After the televised draft, Joey StylesJoey Styles
Joseph Carmine Bonsignore better known by his ring name Joey Styles, is an American professional wrestling play-by-play commentator and former professional in the field of advertising sales...
, the Director of Digital Media Content for WWE's official website, interviewed the draftees on their reactions. The drafted wrestlers generally expressed approval of the draft and described what they hoped their experiences would be with their new brand. Seven of the wrestlers were champions with their original brand, and as outlined in the draft regulations, they carried their titles over to their new brand; this affected seven of nine WWE championships. Champion draft selections included: Unified Tag Team Champions The Colóns
The Colóns
The Colóns were a professional wrestling tag team that consisted of real-life brothers, Carlito and Primo. The team worked for World Wrestling Entertainment...
(Carlito and Primo), United States Champion
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
Montel Vontavious Porter, WWE Champion
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, and Divas Champion
WWE Divas Championship
The WWE Diva's Championship is a unified professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is competed for by WWE Divas. The championship was created by WWE in 2008, and was introduced in storyline by then-SmackDown General Manager Vickie Guerrero as an alternative to Raw's Women's Championship...
Maryse
Maryse Ouellet
Maryse Ouellet is a Professional Glamour Model and a former professional wrestler, better known simply as Maryse. She most recently worked for WWE...
from SmackDown to Raw; Women's Champion
WWE Women's Championship
The WWE Women's Championship was a professional wrestling championship in the World Wrestling Entertainment promotion. Created in 1956, it was the oldest active professional wrestling championship in World Wrestling Entertainment history until its retirement in 2010 as a result from a unification...
Melina
Melina Perez
Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina....
and Intercontinental Champion
WWE Intercontinental Championship
The WWE Intercontinental Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It is the original secondary title of the promotion. Currently, it is the secondary championship exclusive to the SmackDown brand...
Rey Mysterio from Raw to SmackDown. Since Triple H was drafted to Raw, it left SmackDown without a top contested title, as Raw now featured two of the three top contested championships in WWE: the WWE and World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
s. When Mysterio and Porter switched brands, the two secondary championships switched brands for the first time in WWE's history. This also occurred when Melina and Maryse switched brands, as the two female contested titles also switched brands for the first time. Though the Unified Tag Team Champions were both drafted over to Raw from SmackDown, the titles were able to be defended on all three brands due to being unified.
Numerous tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
s were affected by the Draft overall. During the televised portion of the Draft, ECW tag team John Morrison and The Miz
John Morrison and The Miz
John Morrison and The Miz were a professional wrestling tag team and former WWE Tough Enough contestants. The team worked for World Wrestling Entertainment on its ECW brand, but also appeared on the SmackDown and Raw brands due to ECW's talent exchanges with those brands during their tenure as a team...
was split up. The Miz was drafted to Raw and Morrison to SmackDown (during the Supplemental Draft). The Bella Twins
The Bella Twins
Brianna Monique Garcia and Stephanie Nicole Garcia are American twin professional wrestlers. The twins are a professional wrestling tag team under the ring names Brie Bella and Nikki Bella, collectively referred to as The Bella Twins, and work for WWE on the Raw brand.Before being promoted to the...
(Brie and Nikki), Cryme Tyme
Cryme Tyme
For animated series named Crime Time, visit Crime TimeCryme Tyme was a professional wrestling tag team that was signed to WWE.The team consisted of JTG and Shad , an over-the-top parody of stereotypical street thugs.-Early lives:Of Haitian and...
(Shad
Cryme Tyme
For animated series named Crime Time, visit Crime TimeCryme Tyme was a professional wrestling tag team that was signed to WWE.The team consisted of JTG and Shad , an over-the-top parody of stereotypical street thugs.-Early lives:Of Haitian and...
and JTG
Cryme Tyme
For animated series named Crime Time, visit Crime TimeCryme Tyme was a professional wrestling tag team that was signed to WWE.The team consisted of JTG and Shad , an over-the-top parody of stereotypical street thugs.-Early lives:Of Haitian and...
), and The Colóns were split up during the Supplemental Draft, although the duos went to the same brands afterward. SmackDown tag teams Jesse and Festus
Jesse and Festus
Jesse and Festus, also once known as The Dalton Boys, were an American professional wrestling tag team made up of Ray Gordy and Drew Hankinson . As of April 22, 2010, Ray Gordy was released by World Wrestling Entertainment...
and Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder
Curt Hawkins and Zack Ryder were a American professional wrestling tag team who appeared on the independent circuit and WWE under a variety of evolving names....
were also split up, with Festus
Drew Hankinson
Andrew "Drew" Hankinson is an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment , where he appeared under the ring names Festus and Luke Gallows...
drafted to Raw and Ryder to ECW.
The Draft had little effect on the television ratings for WWE's programming. Generally, the ratings of the three shows during the week of the draft were consistent with the ratings of each from the previous week. The ratings for WWE programming the week before the Draft were the following: the April 6 episode of Raw was watched by 5.7 million viewers in its first hour and by 6.1 million viewers in its second hour for an average 3.9 rating, the April 7 episode of ECW on Sci Fi earned a 1.3 television rating, and Friday Night SmackDown earned a 2.0 television rating. The Draft episode of Raw was watched by 4.7 million viewers in its first hour, 5.7 in its second hour, and 6.1 in the final hour for an average 3.7 television rating. Later that week, ECW on Sci Fi earned a 1.2 television rating, while Friday Night SmackDown earned a 2.0.
As stated by WWE commentator Jim Ross
Jim Ross
James William "Jim" Ross is a professional wrestling commentator, former professional wrestling referee, restaurateur, occasional wrestler, and former company executive of WWE, where he currently works as a commentator on the WWE Raw brand...
, the draft would not come into effect until after Backlash 2009
Backlash (2009)
Backlash was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 26, 2009 at the Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island. The 11th and final event under the Backlash banner, it featured talent from all three WWE brands: Raw,...
; the final inter-brand match took place on the April 24 episode of SmackDown.
Footnotes
- A: – In addition to the United States, Raw is held in various countries which have different channels.
- B: – Although WWE claimed the Draft was conducted randomly, the results were predetermined since the Draft is a storylineNarrative threadA narrative thread, or plot thread , refers to particular elements and techniques of writing to center the story in the action or experience of characters rather than to relate a matter in a dry 'All knowing' sort of narration...
. - C: – CM PunkCM PunkPhillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
& Chris JerichoChris JerichoChristopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
, originally members of the Raw brand, were drafted to SmackDown before this match took place. - D: – Matt HardyMatt HardyMatthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
, originally a member of the SmackDown brand, was drafted to Raw before this match took place. - E: – Viewership details are not available for ECW on Sci Fi and Friday Night SmackDown because they are not top-rated programs; as a result, Nielsen Media ResearchNielsen Media ResearchNielsen Media Research is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre films and newspapers...
does not publish that information.