Will WWE Draft hurt Smackdown ticket sales?
Earlier this week, I posted a commentary about Monday night's 2010 WWE Draft. Another fan commented that it appears WWE may be looking to stack their Raw lineup against that of TNA on Monday nights, which is a valid point. However, if that is the case, WWE will likely hurt its Friday night Smackdown ticket sales by taking talent off the show. No offense to names like Big Show, Christian, CM Punk, Matt Hardy, Undertaker and Rey Mysterio, but if you had a choice, which brand would you pay to see live? I think many would opt for Raw because the ticket just seems to be a better investment.
With Raw you potentially get to see Batista, Orton, Sheamus, Edge, John Cena, Chris Jericho, John Morrison and maybe Triple H. Smackdown boasts Mysterio, CM Punk, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston, Christian, Big Show and maybe Undertaker. It seems Taker is appearing less and less on the show these days. Even his appearance on Raw was under emergency circumstances because of the Raw wrestlers getting stuck in Europe.
Someone new may be in line after Swagger to become the next World Champion on Smackdown, but will they have the draw? Will fans put up ticket and merchandise money if Christian or Kofi Kingston become the new champ? I'm not saying for a minute that anyone pays to see Swagger wrestle, but there were plenty of people upset to hear Edge and Jericho were both drafted off Smackdown. These were two other championship contenders. Extreme Rules even saw Swagger face a Raw wrestler in Randy Orton. Still, some fans had purchased tickets to Smackdown just to see particular wrestlers who are now on Raw. While their tickets aren't worthless, the level of top name superstars seems to be lacking on Smackdown. They'll really need to give some of the new guys a push, whether it be newly acquired draft wrestlers or a few from WWE NXT.
I will make the case for Smackdown tickets being worthwhile due to one advantage that it seems to hold over Raw- and that is fresh new storylines and feuds. If nothing else, CM Punk's StraightEdge Society, having Jack Swagger win the MITB and the World Title, and the Shad Gaspard breakaway from Cryme Tyme are just a few intriguing new plots. Raw seems to do a lot of the same ol, same ol and leaves the fans wanting more. Case in point like someone mentioned, Batista once again becoming #1 Contender. If you look at the talent on Raw, Edge, Jericho, Orton have all been in feuds with Cena before over the title, so once again, it's the same ol, same ol Raw.
However, as long as Raw keeps the big names it has and continues to bring a celebrity guest host on each week, it still seems like a tough ticket to beat. There's plenty of fans who will buy tickets to see their favorite wrestlers compete, and if Undertaker is out of action, it's hard to attract fans to Smackdown, until they've established some new stars for the show.
Feel free to leave comments on which show you think will do best now after the draft.
With Raw you potentially get to see Batista, Orton, Sheamus, Edge, John Cena, Chris Jericho, John Morrison and maybe Triple H. Smackdown boasts Mysterio, CM Punk, Jack Swagger, Kofi Kingston, Christian, Big Show and maybe Undertaker. It seems Taker is appearing less and less on the show these days. Even his appearance on Raw was under emergency circumstances because of the Raw wrestlers getting stuck in Europe.
Someone new may be in line after Swagger to become the next World Champion on Smackdown, but will they have the draw? Will fans put up ticket and merchandise money if Christian or Kofi Kingston become the new champ? I'm not saying for a minute that anyone pays to see Swagger wrestle, but there were plenty of people upset to hear Edge and Jericho were both drafted off Smackdown. These were two other championship contenders. Extreme Rules even saw Swagger face a Raw wrestler in Randy Orton. Still, some fans had purchased tickets to Smackdown just to see particular wrestlers who are now on Raw. While their tickets aren't worthless, the level of top name superstars seems to be lacking on Smackdown. They'll really need to give some of the new guys a push, whether it be newly acquired draft wrestlers or a few from WWE NXT.
I will make the case for Smackdown tickets being worthwhile due to one advantage that it seems to hold over Raw- and that is fresh new storylines and feuds. If nothing else, CM Punk's StraightEdge Society, having Jack Swagger win the MITB and the World Title, and the Shad Gaspard breakaway from Cryme Tyme are just a few intriguing new plots. Raw seems to do a lot of the same ol, same ol and leaves the fans wanting more. Case in point like someone mentioned, Batista once again becoming #1 Contender. If you look at the talent on Raw, Edge, Jericho, Orton have all been in feuds with Cena before over the title, so once again, it's the same ol, same ol Raw.
However, as long as Raw keeps the big names it has and continues to bring a celebrity guest host on each week, it still seems like a tough ticket to beat. There's plenty of fans who will buy tickets to see their favorite wrestlers compete, and if Undertaker is out of action, it's hard to attract fans to Smackdown, until they've established some new stars for the show.
Feel free to leave comments on which show you think will do best now after the draft.
Labels: Batista, Big Show, Chris Jericho, Christian, Commentary, Edge, Extreme Rules, Jack Swagger, John Cena, Kofi Kingston, Randy Orton, WWE Draft
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