The 2008 World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) draft, the sixth
WWE draft
The WWE Draft, alternatively called the WWE Superstar Shake-up from 2017 to 2019, is a process used by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE to refresh its rosters between the Raw and SmackDown brands (2002–2011; 2016–present). ...
, took place at the
AT&T Center
AT&T Center is a list of indoor arenas, multi-purpose indoor arena on the east side of San Antonio, Texas, United States. It is the home of the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association.
The arena seats 18,418 for basketball, and ...
in
San Antonio, Texas
("Cradle of Freedom")
, image_map =
, mapsize = 220px
, map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = United States
, subdivision_type1= State
, subdivision_name1 = Texas
, subdivision_t ...
on June 23. The draft took place
live
Live may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Films
* ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film
* ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film
*'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD)
Music
* Live (band), American alternative rock band
* List of album ...
for three hours on ''
Raw.'' Every
WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and var ...
wrestler,
announcer
An announcer is a voice artist who relays information to the audience of a broadcast media programme or live event.
Television and other media
Some announcers work in television production, radio or filmmaking, usually providing narrations, ...
,
commentator, and
general manager
A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all ...
were eligible to be drafted. Similar to the
2007 WWE draft, wrestlers from each brand competed in matches to win a random draft pick for their brand. Draft picks were
kayfabe
In professional wrestling, kayfabe, as a noun, is the portrayal of staged events within the industry as "real" or "true", specifically the portrayal of competition, rivalries, and relationships between participants as being genuine and not staged. ...
selected at random via a computer that was shown on the ''Raw''
titantron.
Like the previous year, a supplemental draft took place on June 25, where draft selections were randomly conducted.
The Draft featured the
Raw brand randomly drafting
ECW Champion Kane from the
ECW brand. It also featured the ECW brand drafting
WWE United States Champion Matt Hardy
Matthew Moore Hardy (born September 23, 1974) is an American professional wrestler currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). He is best known for his time with WWE.
With his real life brother Jeff, Hardy gained notoriety in WWF's tag t ...
from the
SmackDown
''WWE SmackDown'', also known as ''Friday Night SmackDown'' or simply ''SmackDown'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that as of currently airs live every Friday at 8 p.m. ET on Fox. Fox Deportes si ...
brand. The final selection in the draft was conducted by the SmackDown brand, and they drafted
WWE Champion
The WWE Championship is a world heavyweight championship created and promoted by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE, representing the Raw brand division. It is one of two world titles on WWE's main roster, alongside SmackDown' ...
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque (born July 27, 1969), better known by the ring name Triple H, is an American business executive, actor, and retired professional wrestler currently serving as the chief content officer for WWE. He is widely regarded as ...
from the Raw brand. Per pre-draft stipulations, all the three champions brought their respective titles to the brand to which they were drafted. The 2008 Draft was the last to take place in the
Ruthless Aggression Era, as the era ended after the
SummerSlam
SummerSlam is a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event, produced annually since 1988 by WWE, the world's largest professional wrestling promotion. Dubbed "The Biggest Party of the Summer", it is considered WWE's se ...
PPV.
Background
The
draft
Draft, The Draft, or Draught may refer to:
Watercraft dimensions
* Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel
* Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail
* Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a ves ...
was announced by WWE Chairman
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy McMahon (; born August 24, 1945) is an American media proprietor and retired professional wrestling promoter, executive, and performer. From 1982 to 2022, he served as the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of WWE, the ...
on the May 26, 2008 episode of ''
Raw''.
During the announcement, he stated that every WWE performer from all three brands, Raw, ECW, and SmackDown, were eligible to be drafted.
On the June 16 episode of ''Raw'', McMahon announced that his ''
McMahon's Million Dollar Mania'' contest would take place on the same night as the WWE draft. During the contest, McMahon gave away one million
dollars
Dollar is the name of more than 20 Currency, currencies. They include the Australian dollar, Brunei dollar, Canadian dollar, Hong Kong dollar, Jamaican dollar, Liberian dollar, Namibian dollar, New Taiwan dollar, New Zealand dollar, Singapore d ...
to WWE fans. McMahon telephoned fans, who had registered for the contest, at their homes and asked them for a password, which was revealed at the opening of the ''Raw'' broadcast. If their answer was correct, he awarded the fan a portion of one million dollars.
On June 24, WWE announced on its website that a supplemental draft would take place on June 25 at noon
ET.
The supplemental draft, like the previous year, was conducted randomly, with each brand receiving random draft selections. Wrestlers affected by the televised draft were exempt from the supplemental draft. Because
professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...
is scripted, outcomes are usually predetermined. Unlike years past, during this draft, many employees in WWE were not told whether they were scripted to change brands.
Aside from the ''Million Dollar Mania'' contest, the draft was announced to help increase the
television ratings of ''Raw,'' which had been declining since
WrestleMania XXIV
WrestleMania XXIV was the 24th annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brand divisions. The e ...
. Though the draft helps increase ratings, it is also used as a way to refresh the rosters and create new storylines.
Selections
There were 28 selections conducted in the draft overall. 11 selections were conducted on television, while 17 selections occurred during the supplemental draft. The Raw brand earned five televised selections through their representatives winning five different matches, while they received six supplemental selections. In total, the Raw brand drafted 11 representatives: five on television and six through the supplemental draft. The SmackDown brand earned five television selections through their representatives winning five different matches, while they received seven supplemental selections. In total, the SmackDown brand drafted 12 representatives: five on television and seven through the supplemental draft. The ECW brand earned one televised selection through their representative winning one match, while they received four supplemental selections. In total, the ECW brand drafted five representatives: one on television and four through the supplemental draft. The 28 included two commentators, two Divas, and 24 male
wrestlers
Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat spo ...
(two inactive wrestlers and 22 active wrestlers).
Televised draft
Matches
During the program, representatives from the Raw, ECW and SmackDown brands were involved in matches that determined which brand received a draft pick. Overall, there were 9 matches, in which Raw won four, ECW won one, SmackDown won three and one resulted in no winner.
Selections
Supplemental draft
Aftermath
Jim Ross, one of the draftees, was unaware he was to switch brands during the draft. After the draft, Ross was on the verge of quitting his job as a commentator for WWE, as he was angry at the fact he was leaving the ''Raw'' brand, where he had commentated for over ten years. Ross stated on his official blog that he was about to quit WWE, but he decided to continue to work for the company and make the best of working on ''SmackDown.'' After the Draft, the ''ECW'' brand was left without a world championship, after the
ECW Champion Kane was drafted to ''Raw.'' As a result of pre-draft stipulations, champions took their championships to their new brand and made them property of that brand. ''SmackDown,'' however, lost their secondary championship, after United States Champion Matt Hardy was drafted to the ''ECW'' brand, in the process making the title ECW property, but gained another top-tier championship when WWE Champion Triple H was drafted to the ''SmackDown'' brand, in the process making the title ''SmackDown'' exclusive for the first time since 2005. The result of Triple H being drafted was the loss of the Raw brand's world championship. After the draft, the ECW Championship moved back to ECW when Mark Henry defeated Kane and
Big Show
Paul Donald Wight II (born February 8, 1972) is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as an in-ring performer, and as a commentator for its web television show, '' AEW Dark: Elevation,'' under ...
in a
Triple Threat match
Many types of wrestling matches, sometimes called "concept" or "gimmick matches" in the jargon of the business, are performed in professional wrestling. Some gimmick matches are more common than others and are often used to advance or conclude a ...
at
Night of Champions, leaving Raw without any top-tier championships. On the June 30, 2008 episode of ''Raw'', the Raw brand regained a world championship, after
Money in the Bank contract
The Money in the Bank ladder match is a multi-person ladder match held by the professional wrestling promotion WWE. First contested at WWE's annual WrestleMania event beginning in 2005, a separate Money in the Bank pay-per-view was established ...
holder, CM Punk, cashed in his contract and defeated the
World Heavyweight Champion,
Edge
Edge or EDGE may refer to:
Technology Computing
* Edge computing, a network load-balancing system
* Edge device, an entry point to a computer network
* Adobe Edge, a graphical development application
* Microsoft Edge, a web browser developed b ...
. Lastly, the United States Championship returned to SmackDown after Shelton Benjamin defeated Matt Hardy at
The Great American Bash pay-per-view on July 20. Trevor Murdoch and Big Daddy V were both later released from WWE prior to their first appearances on SmackDown after being drafted. Chuck Palumbo was also later released from the WWE prior to his first appearance on ''Raw'' after being drafted. Big Daddy V died in 2014 of heart failure.
The draft helped increased the television ratings of ''Raw'', which was one of the main purposes of the draft. The television rating for the three hours was 3.40
TVR, as it earned 2.78 TVR for the first hour, 3.46 TVR for the second hour, and 3.95 TVR for the final hour. In its regular time slot, the show would have garnered a 3.7 rating. Both ratings were higher than the week's previous rating of a 3.3 TVR.
See also
*
List of WWE personnel
WWE is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Stamford, Connecticut. WWE personnel consists of professional wrestlers, managers, play-by-play and color commentators, ring announcers, interviewers, referees, trainers, produce ...
Footnotes
References
;General
*
*
;Specific
External links
2008 WWE draft official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:2008 Wwe Draft
Wwe Draft, 2008
WWE draft
ECW (WWE brand)
Professional wrestling in San Antonio
Events in San Antonio
2008 in Texas
June 2008 events in the United States
pl:WWE Draft#WWE Draft 2008