The 2024 WWE Draft was the 18th WWE Draft produced by the

American professional wrestling Professional wrestling in the United States, until the 1920s, was viewed as a legitimate sport. This view did not endure into the 1930s, as professional wrestling became identified with modern theatrics, or "admitted fakeness" ("kayfabe"), moving ...

promotion WWE between their Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The two-night event began with the April 26 episode of ''

Friday Night 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 sim ...

'' (in Cincinnati, Ohio) and concluded with the April 29 episode of '' Monday Night Raw'' (in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

), with ''SmackDown'' airing on

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelv ...

and ''Raw'' on the USA Network. This was the first draft held with WWE under

TKO Group Holdings TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (TKO) is an American media conglomerate created by Endeavor (company), Endeavor as part of a merger between WWE, World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (WWE) and Zuffa, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championsh ...

. Draft results went into effect beginning with the May 6 episode of ''Raw''.

Production

Background

The WWE Draft is a process used by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE while a

brand extension Brand extension or brand stretching is a marketing strategy in which a firm marketing a product with a well-developed image uses the same brand name in a different product category. The new product is called a spin-off. Organizations use this ...

, or brand split, is in effect. The original brand extension occurred from 2002 to 2011, while the second and current brand split began in 2016. During a brand extension, the company divides its roster into what they call brands and wrestlers exclusively perform for each brand's respective television show, albeit with some exceptions. The draft is used to refresh the rosters of the brand divisions, typically between the Raw and SmackDown brands, which are regarded as the main roster. Since 2016, wrestlers from WWE's developmental brand, NXT, have been eligible to be drafted to either Raw or SmackDown. During an appearance on WWE wrestler Logan Paul's podcast ''Impaulsive'' on April 5, 2024, WWE Chief Content Officer (CCO) Triple H revealed that the 2024 draft was imminent. Just three days later on April 8, the draft was confirmed for the April 26 and April 29 episodes of ''

'' on

and '' Monday Night Raw'' on the USA Network, respectively. Draft results went into effect beginning with the May 6 episode of ''Raw'', two days after the Backlash France

pay-per-view Pay-per-view (PPV) is a type of pay television or webcast service that enables a viewer to pay to watch individual events via private telecast. Events can be purchased through a multichannel television platform using their electronic program guid ...

and

livestreaming Livestreaming is streaming media simultaneously recorded and broadcast in real-time over the internet. It is often referred to simply as streaming. Non-live media such as video-on-demand, vlogs, and YouTube videos are technically streamed, but no ...

event.

Selections

The draft pools were announced on April 24, 2024. It was also announced that the reigning champions— World Heavyweight Champion Damian Priest, Women's World Champion Becky Lynch, Intercontinental Champion Sami Zayn, and World Tag Team Champions Awesome Truth ( The Miz and R-Truth) for Raw and Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes, WWE Women's Champion Bayley, United States Champion Logan Paul, and

WWE Tag Team Champions WWE (formerly the WWF, the WWWF, and Capitol Wrestling) has maintained at least one primary tag team championship for its male performers since 1958 (except for a two year interim between 1967 and 1969). During periods of brand division, separate ...

A-Town Down Under ( Austin Theory and

Grayson Waller Matthew Farrelly (born 21 March 1990) is an Australian professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE, where he performs on the NXT brand under the ring name Grayson Waller. Before signing to WWE, he previously wrestled on the independent ...

) for SmackDown—were ineligible to be drafted and would remain on their respective brands. While the WWE Women's Tag Team Championship would remain eligible to challengers from all three brands, reigning champions The Kabuki Warriors ( Asuka and Kairi Sane) were still eligible to be drafted as the brand that picked them was where they would be assigned upon loss of the title.

Night 1: ''SmackDown'' (April 26)

There were four rounds of draft picks on Night 1 with each brand receiving two picks each round; SmackDown went first due to Night 1 taking place as that night's episode of ''SmackDown''. Draft selections were announced by various WWE Hall of Famers, veterans, and wrestlers. In the first round, Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Cody Rhodes announced SmackDown's picks while Hall of Famer and WWE CCO Triple H announced Raw's. Round two picks were announced by women's wrestling veteran Michelle McCool for SmackDown and Hall of Famer Torrie Wilson for Raw. The third round picks were announced by Hall of Famers The Dudley Boyz ( Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley), with Bubba announcing SmackDown's and D-Von announcing Raw's. The fourth and final round picks were announced by Hall of Famers Teddy Long for SmackDown and John "Bradshaw" Layfield for Raw.

Night 1 supplemental picks

These wrestlers were included in the Night 1 draft pool, but were not drafted on ''SmackDown''. Their draft selections were revealed on WWE's social media platforms after ''SmackDown'' went off air.

Night 2: ''Raw'' (April 29)

There were six rounds of draft picks on Night 2 with each brand receiving two picks each round; Raw went first due to Night 2 taking place as that night's episode of ''Raw''. Draft selections were announced by various Hall of Famers, veterans, wrestlers, as well as a celebrity. Both Raw and SmackDown's first round picks were announced by Stephanie McMahon. YouTuber and rapper iShowSpeed announced Raw's second round picks while SmackDown's were announced by United States Champion Logan Paul. Round three picks were announced by Hall of Famers John "Bradshaw" Layfield and Ron Simmons of the Acolytes Protection Agency, with Bradshaw announcing Raw's picks and Simmons announcing SmackDown's. The fourth round picks were announced by Hall of Famers Teddy Long and Alundra Blayze, with Long announcing Raw's picks and Blayze announcing SmackDown's. Hall of Famers The Dudley Boyz (Bubba Ray Dudley and D-Von Dudley) returned to announce the fifth round picks, with Bubba announcing Raw's picks and D-Von announcing SmackDown's. The sixth and final round picks were announced by the respective General Managers of Raw and SmackDown, Adam Pearce and Nick Aldis.

Night 2 supplemental picks

These wrestlers were included in the Night 2 draft pool, but were not drafted on ''Raw''. Their draft selections were revealed on WWE's social media platforms after ''Raw'' went off air.

Wrestlers not included

The following wrestlers were not listed in either draft pool, mostly due to inactivity as a result of medical reasons.

Aftermath

Post-draft moves and changes

Main roster wrestlers would continue appear in NXT with WWE president Nick Khan stating this cross-over of talent from Raw and SmackDown to NXT was intentional, as he said there was potential for NXT to become WWE's third brand again while still developing younger wrestlers. Meanwhile WWE began a wider talent exchange with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA). Several TNA wrestlers would make appearances on NXT's weekly television series and livestreaming events. The day after the draft on May 8, it was revealed that ring announcers Mike Rome and

Alicia Taylor Alicia Warrington (born August 30, 1980) is an American drummer. She has played drums for Kate Nash, Kelly Osbourne, Lillix, Hannah Montana, Uh Huh Her, Gore Gore Girls, Dawn Robinson, The All-Girl Boys Choir, The Dollyrots, The Bruises, Tracy ...

, who announced for the SmackDown and NXT brands respectively, would switch brands beginning May 10. On June 1, it was reported that Becky Lynch's WWE contract had expired and was now a free agent. On June 17 episode of ''Raw'', NXT's Joe Gacy made his main roster debut as a member of the Wyatt Sicks stable, with his promotion to the main roster on the Raw brand;

Nikki Cross Nicola Glencross (born 21 April 1989) is a Scottish professional wrestler currently signed to WWE, where she performs on the Raw brand under the ring name Nikki Cross. She is a one-time WWE Raw Women's Champion, three-time WWE Women's Tag Team ...

, Dexter Lumis, and Uncle Howdy, all of whom had been undrafted, were also part of the group, as was Erick Rowan, who had last been under WWE contract in 2020.

Dijak Dijak, ''Дијак'' is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Donovan Dijak (born 1987), American professional wrestler known by the ring names Dominik Dijakovic and T-Bar *Franjo Dijak (born 1977), Croatian actor *Vlado Dijak Vlado ...

left WWE on June 28 after revealing that the company did not reach out to renew his contract and was now a free agent. On June 29, Ricochet's profile on WWE's website was moved to the alumni section. The next day, it was reported that his contract had expired and was now a free agent. A few months later, Ricochet would go on to sign a multi-year contract with rival promotion All Elite Wrestling. On August 16th, 2024, MVP & Bobby Lashley's WWE contracts expired and were moved to the Alumni section of WWE.com. Cedric Alexander and Ashante "Thee" Adonis were initially drafted to SmackDown, but were shown on the July 9 episode of ''NXT'' to have been transferred to that brand.

Notes

References

{{WWE WWE Draft WWE Draft Professional wrestling shows in Cincinnati Professional wrestling shows in Kansas City, Missouri April 2024 events in the United States 2020s in Cincinnati 2020s in Kansas City, Missouri