Smackdown Live coming to FOX

WWE’s contract with NBC is set to expire in September 2019 and as such all other WWE shows are in search of a new home on a different network. As per reports, only RAW will be kept on the NBC Universal programming. FOX has proposed a bid to bring Smackdown Live onto their network. This partnership will result in Smackdown Live being moved to Friday nights instead of Tuesdays.

I think that this new deal with FOX is going to be great for the WWE brand, making it more accessible to greater amounts of people and increasing viewership significantly. Friday night is a very appropriate night to house a weekly time slot for a sport as rowdy as WWE. As great as I think this partnership will be, I still believe that it will come with some challenges. Smackdown Live risks being in competition with other programming. 

FOX was not the only party who made a bid to take over Smackdown Live. Another offer was made to WWE which was higher than that of FOX however, WWE agreed to partner with FOX as they believed this is the best platform to promote their brand. FOX is already partnered with other sporting leagues such as NFL and MLB. The contract between FOX and WWE is said to be worth more than $1 billion, which breaks down to $205 million a year paid to WWE. It is safe to assume that because Smackdown Live will be taking over a primetime slot Friday nights, that the show will now become a three hour episode. This is something I'm very excited about because this means that the longer the show and the more viewers who will be watching, we can anticipate that Smackdown will get a bit of a creative rejuventation which will spark and attract more viewers. 

Nick 

WWE Live Ottawa (30/04): Results

On Monday, April 30th, I made my way down to the Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, Canada to see my fifteenth live WWE event. This event was nowhere near a sellout. The arena was empty, the crowd quiet and the matches did not play out as advertised. However, that did not take away from the talent we saw in the ring. Here are some highlights of the night’s events.

In a Tag Team match, we saw The Bludgeon Brothers defend their Smackdown Tag Team Championship title by defeating The Usos, The New Day and Rusev Day. 

One of the most anticipated meetings was Daniel Bryan versus The Miz and this certainly did not disappoint. The Canadian Tire Centre erupted with cheer when fans saw Daniel Bryan return to the ring. It was a hard fought battle between the two superstars, but Bryan brought his A game and destroyed The Miz.

For the main event, AJ Styles and Jeff Hardy teamed up against Shinsuke Nakamura and Samoa Joe. It was clear from the moment the match began that AJ Styles and Jeff Hardy were obviously the team to beat. They came out into the ring full of momentum and competition which ultimately ended with Nakamura and Samoa Joe being defeated.

All in all, the WWE Live in Ottawa was a great show to attend. Seeing all of the talent up close and in my home city was thoroughly exciting. As per usual, this night was definitely filled with the superstar talent and enthusiastic aggression that all fans come out to see. As disappointed as I was with the lack of attendance and the dull crowd, it does not take away from the thrilling experience WWE promises!

Until next time, 

Nick