wrestling / Columns

Superstars Who Should Switch Brands in the Shakeup

April 10, 2017 | Posted by Andrew Hughes
Charlotte Flair

Vince McMahon announced this past Monday that “it was time to shake things up.” Every time the chairman says that phrase a draft or draft lottery usually follows although instead of the latter, we will instead get a “Superstar Shake-up.” There have been few details but one thing that is clear is that there will be movement between Raw and Smackdown that will see several superstars get a new home.

Some men and women have done everything they can on their old show, while many others are in desperate need of a new home. Here are the stars who I think should switch brands in the upcoming superstar shake-up..

Sami Zayn: I’ve long been a proponent of Sami Zayn moving up the card and I just don’t see that happening on a loaded Raw roster. Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns are both ahead of him on the pecking order on the face side and so is a recently returned Finn Balor. Matt and Jeff Hardy would theoretically be above him as well and even guys like Big Show and Chris Jericho appear to be valued more than Zayn. A switch to Smackdown would give Sami a handful of new guys to face off with as well as a chance to break through on a more shallow roster. Imagine Zayn facing off with Randy Orton, Bray Wyatt, or Shinsuke Nakamura? Match-ups with Dolph Ziggler and the Miz would also offer intrigue lower on the card. Its time Zayn is finally freed from the clutches of the Authority.

New Day: The New Day ran through every single team on Raw en route to the longest title reign in the history of the WWE. Following their loss to Sheamus and Cesaro, the New Day struggled to find a meaningful feud on Raw. The New Day toiled away taking turns beating up Titus O’Neill and had a brief program with the Shining Stars before they were relegated to hosting duties at WrestleMania. I think we can all agree it is time for the trio to move on to a new slate of opponents on the blue brand, where showdowns with the Usos and American Alpha can spark the sagging tag division on Smackdown. Heck even a brief program with Breezango would be fun.

Charlotte: The Queen is no longer the Queen of the Raw women’s division. While Charlotte had a series of great matches with Sasha Banks and also had a good run with Bayley as well, its time for Charlotte to tangle with the women of Smackdown. While there is still unfinished business with her former protege Dana Brooke, I am not too sure of many people who care to see that business finished.

The Club: With the Revival now in town, I don’t think there is room for both them and the Club to coexist, especially because Dash Wilder looks like a member of the club. Should AJ Styles stay on Smackdown (which I think he should) he could reunite with the good brothers to torment the life of Randy Orton and also take on the Wyatt family. Also, the Club can make magic with American Alpha, battle the Usos and maybe even rekindle their feud with the New Day…so long as “the Old Day” never makes another appearance on my television screen ever again.

Dean Ambrose: I personally think it’d be foolish to not have all three members of the Shield interacting and constantly teasing a return. With all three members now on the face side, the time could be now for the Shield to reunite to battle the Authority. Ambrose has a slew of opponents to take on, including Samoa Joe, Braun Strowman and Kevin Owens (even though they fought every month from late 2015 until the draft). Even if the Shield never has a full blown reunion, there would be a palpable buzz to having those three always available to each other for six-man tag matches.

Kalisto: Kalisto has been absolutely lost in the shuffle and quite frankly has nothing left to do on the Smackdown roster. Unfortunately he never did much to begin with. This move introduces a new face to the Cruiserweight division, although a reunion with Sin Cara can also spur the return of the fairly popular Lucha Dragons tag team.

Becky Lynch: With Charlottes move to Smackdown, the Raw women’s division would need a superstar of similar value. Becky Lynch is the choice here. Although Alexa Bliss has been rumored to be Raw-bound with Charlotte in tow, I think that a Lay-Cool dynamic with the two former champions littered with tension could make for some pretty entertaining television. Lynch on Raw would allow her to put on great matches with Bayley and Sasha Banks and she could also serve as the perfect underdog opponent for Nia Jax.

John Cena: John Cena had faced off with everyone on the Smackdown roster besides Shinsuke Nakamura. He’s battled AJ Styles, Bray Wyatt, the Miz and Randy Orton (far too many times) and isn’t around long enough to have a prolonged feud with guys like Baron Corbin or Tye Dillinger. Cena is a guy that seems like a perfect fit to Raw due to its status as the flagship program and because big name part-timers (Brock Lesnar, Triple H, Goldberg) usually dominate the red brands storylines during the most important times on the calendar. Cena has yet to face off with the likes of Finn Balor, Samoa Joe, or Braun Strowman, which would all be big time collisions. He’s also never had a proper one on one showdown with the WWE’s new golden boy Roman Reigns. A Cena-Reigns feud is perhaps the biggest money matchup the company has yet to put on. I think it makes too much sense for Cena to be sent to the show he became the face of the WWE on as his career enters its twilight.