The fate of the WWE roster will be determined Tuesday night at the 2016 WWE Draft.
For the first time since 2002, the authority figures for both Raw and SmackDown will stand on stage and announce their picks as two separate rosters will be created by the end of the night. It’s an exciting time for every wrestling fan due to the unpredictable nature of the draft, but is it exciting for the performers who have no idea what to expect on Tuesday night?
“Everyone is nervous. Your life changes,” The Miz told NBC Sports.
“I am excited. It’s another opportunity to raise the bar for the women and maybe main event a Pay-Per-View,” says Charlotte.
In terms of draft experience, Charlotte is a rookie, but The Miz is a veteran. The current Intercontential Champion has been drafted three times in his career (‘07,’09, ’10), which means he understands just how significant the 2016 draft is.
“This one feels extra special because we haven’t done it in so long. Every superstar wants to compete; every wrestler wants to have the best ratings,” he said.
So what show does The Miz want to compete on?
“I want the best competition no matter what show it is.”
Charlotte echoed a similar sentiment when asked the same question.
“Whatever show I get drafted to, I want to make it the best show.”
If Charlotte is going to make her show the best show, she’s going to have to do it with a thin roster of talent. Out of the 52 names eligible to be drafted, only 10 are women and only seven out of those 10 women have received television time over the past few months.
In my mock draft, I wondered if it would be better for the women’s roster to be exclusive to Raw. With the extra hour of television that needs to be filled every week, it would be beneficial for the women to grow as performers because they would have additional time to tell their stories.
“I definitely thought about that and I think that would be great, but I don’t see them only having women on one show,” Charlotte said when I proposed this idea to her.
If the WWE is going to have women on both shows, does this mean the women’s champion is going to have to pull double duty and bounce back and forth between Raw and SmackDown Live?
“I would absolutely like to work both brands, but I have no idea what’s going to happen,” she said.
Charlotte did mention that the “new talents [from NXT] will add a lot” and she’s absolutely right. The addition of performers such as Bayley, Carmella, Alexa Bliss and Nia Jax…
(Yes, the sound you heard was the collective groan of the Internet. I think she will be just fine on the main roster, but creative needs to be careful with her early on.)
…will give the women’s roster a shot in the arm, but there are still plenty of questions that need to be answered on Tuesday night regarding the future of the women’s championship.
There is one question that we already have an answer to: how important is Tuesday night for every performer in the WWE?
The Miz said it best, “this is a career changer.”
I suppose that is why he’s awesome.
Twitter: @ScottDargis