2021 WWE Draft

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2021 WWE Draft
File:2021WWEDraftPoster.jpg
Sport Professional wrestling
Dates October 1–4, 2021
League WWE
Teams Raw
SmackDown
NXT (outgoing only)
← 2020

The 2021 WWE Draft was the 16th WWE Draft produced by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE between their Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The two-night event began with the October 1 episode of Friday Night SmackDown (in Baltimore, Maryland) and concluded with the October 4 episode of Monday Night Raw (in Nashville, Tennessee), with SmackDown airing on Fox and Raw on the USA Network. Unlike previous drafts, in which results took effect immediately, the results of the 2021 draft did not go into effect until the October 22 episode of SmackDown.

Production

Background

The WWE Draft is an annual process used by the American professional wrestling promotion WWE while a brand extension, 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 brands where the wrestlers exclusively perform for each brand's respective television show, and the draft is used to refresh the rosters of the brand divisions, typically between the Raw and SmackDown brands. The 2021 draft was WWE's 16th draft and was officially announced during the September 13 episode of Raw. It was scheduled to occur during the October 1 and October 4 episodes of SmackDown and Raw, respectively, with SmackDown airing on Fox and Raw on the USA Network.[1]

2021 draft rules

The rules of the 2021 draft were revealed by WWE correspondent Megan Morant on Twitter during the day before the first night of the draft on October 1. Over 60 wrestlers (including tag teams) were eligible to be drafted across the two nights, with half being eligible the first night and the other half eligible the second night; however, no draft pools were revealed for which wrestlers were eligible for each night. Tag teams were counted as one pick unless Fox or USA Network officials (who were promoted as draft decision makers)[lower-alpha 1] specifically only wanted one member of the team. Wrestlers from NXT were also eligible to be drafted to either Raw or SmackDown, while any non-NXT wrestlers who were not drafted became (kayfabe) free agents and could sign with the brand of their choice. Unlike previous drafts, in which results took effect immediately, results of the 2021 draft did not become effective until the October 22 episode of SmackDown, the night after the Crown Jewel pay-per-view.[2][3][4]

Selections

Night 1: SmackDown (October 1)

There were four rounds of draft picks during night 1 of the 2021 draft. Unlike previous drafts in which Raw received three picks and SmackDown only received two, both brands had two picks each round. WWE officials Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville announced the draft picks.[5]

Rnd. Pick # Wrestler(s) Pre-draft brand Post-draft brand Role Brand pick #
1 1 Roman Reigns with Paul Heyman SmackDown SmackDown Male wrestler and manager
Universal Champion (Reigns)		 1
1 2 Big E Raw Raw Male wrestler
WWE Champion		 1
1 3 Charlotte Flair Raw SmackDown Female wrestler
Raw Women's Champion		 2
1 4 Bianca Belair SmackDown Raw Female wrestler 2
2 5 Drew McIntyre Raw SmackDown Male wrestler 3
2 6 RK-Bro
(Randy Orton and Riddle)		 Raw Raw Male tag team
Raw Tag Team Champions		 3
2 7 The New Day
(Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods)		 Raw SmackDown Male tag team 4
2 8 Edge SmackDown[lower-alpha 2] Raw Male wrestler
Hall of Famer		 4
3 9 Happy Corbin and Madcap Moss SmackDown[lower-alpha 3] SmackDown Male tag team 5
3 10 Nikki A.S.H. and Rhea Ripley Raw Raw Female tag team
Women's Tag Team Champions		 5
3 11 Hit Row
(Isaiah "Swerve" Scott, Ashante "Thee" Adonis, Top Dolla, and B-Fab)		 NXT SmackDown Intergender stable 6
3 12 Keith "Bearcat" Lee Raw Raw Male wrestler 6
4 13 Naomi SmackDown SmackDown Female wrestler 7
4 14 Rey Mysterio and Dominik Mysterio SmackDown Raw Male tag team 7
4 15 Jeff Hardy Raw SmackDown Male wrestler 8
4 16 Austin Theory NXT Raw Male wrestler 8
Notes
  1. One stable was split up as a result of the first night: Austin Theory was drafted to Raw while his Way stablemates, Johnny Gargano, Dexter Lumis, Candice LeRae, and Indi Hartwell, remained on NXT.

Night 1 supplemental picks (October 1–2)

These picks were announced on October 1 via WWE's social media accounts and on the October 2 episode of Talking Smack.[6]

Wrestler(s) Pre-draft brand Post-draft brand Role
Akira Tozawa Raw Raw Male wrestler
Aliyah NXT SmackDown Female wrestler
Alpha Academy
(Chad Gable and Otis)		 SmackDown Raw Male tag team
Apollo Crews and Commander Azeez SmackDown Raw Male tag team
Doudrop Raw Raw Female wrestler
Drake Maverick[lower-alpha 4] NXT Raw Male wrestler
Drew Gulak Raw SmackDown Male wrestler
John Morrison Raw Raw Male wrestler
Mace Raw SmackDown Male wrestler
Mansoor Raw SmackDown Male wrestler
Mustafa Ali Raw SmackDown Male wrestler
Nia Jax Raw Raw Female wrestler
R-Truth Raw Raw Male wrestler
Reggie Raw Raw Male wrestler
24/7 Champion
T-Bar Raw Raw Male wrestler
Toni Storm SmackDown SmackDown Female wrestler
Zelina Vega SmackDown Raw Female wrestler
Notes
  1. One tag team was split up as a result of the supplemental draft: Mace was drafted to SmackDown while his tag team partner T-Bar remained on Raw.

Night 2: Raw (October 4)

There were six rounds of draft picks during night 2 of the 2021 draft. Like the first night, both brands had two picks each round. WWE officials Adam Pearce and Sonya Deville again announced the draft picks.[7]

Rnd. Pick # Wrestler(s) Pre-draft brand Post-draft brand Role Brand pick #
1 1 Becky Lynch SmackDown Raw Female wrestler
SmackDown Women's Champion		 1
1 2 The Usos
(Jey Uso and Jimmy Uso)		 SmackDown SmackDown Male tag team
SmackDown Tag Team Champions		 1
1 3 The Hurt Business
(Bobby Lashley with MVP)[lower-alpha 5]		 Raw Raw Male wrestler and manager 2
1 4 Sasha Banks SmackDown SmackDown Female wrestler 2
2 5 Seth Rollins SmackDown Raw Male wrestler 3
2 6 King Nakamura and Rick Boogs SmackDown[lower-alpha 6] SmackDown Male tag team
Intercontinental Champion (Nakamura)		 3
2 7 Damian Priest Raw Raw Male wrestler
United States Champion		 4
2 8 Sheamus Raw SmackDown Male wrestler 4
3 9 AJ Styles and Omos Raw Raw Male tag team 5
3 10 Shayna Baszler Raw SmackDown Female Wrestler
3 11 Kevin Owens SmackDown Raw Male wrestler 6
3 12 Xia Li NXT SmackDown Female wrestler 6
4 13 The Street Profits
(Angelo Dawkins and Montez Ford)		 SmackDown Raw Male tag team 7
4 14 The Viking Raiders
(Erik and Ivar)		 Raw SmackDown Male tag team 7
4 15 Finn Bálor SmackDown Raw Male wrestler, first-ever WWE Universal Champion 8
4 16 Ricochet Raw SmackDown Male wrestler 8
5 17 Karrion Kross Raw Raw Male wrestler 9
5 18 Angel Garza and Humberto Carrillo Raw SmackDown Male tag team 9
5 19 Alexa Bliss Raw Raw Female wrestler 10
5 20 Cesaro SmackDown SmackDown Male wrestler 10
6 21 Carmella SmackDown Raw Female wrestler 11
6 22 Ridge Holland NXT SmackDown Male wrestler 11
6 23 Gable Steveson Free agent Raw Male wrestler 12
6 24 Sami Zayn SmackDown SmackDown Male wrestler 12
Notes
  1. One stable was split up as a result of the second night: Xia Li was drafted to SmackDown while her Tian Sha stablemates, Boa and Mei Ying, remained on NXT.
  2. One tag team was split up as a result of the second night: Ridge Holland was drafted to SmackDown while his tag team partner Pete Dunne remained on NXT.

Night 2 supplemental picks (October 4)

These picks were announced on the October 4 episode of Raw Talk.

Wrestler(s) Pre-draft brand Post-draft brand Role
Dana Brooke Raw Raw Female wrestler
The Dirty Dawgs
(Dolph Ziggler and Robert Roode)		 SmackDown Raw Male tag team
The Hurt Business
(Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin)		 Raw Raw Male tag team
Jaxson Ryker Raw Raw Male wrestler
Jinder Mahal and Shanky Raw SmackDown Male tag team
Liv Morgan SmackDown Raw Female wrestler
Mia Yim Raw Raw Female wrestler
The Miz Raw Raw Male wrestler
Natalya SmackDown SmackDown Female wrestler
Shotzi SmackDown SmackDown Female wrestler
Tamina SmackDown Raw Female wrestler
Tegan Nox SmackDown Raw Female wrestler
Veer Raw Raw Male wrestler
Notes
  1. One stable was split up as a result of the supplemental draft: Veer remained on Raw while his stablemates, Jinder Mahal and Shanky, were drafted to SmackDown.
  2. Two tag teams were split up as a result of the supplemental draft: Tegan Nox was drafted to Raw while her tag team partner Shotzi remained on SmackDown, and Tamina was drafted to Raw while her tag team partner Natalya remained on SmackDown.

Post-draft trades

Trade # Brand (from) Wrestler(s) Role Brand (to) Date Notes
1 Raw Big E Male wrestler SmackDown January 28, 2022
2 SmackDown Mustafa Ali Male wrestler Raw April 25, 2022
3 Raw Apollo Crews and Commander Azeez Male tag team NXT June 7, 2022

Free agents

Several wrestlers were made free agents due to injury, inactivity, or simply not being drafted despite being an active member of the rosters. Free agents can (kayfabe) sign with the brand of their choosing. The chart is organized by date.

Wrestler(s) Pre-draft brand Reason for not being drafted
(if any)		 Subsequent status Date Notes
Brock Lesnar Raw[lower-alpha 7] Contractual provision Free agent October 1, 2021 During night 1 of the draft, Lesnar announced that he was a free agent (implying it was due to a deal arranged by Paul Heyman), thus is eligible to appear on any brand.[8]
Lucha House Party
(Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado)		 Raw Were not drafted on either night Released November 4, 2021 Last appeared on the September 13, 2021, episode of Main Event. On November 4, both Dorado and Metalik were released from their WWE contracts.
Eva Marie Raw Was not drafted on either night Released November 4, 2021 Last appeared on the September 27, 2021, episode of Raw. On November 4, Marie was released from her WWE contract.
Shane Thorne SmackDown Was not drafted on either night Released November 18, 2021 Last wrestled a dark match on the September 24, 2021, episode of SmackDown. On November 18, Thorne was released from his WWE contract.
Maryse Raw Was not drafted on either night Raw November 29, 2021 Last appeared on the April 12, 2021, episode of Raw. Returned alongside her husband, The Miz, who was also returning after participating in Dancing with the Stars.
Elias Raw Was not drafted on either night Raw April 4, 2022 Last appeared in a pre-taped vignette on the August 23, 2021 episode of Raw. Returned with a new gimmick, that of Elias' younger brother, Ezekiel .
Lacey Evans Raw Inactive due to maternity leave SmackDown April 8, 2022 Last appeared on the February 15, 2021, episode of Raw. Returned in a pre-taped vignette on SmackDown.
Asuka Raw Inactive due to a hand injury Raw April 25, 2022 Last appeared at Money in the Bank. Returned interrupting a fellow returning superstar Becky Lynch.
Bayley SmackDown Inactive due to torn ACL Last appeared on the Summer 2021, episode of SmackDown
Titus O'Neil Raw WWE Ambassador Last appeared at Wrestlemania 37 on April 10, 2021
Ronda Rousey Free agent Inactive after WrestleMania 35 SmackDown January 29, 2022 Rousey made a shocking return in Royal Rumble 2022 women's royal rumble match and won the royal rumble match by last eliminating SmackDown Women's Champion Charlotte Flair.She challenged Charlotte in WrestleMania 38 for the SmackDown Women's Championship.She lost to Flair in WrestleMania 38.She again challenged Flair an "I Quit Match" for the SmackDown Women's Championship in WrestleMania Backlash 2022.In WrestleMania Backlash,she defeated Flair and won the championship.

Aftermath

During the draft, Raw drafted SmackDown Women's Champion Becky Lynch while SmackDown drafted Raw Women's Champion Charlotte Flair. Neither lost their respective championship before the October 22 episode of SmackDown, the night that the draft results went into effect. The day of the show, WWE announced that Flair and Lynch would exchange titles to keep the championships on their respective brands.[9] In turn, Lynch became the Raw Women's Champion while Flair became the SmackDown Women's Champion.[10]

Also during the draft, SmackDown drafted NXT North American Champion Isaiah "Swerve" Scott as part of his stable, Hit Row. Swerve claimed he would be taking the title to SmackDown, however, on the October 12 episode of NXT 2.0, Swerve lost the championship to Carmelo Hayes, thus keeping the North American Championship on NXT before the draft results went into effect on October 22.[11]

In November, vignettes began airing to hype Veer's post-draft appearance on Raw. His ring name was changed to Veer Mahaan.[12]

On November 4, 2021, WWE released several wrestlers due to budget cuts. Mia Yim, Hit Row's B-Fab, Nia Jax, Karrion Kross, and Keith Lee were among those who were released, without a single appearance post-draft. Among those not drafted who were released included Eva Marie and Lucha House Party (Gran Metalik and Lince Dorado). Several NXT wrestlers were also released, including Franky Monet, Oney Lorcan, Ember Moon, Jeet Rama, Katrina Cortez, Trey Baxter, Zayda Ramier, Jessi Kamea, Harry Smith, and Kross' real-life fiancé, Scarlett, who served as Kross' on-screen manager when Kross was still in NXT and she was expected to eventually join Kross on Raw.[13] On November 18, the remainder of Hit Row, John Morrison, Tegan Nox, Shane Thorne, Drake Maverick, and Jaxson Ryker were also released.[14] Not long after, Jeff Hardy would be released on December 9 after being sent home from a live event tour and refusing rehab. [15] On December 29, Toni Storm requested and was immediately granted a release from her contract. [16] On 24 February 2022, it was reported that Cesaro and WWE had failed to agree on new contract terms and that he had quietly left WWE when his contract expired, ending his 11-year tenure in the company.[17]

Notes

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References

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