SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)…
Night one of WWE’s 2024 draft begins on Smackdown tonight on Fox. WWE released the list of eligible wrestlers for the draft, who isn’t eligible, and the format.
Current champions on each brand are locked on that brand. So Damian Priest, Becky Lynch, Miz, R-Truth, and Sami Zayn will remain on Raw while Cody Rhodes, Bayley, Grayson Waller, Austin Theory, and Logan Paul are locked in on Smackdown. Women’s Tag Team Champions, Asuka & Kairi Sane are eligible to be drafted to a home brand even though they are floating between shows now as champions.
Tonight’s Smackdown will feature four rounds with each brand making two picks each. So a total of 8 wrestlers will be drafted by each brand by the end of the night. Raw, since it’s three hours instead of two hours, will feature six rounds with 24 total picks, 12 for each brand. The home brand picks first each night.
The remade rosters will go into effect on Monday, May 6, two days after WWE Backlash France takes place.
FRIDAY’S DRAFT POOL
The top male singles wrestlers who are eligible to be drafted on Smackdown tonight are:
(Note: These are editorial-based subjective lists based roughly on a mix of main event history, overall pushes, TV time, wins or protected losses, and who seems on the a trajectory upward.)
- Roman Reigns
- Solo Sikoa
- Tama Tonga
- Seth Rollins
- Randy Orton
- Jey Uso
The second tier includes:
- Chad Gable
- A.J. Styles
- L.A. Knight
- Bron Breakker
- Ricochet
- Sheamus
- Andrade
The third tier includes:
- Ivar
- Luke Gallows
- Karl Anderson
- Otis
- Akira Tozawa
- Cedric Alexander
- Ashante “Thee” Adonis
The top tier of eligible female wrestlers are:
- Bianca Belair
- Liv Morgan
- Nia Jax
The next tier includes:
- Shayna Baszler
- Zoey Stark, Michin
- Maxxine Dupri
- Isla Dawn
- Alba Fyre
MONDAY’S DRAFT POOL
The top male singles wrestlers who are eligible to be drafted on Raw on Monday night are:
- C.M. Punk
- Gunther
- Drew McIntyre
- Kevin Owens
- Rey Mysterio
The second tier includes:
- Bobby Lashley
- Braun Strowman
- Bronson Reed
- Ludwig Kaiser
- Finn Balor
- Montez Ford
- Angelo Dawkins
- Dominik Mysterio
- Santos Escobar
- Shinsuke Nakamura
The third tier includes:
- Kofi Kingston
- Xavier Woods
- Julius Creed
- Brutus Creed
- Johnny Gargano
- Tomasso Ciampa
- Karrion Kross
- J.D. McDonagh
- Pete Dunne
- Tyler Bate
- Elton Prince
- Kit Wilson
- Akam
- Rezar
The fourth tier includes:
- Carlito
- Angel
- Humberto
- Giovani Vinci
- Dragon Lee
- Cruz Del Toro
- Joaquin Wilde
- Odyssey Jones
- Apollo Crews
The top tier of eligible female wrestlers are:
- Jade Cargill
- Iyo Sky
- Tiffany Stratton
- Naomi
The next tier includes:
- Dakota Kai
- Asuka
- Kairi Sane
- Chelsea Green
- Piper Niven
- Natalya
- Candice LeRae
- Indi Hartwell
- Kaden Carter
- Katana Chance
- Tegan Nox
- Elektra Lopez
- B-Fab
WWE also notes, without details that “NXT Superstars will be eligible to be drafted.”