As seen in the video below, Triple H confirmed in his NXT TakeOver: XXX Media Call on Wednesday that a WWE Draft will be held later this year. Triple H also teased a major change in the draft format, hinting at the possibility of RAW and SmackDown stars moving to NXT in the annual shake-up of the rosters.

During the call, which was joined by Wrestling Inc.’s Nick Hausman and Justin LaBar, Triple H was asked about his shift in mindset with regard to NXT stars moving up to the main roster, especially after the Black & Gold brand moved to USA Network on Wednesday nights.

“That mindset has definitely changed. There are different protocols and procedures now around moving an NXT wrestler to the main roster, and you’ll see that in the upcoming draft later this year. You definitely have to think about the changes a lot more now.

“Now, wrestlers have the opportunity to wrap up their runs on RAW or SmackDown and move to a completely different brand with a different style in NXT. Maybe refresh, get a fresh coat of paint, or try something different. You can start over with a different character, and [moving to NXT] definitely gives them the ability to do that,” Triple H said.

Furthermore, Triple H said that with all three shows, RAW, SmackDown, and NXT having their own prime time TV slots, it is more critical to balance all three rosters rather than just taking talent away from NXT.

“With all three shows having their own prime time TV slots, all three brands are very important and you can’t just take away from one to support the other,” Triple H said. “You have to support all of them.”

The likes of Finn Balor, Charlotte Flair, Tyler Breeze, and Fandango have previously moved back to NXT after runs on the main roster. Earlier this year, there were rumors of Randy Orton possibly moving to NXT to start a feud with Tommaso Ciampa. Triple H addressed the possibility of Orton joining NXT.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

It looks like the superstars of WWE may be getting some new opportunities in the coming months.

WWE is reportedly planning another draft between RAW and SmackDown, according to Dave Meltzer on the latest Wrestling Observer Radio. There were originally 5 different dates being considered for the new draft, but it has now been narrowed down to 2 possible dates in October.

Meltzer also notes that up until last week, the draft was set to take place at some point this month. He says that it may end up being moved to September, but whenever the date may be, WWE intends to hold another draft in the coming months.

There’s no word yet on if NXT stars will be included in any capacity in the upcoming draft. Last year, the Street Profits were called up to RAW as a part of the event.

The previous WWE draft took place one week after SmackDown debuted on FOX in October 2019. It continued on RAW the following week and included an opportunity to trade stars post-draft.

Notable stars that switched to the blue brand during the 2019 draft were “The Fiend” Bray Wyatt, Sasha Banks, and current WWE Universal Champion Braun Strowman. On the red side, notable acquisitions included Kevin Owens, Randy Orton, and Charlotte Flair.

Stay tuned for updates on the WWE draft.

Source: Wrestling Inc.

The WWE Draft continued during the company’s weekly morning show “The Bump” on Wednesday where multiple “free agents” were signed to new brands.

The following wrestlers were drafted to Raw:

• No Way Jose
• Mojo Rawley
• Sarah Logan
• The IIconics
• Zack Ryder and Curt Hawkins

As for SmackDown, they “signed” the following:

• Luke Harper
• Cesaro
• Sonya Deville
• Mandy Rose
• Drake Maverick
• Dana Brooke

Alexa Bliss and Nikki Cross were traded to SmackDown last night — as announced by Triple on FS1’s new WWE Studio Show called “Backstage.” During the announcement, Hunter claimed this move was done by Bruce Prichard after being promoted to Executive Director of SmackDown.

Source: Pro Wrestling Sheet

Round 1

• RAW – Universal Champion Seth Rollins
• SmackDown – WWE Champion Brock Lesnar
• RAW – Charlotte Flair
• SmackDown – The New Day
• RAW – Andrade with Zelina Vega

Round 2

• RAW – WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions The Kabuki Warriors (Asuka & Kairi Sane)
• SmackDown – Danie Bryan
• RAW – Rusev
• SmackDown – SmackDown Women’s Champion Bayley
• RAW – Aleister Black

Round 3

• RAW – Cedric Alexander
• SmackDown – Intercontinental Champion Shinsuke Nakamura with Sami Zayn
• RAW – Humberto Carillo
• SmackDown – Ali
• RAW – Erick Rowan

Round 4

• RAW – Buddy Murphy
• SmackDown – Bobby Roode & Dolph Ziggler
• RAW – Jinder Mahal
• Carmella
• WWE 24/7 Champion R-Truth

Round 5

• RAW – Samoa Joe
• SmackDown – The Miz
• RAW – Akira Tozawa
• SmackDown – King Corbin
• RAW Shelton Benjamin

Round 6

• RAW – Rey Mysterio
• SmackDown – Shorty Gable
• RAW – Titus O’Neil
• SmackDown – Elias
• RAW – Liv Morgan

The WWE Draft got underway this past Friday with WWE Superstars finding out if their destination will be RAW or SmackDown.

Yesterday, WWE announced additional picks made by RAW and SmackDown.

RAW – EC3, Eric Young and Sin Cara

SmackDown – Apollo Crews, Drew Gulak, Heath Slater, Tamina, and The B-Team

The draft will continue on Monday’s RAW with WWE RAW Women’s Champion Becky Lynch taking on Sasha Banks (who is representing SmackDown). The winner will get their brand the first selection of the night.