WWE News: Vince McMahon Explains Why WWE Brand Split Was Necessary
When the WWE announced the WWE brand split, fans were divided in their opinions. Some online complained that the last WWE brand split was a failure, while others pointed out that the last WWE brand split actually created new stars like Sheamus, Dolph Ziggler, and Daniel Bryan. That second idea is really where the idea for this new WWE brand split is focused because Wrestle Zone reported that Vince McMahon said the plethora of new talent from NXT almost made it necessary.
Vince McMahon pointed out that the last WWE brand split was working great until they “ran out of talent.” He then pointed to the great work that Triple H had done with NXT, pointing out all the talent that was developed there, and he said that there was no way for the WWE to exploit all that new “intellectual property” without going with two brands to maximize it.
The effects of the WWE brand split were seen immediately. The WWE title went to Smackdown where Dean Ambrose was made to look like a big deal. While he has been the third wheel of the former Shield members for the last year, moving him to Smackdown while keeping Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns on WWE Monday Night Raw allows Ambrose to step out of their shadows. The fact that the first Smackdown Live of the new WWE era opened with everyone in the ring, followed by Ambrose coming out on his own, showed how big this move could be for the careers of men like Ambrose.
Even bigger for the WWE brand split was what happened on WWE Monday Night Raw. It is interesting that Wrestling Inc reported that Cesaro complained about going to Monday Night Raw since Smackdown Live was where the “wrestling” was going to be and then seeing what happened on the two shows. WWE Monday Night Raw saw Finn Balor, in his first ever appearance on the main roster, win a fatal four-way match, and then pin Roman Reigns cleanly to get into the main event at SummerSlam for the new WWE Universal title.
To have been a part of the team that helped NXT become what it is now is without question my proudest accomplishment pic.twitter.com/lNlDW9t4Qi
— Finn Bálor (@FinnBalor) July 27, 2016
Sasha Banks, a huge fan favorite in the WWE women’s division, won the women’s title on the first WWE Monday Night Raw after the WWE brand split in one of the best matches of the entire week. With Sasha Banks as the new WWE women’s champion, Seth Rollins facing Finn Balor for the WWE Universal title, and Dean Ambrose defending his WWE title against Dolph Ziggler, of all people, this is truly a new era for the WWE.
Vince McMahon said that there are huge opportunities with the WWE brand split to open up new licensing and merchandising opportunities. The only way to do that is by creating new stars, and that is exactly what the WWE brand split has done.
There are still names like John Cena, Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar, and more that are walking around, and they will always be in the main events. However, new names like Finn Balor, Dean Ambrose, Sasha Banks, a repurposed Dolph Ziggler, Enzo and Big Cass, The Club, AJ Styles, and more are now ready to step up to the plate and prove that they are just as marketable as the old guard before them were.
That is why the WWE brand split was so important, and Vince McMahon did not become a billionaire by missing too many opportunities like this. NXT is still around, and Triple H has a chance to continue to build new talent that can then be fed into the main WWE roster, and now that there are two destinations in WWE Monday Night Raw and Smackdown Live, the WWE brand split has made sure that everyone has a chance to shine in the new WWE.
[Image via WWE]
