WWE Rumors: Could ‘Raw’ Finally Be Canceled?
The latest WWE rumors about the popular Monday Night Raw franchise don’t bode well for its future: there is a chance, however small, that Raw could be kicked off the air!
These explosive WWE rumors come to us courtesy of Charleston Post Courier, who point out that ratings for Raw have declined steadily over the past few weeks. The Post Courier also points out that last week’s Raw had the worst ratings of all, with a paltry 1.5 rating and only 2.4 million viewers tuning in at its peak.
This all-time ratings low actually is one of the worst ratings in the entire history of the WWE. The last time the company experienced such low ratings, it was the 1990s, and the ratings show no signs of improving.
So, where was Raw‘s viewership last week? They were watching political theater at its finest, as the 2013 WWE Hall of Fame inductee Donald Trump faced off against Hillary Clinton.
As strange as that sounds, it was also all-too-appropriate for the WWE brand and Raw general manager Mick Foley saw it as a perfect opportunity to take The Donald to task.
“Donald Trump was the MMA fighter who was choked out by a more experienced, better prepared fighter. The same cheap shots he had used to great effect against lesser-caliber contenders in the Republican primary didn’t land at all at the first presidential debate — and then his people blamed Secretary Clinton for having the audacity to show up prepared to fight.”
If Raw does get canceled, part of the blame can go to Mick Foley, as the latest WWE rumors put forth by Bleacher Report suggest. Even though he’s “good enough” as a general manager — in that he can get people to believe what he’s saying, he can get the players inspired to perform their best, and he’s clearly knowledgeable and passionate about the game — his former role as commissioner is overshadowing everything else, whether rightly or wrongly.
Furthermore, according to the respected sports outlet, Mick Foley and Stephanie McMahon cannot compare, in terms of popularity, to Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon, whom are credited for making SmackDown the Tuesday night success that it is. And if, as Bleacher Report is suggesting, Stephanie McMahon and Triple H re-form The Authority, Mick Foley will be rendered redundant, and Raw will be rendered just as redundant behind him.
So, what can Raw do to turn the ratings tide in its favor?
According to the WWE rumors put out by the Daily DDT, the best way Raw can hope to succeed is if they follow the template set forth by SmackDown. The Tuesday night show puts more of a focus on the actual matches, and less of a focus on the scripted entertainment. And while Vince McMahon is the first to say that his company deals in “sports entertainment” and not hardcore sports, when the focus becomes too much on poorly-executed skits and not enough on great fighting, the brand suffers.
Second, Raw needs to promote the better fighters. The fact that The New Day is the most heavily-promoted tag-team with no real direction or storyline, the women fighters always fight the same contenders, and their slipshod way of promoting Roman Reigns and Kevin Owens — the two best fighters on the roster — are all working together to creating a boring, bloated mess on Monday nights, and the viewership is declining in kind.
Finally, Raw needs to cut down on the number of hours it’s actually on the air. The two-hour SmackDown packs a heavy punch in terms of action — but three hours of anything is just too much.
What do you think of these latest WWE rumors?
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[Featured Image by JP Yim/Getty Images]
