Who's benfitted most from the brand split?

[LSN80]

The idea behind the brand split is to enhance talent who are underutilized, and to make new stars. Under WWE’s model before the split, it was difficult for new stars to emerge, and other wrestlers got buried on the depth chart. With most of the bigger names appearing on both Raw and Smackdown, there wasn’t a lot of TV time to be had. As such, the same feuds were featured, and there were less storyline opportunities available for midcard and newer talent to really get over. It wasn’t uncommon for feuds to have gaps in them due to a lack of featured time. Character development happens best given time, and it often felt talent grew stagnant from not being featured or over their heads from being rushed into places they weren’t ready for. WWE was still producing an entertaining, quality product, but was missing opportunities with several wrestlers. These performers were capable of so much more, if given the chance.

Several wrestlers have benefited greatly from the split. While he had already main-evented several shows against Roman Reigns, AJ Styles moved to Smackdown and quickly became World Champion. He’s 3-0 since the brand split with wins over John Cena at Summerslam, Dean Ambrose at Backlash, and Ambrose and Cena both at No Mercy. While I have no doubt he would have become a World Champion at some point, there’s been a concerted effort to make him King of Smackdown. It’s a role he’s thrived in. Chris Jericho’s career has been rejuvenated as he’s had consistent opportunities to tweak an already entertaining character into something special. And what’s to be said for Sasha Banks? She’s won the Women’s Championship twice, once in the inaugural addition of Raw after the brand split, the other in the main event of Raw. And while she lost the championship last night, she and Charlotte main evented Hell in A Cell in the first women’s Cell match, in her hometown, no less.

All three of these wrestlers have benefitted greatly from the brand split, but my belief is that no one has benefitted from the brand split more then Dolph Ziggler. Yes, we're only three months into the split, but Ziggler has gone from enhancement talent to a featured performer in a hurry. While his championship match against Dean Ambrose was a one-off, his time in the Intercontinental championship picture hasn't been. He's had three, main-event quality matches against The Miz in that time, and won a career threatening match. In order for a career match to matter, the wrestler and their career must matter. Before the brand split, I'd find it almost laughable to see Ziggler in such a position. His career on the line? So what? But his positioning has been so advanced that there was reason to care. Further, the number of career-threatening matches has been limited in WWE over the past ten years, making that match all-the more important. Here are the others:

Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania 24 March 30th 2008)
Undertaker vs. Edge TLC Match (One Night Stand June 1st 2008)
Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker (WrestleMania 26 March 29th 2010)
John Cena vs. CM Punk (Money In The Bank July 17th 2011)
HHH vs. Brock Lesnar(WrestleMania 29 April 7th 2013)

And that's it. Pretty good company, right? Not to mention that out of those matches, Ziggler is one of only two wrestlers to win their match(HHH being the other). Ziggler's career has been absolutely rejuvenated by the brand split, more than any other wrestler. He's getting mic time, featured spots, and long, main event style matches. The brand split, in my opinion, has benefited him more than any other.

Who has the brand split benefited most?

 

[Dagger Dias]

Depends on how you look at it. The fans who wanted to see a restructuring of the blue brand have unquestionably benefited from the brand split. Smackdown is the best it has been since Wrestlemania 25, it has been better than Raw every single week on television since the brand split returned and even had the better PPV event in September between the two brands. The new titles on Smackdown have also created new opportunities for wrestlers who may otherwise not have been as lucky. Having two World Champions, two Women's Champions, putting one of each of the two classic midcard titles on a brand a piece, and two sets of tag belts really was a massive benefit to the wrestlers themselves. If I had to pick one specific person in my response, Becky Lynch would be that person. She deserved a title reign more than just about anyone and I, speaking as one of the biggest Becky marks on here, highly doubt she would have held the Women's Championship with Sasha and Charlotte getting so much more focus. So, the fans of Smackdown as a whole have benefited the most is the larger scale answer and Becky Lynch is the single WWE employee who has benefited the most so far.

 

[S.J. Maximus]

Dolph Ziggler is actually a very good choice, I didn't even think of him when I saw this thread. While a lot of people have been in the spotlight post-brand split, I think the answer to this question has to be someone who wouldn't be in that spotlight if it was still one brand. In that regard, Ziggler might actually be the right choice but I want to make an argument for the first person that came to mind when I saw the title.

While KO wasn't a definitely wasn't the jobber that Ziggler was pre-brand split, he was definitely getting lost in the shuffle on the main roster. Losing the IC title, losing to Sami Zayn, he was just eating loss after loss and I don't really see that ending on a roster with all 3 Shield alum, Randy Orton, and the Phenomenal AJ Styles. He was picked very late in the draft and I think that proved how they originally intended to use him post-split but opportunity opened up (sorry Finn) and KO has simply run away with the ball. I think the IWC knew he could do it and I definitely knew he could do it but it simply didn't look like it was on the horizon until it just fell into his lap. He is now the top attraction on the top show of the top company in the world, and I think he has the brand split to thank for that. Without it, he'd probably be feuding with Ziggler himself for the IC belt.

 

[Jeff Deliverer of Mail]

I'm going to pick Cory Graves. The best move of the brand split (besides the creative writers on SmackDown) has been the shuffle behind the commentary table. Cole and JBL were getting tiresome each and every show/PPV and fans where really sick of the duo. With the split, JBL has toned it down and is a decent heel color to the great Mauro on SmackDown (I love Mauro, everything sounds so important when he's commentating).

But the big winner is Cory Graves. The new Jesse The Body has upped his game and is now on the flagship show with Michael Cole. They have worked well together and Graves is one of the only reasons Raw has been tolerable to watch. (Time for Raw writers to get trained by SmackDown writers guys, really.)

 

[King Patrick Star]

I believe there are currently 4 SuperStars who benefited the most from the Brand Extension. They are Dean Ambrose, Finn Bálor, Kevin Owens, and A. J. Styles. If the split didn't take place, 2 or 3 of these SuperStars wouldn't have been World Champion in the WWE just yet.

Other SuperStars that benefited from the Brand Extension are Becy Lynch, Rhyno, and Heath Slater.

 

[shadyfozzie]

You all know there is only one correct answer to this... It's James Ellsworth..
Being squashed by Strouman on AW, he decides to jump ship to Smackdown, where he has not one, but TWO Victories over the current champ, AJ Styles...

 

[Hyorinmaru]

The first person that came to my mind when reading the thread title was Dolph Ziggler.

Before the Split he was someone I didn't give two shits about and that continued during the beginning of his IC title feud with Miz I just thought he was there to lose and pad Miz's record as champ.

It wasn't until the end when he put his career on the line that I got emotionally invested in Ziggler and I am 100% positive none of this would have happened if it was still one big roster.

 

[sikkbones]

The idea behind the brand split is to enhance talent who are underutilized, and to make new stars. Under WWE’s model before the split, it was difficult for new stars to emerge, and other wrestlers got buried on the depth chart. With most of the bigger names appearing on both Raw and Smackdown, there wasn’t a lot of TV time to be had. As such, the same feuds were featured, and there were less storyline opportunities available for midcard and newer talent to really get over. It wasn’t uncommon for feuds to have gaps in them due to a lack of featured time. Character development happens best given time, and it often felt talent grew stagnant from not being featured or over their heads from being rushed into places they weren’t ready for. WWE was still producing an entertaining, quality product, but was missing opportunities with several wrestlers. These performers were capable of so much more, if given the chance.

Several wrestlers have benefited greatly from the split. While he had already main-evented several shows against Roman Reigns, AJ Styles moved to Smackdown and quickly became World Champion. He’s 3-0 since the brand split with wins over John Cena at Summerslam, Dean Ambrose at Backlash, and Ambrose and Cena both at No Mercy. While I have no doubt he would have become a World Champion at some point, there’s been a concerted effort to make him King of Smackdown. It’s a role he’s thrived in. Chris Jericho’s career has been rejuvenated as he’s had consistent opportunities to tweak an already entertaining character into something special. And what’s to be said for Sasha Banks? She’s won the Women’s Championship twice, once in the inaugural addition of Raw after the brand split, the other in the main event of Raw. And while she lost the championship last night, she and Charlotte main evented Hell in A Cell in the first women’s Cell match, in her hometown, no less.

All three of these wrestlers have benefitted greatly from the brand split, but my belief is that no one has benefitted from the brand split more then Dolph Ziggler. Yes, we're only three months into the split, but Ziggler has gone from enhancement talent to a featured performer in a hurry. While his championship match against Dean Ambrose was a one-off, his time in the Intercontinental championship picture hasn't been. He's had three, main-event quality matches against The Miz in that time, and won a career threatening match. In order for a career match to matter, the wrestler and their career must matter. Before the brand split, I'd find it almost laughable to see Ziggler in such a position. His career on the line? So what? But his positioning has been so advanced that there was reason to care. Further, the number of career-threatening matches has been limited in WWE over the past ten years, making that match all-the more important. Here are the others:

Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania 24 March 30th 2008)
Undertaker vs. Edge TLC Match (One Night Stand June 1st 2008)
Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker (WrestleMania 26 March 29th 2010)
John Cena vs. CM Punk (Money In The Bank July 17th 2011)
HHH vs. Brock Lesnar(WrestleMania 29 April 7th 2013)

And that's it. Pretty good company, right? Not to mention that out of those matches, Ziggler is one of only two wrestlers to win their match(HHH being the other). Ziggler's career has been absolutely rejuvenated by the brand split, more than any other wrestler. He's getting mic time, featured spots, and long, main event style matches. The brand split, in my opinion, has benefited him more than any other.

Who has the brand split benefited most?

Wrestlemania 28 taker vs hhh iii was supposed to be hunters retirement as well.

 

[That N Word]

So are we all really just gonna forget Heath Slater? You know the guy,who was a jobber on the way to being a budget cut had it not been for the draft,who then went on to be apart of one of the biggest angles on both Raw and SmackDown Live!, to now being one half of the SmackDown Tag Team Champions with the legendary Rhyno. Speaking of legends, he also can say he own a win over "The Viper" Randy Orton. Right now, he's still the fall guy. But mark my words, it will have a huge payoff for Heath Slater.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

If I had to think of the single person that's benefitted the most, I'd probably have to go with Heath Slater. Slater's most definitely paid his dues in WWE over the course of the past 6 years as he's jobbed out to damn near everybody on the roster with a penis at one point or another. Since the brand split, he's gone from being arguably WWE's biggest jobber of the past decade to one half of the first WWE SmackDown Tag Team Champions. Now, I'm not saying that Slater will move onto singles stardom once his run with Rhyno is finished, he may well go back to being a jobber, but the brand split and his involvement in what's been a popular storyline and angle for the blue brand has made him more relevant that at any point in his time in WWE.

Others who've benefitted most definitely include people like Becky Lynch, Kevin Owens, Dolph Ziggler, the Miz, Dean Ambrose, AJ Styles and, even though he's out injured, Finn Balor. While some stars from Raw have benefitted, I think it's fair to say that SmackDown has had a lot more wrestlers benefit from the brand split and due to the whole "land of opportunity" schtick that actually does have some degree of legitimacy on the blue brand.

 

[kadroan]

The idea behind the brand split is to enhance talent who are underutilized, and to make new stars. Under WWE’s model before the split, it was difficult for new stars to emerge, and other wrestlers got buried on the depth chart. With most of the bigger names appearing on both Raw and Smackdown, there wasn’t a lot of TV time to be had. As such, the same feuds were featured, and there were less storyline opportunities available for midcard and newer talent to really get over. It wasn’t uncommon for feuds to have gaps in them due to a lack of featured time. Character development happens best given time, and it often felt talent grew stagnant from not being featured or over their heads from being rushed into places they weren’t ready for. WWE was still producing an entertaining, quality product, but was missing opportunities with several wrestlers. These performers were capable of so much more, if given the chance.

Several wrestlers have benefited greatly from the split. While he had already main-evented several shows against Roman Reigns, AJ Styles moved to Smackdown and quickly became World Champion. He’s 3-0 since the brand split with wins over John Cena at Summerslam, Dean Ambrose at Backlash, and Ambrose and Cena both at No Mercy. While I have no doubt he would have become a World Champion at some point, there’s been a concerted effort to make him King of Smackdown. It’s a role he’s thrived in. Chris Jericho’s career has been rejuvenated as he’s had consistent opportunities to tweak an already entertaining character into something special. And what’s to be said for Sasha Banks? She’s won the Women’s Championship twice, once in the inaugural addition of Raw after the brand split, the other in the main event of Raw. And while she lost the championship last night, she and Charlotte main evented Hell in A Cell in the first women’s Cell match, in her hometown, no less.

All three of these wrestlers have benefitted greatly from the brand split, but my belief is that no one has benefitted from the brand split more then Dolph Ziggler. Yes, we're only three months into the split, but Ziggler has gone from enhancement talent to a featured performer in a hurry. While his championship match against Dean Ambrose was a one-off, his time in the Intercontinental championship picture hasn't been. He's had three, main-event quality matches against The Miz in that time, and won a career threatening match. In order for a career match to matter, the wrestler and their career must matter. Before the brand split, I'd find it almost laughable to see Ziggler in such a position. His career on the line? So what? But his positioning has been so advanced that there was reason to care. Further, the number of career-threatening matches has been limited in WWE over the past ten years, making that match all-the more important. Here are the others:

Ric Flair vs. Shawn Michaels (WrestleMania 24 March 30th 2008)
Undertaker vs. Edge TLC Match (One Night Stand June 1st 2008)
Shawn Michaels vs. Undertaker (WrestleMania 26 March 29th 2010)
John Cena vs. CM Punk (Money In The Bank July 17th 2011)
HHH vs. Brock Lesnar(WrestleMania 29 April 7th 2013)

And that's it. Pretty good company, right? Not to mention that out of those matches, Ziggler is one of only two wrestlers to win their match(HHH being the other). Ziggler's career has been absolutely rejuvenated by the brand split, more than any other wrestler. He's getting mic time, featured spots, and long, main event style matches. The brand split, in my opinion, has benefited him more than any other.

Who has the brand split benefited most?

Ambrose - Being on SDL finally got his out of Reigns' shadow.

AJ - He finally can be "The Guy" on the show.

Balor - He became champ. He probably would have been IC champ if the rosters were together.

Becky - Being on SDL finally got her out of Charlotte's/Sasha's shadow.

The Miz - Being on SDL gives him the opportunity to be the top heel on the show.

Jericho - Being on RAW, he's involved in the main storyline instead of wrestling younger talent.

Owens - Being on RAW gave him the opportunity to become champ.

Alexa Bliss - Being on SDL, she is a priority.

Carmella - See Alexa Bliss.

 

[ShinChan]

Most benefitted are Dolph Ziggler, Dean Ambrose & Becky Lynch.

I thanked God when Dean Ambrose was finally out of his Shield mates' shadows. Being a lackey for Reigns wasn't good for him.

Dolph Ziggler was jobbing to likes of Baron Corbin and Tyler Breeze. After Brand Split, he was made relevant again and involved in a great feud with The Miz.

Becky like Ambrose was in shadows of her mates. Now she is on his own and the inaugral champion too.

Others who benefitted include Alexa Bliss, Carmella, Heath Slater etc.