The night one of WWE Draft 2023 is done and dusted with WWE’s chief content officer Triple H being in charge of the draft on the 29th April edition of Smackdown Live. The last draft was held in October 2021. With the brand split and the shows been live streamed on USA network and Fox, the draft was key for exclusive content on the respective brands.
WWE Draft 2023 Night One Picks
Round 1
The Round of the WWE draft 2023 included four picks which was revealed by Triple H. The Undisputed WWE Universal champion headlined the first round with him alongside Paul Heyman and the youngest member of the bloodline Solo Sikoa drafted to Smackdown.
The American Nightmare “Cody Rhodes” was the first draft pick selected by RAW. The following pick was the RAW Women’s champion Bianca Belair who will now be part of the Smackdown roster. The fourth and final pick in the first round draft is Becky Lynch. RAW picks Becky Lynch as their 2nd overall pick in the draft.
Round 2
The Street Profits bring the smoke to Smackdown on Friday nights as Smackdown pick them as the 3rd pick. RAW picks Intercontinental Champion Gunther alongside Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci as their 3rd overall pick in the draft. After picking The undisputed Universal Champion Smackdown picks the rated superstar “Edge” as their 4th pick of the night. Matt Riddle gets picked by RAW as their 4th pick.
Round 3
Former WWE Champion John Bradshaw Layfield (JBL) & former general manager of Smackdown Teddy Long revealed the 3rd round picks of the draft night. The blue brand picks the almighty Bobby Lashley in the 3rd round. Former World Champion AJ Styles gets drafted to the blue brand along with his OC members Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson & Mia Yim.
Bobby Lashley needs a fresh start and the All mighty can finally get his rematch against the undisputed WWE Universal champion Roman Reigns. There is a possibility of a fresh feud between Roman Reigns and AJ Styles once Reigns returns to Smackdown.
The Scottish warrior Drew McIntyre and The MIZ gets drafted to RAW. Drew McIntyre can now focus on the bigger picture and become the new World Heavyweight Champion at Night of Champions. It is interesting to see against which superstar will the MIZ face in the upcoming weeks.
Round 4
In the fourth round of the WWE draft 2023, new superstars from NXT get picked. Damage Control after debuting on RAW finally make their way to the blue brand. Shinskue Nakamura gets drafted to RAW. NXT women’s tag team champions Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn gets picked by Smackdown. RAW picks NXT Women’s champion Indi Hartwell as the final pick of the draft night one.
WWE Draft 2023 Night One Recap
There were lot of interesting picks made on the draft night at Smackdown with Roman Reigns headlining the draft. The blue brand gets some of the most powerful superstars on their roster, while Monday night RAW gets young new talent to their roster. With lot of other superstars yet to be drafted it will be another interesting night on Monday Night RAW, as the draft continues.
| RAW Superstars | Smackdown Superstars |
|---|---|
| Cody Rhodes | Roman Reigns & Solo Sikoa |
| Becky Lynch | Bianca Belair |
| The Imperium (Gunther, Ludwig Kaiser & Giovanni Vinci) | Street Profits (Angelo Dawkins & Montez Ford) |
| Matt Riddle | Edge |
| Drew McIntyre | Bobby Lashley |
| AJ Styles, Luke Gallows and Karl Anderson | Bayley, Dakota Kay & Iyo Sky |
| Shinsuke Nakamura | The MIZ |
| Indi Hartwell | Alba Fyre and Isla Dawn |
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