SmackDown Live is all set to become much bigger in 2019 when it will change its home to the FOX Network, who paid a huge sum for WWE to present their blue brand on their channel. FOX paid WWE a large figure to get the rights for SmackDown and now that they’ll telecast the content, they will want changes. There is set to be an array of changes on SmackDown programming this time next year when the blue brand debuts on the FOX Sports Network. While some changes can be great for the brand, some of them can be really bad at the same time.

Not only will the way fans perceive SmackDown be changed next year, but there will be changes to the style of programming as well. WWE will aim to make SmackDown as popular Monday Night Raw, and will need to improve their booking to retain solid ratings for the demanding FOX Network. This means that they won’t be able to book foolish things anymore and will need to emphatically improve their product to maintain strong ratings. There will be changes in personnel and major additions made to peak the viewer’s intrigue which are  some positive changes every fan is hoping for right now.

Some changes on SmackDown will be welcomed by everyone. However, there are some changes which deject the fans as the company has a tendency of changing up things for the worse. Here we look at changes we hope happens, and those we hope don’t.

20 Doesn’t Happen: Raw Stars On The Move

For WWE to make SmackDown Live succeed on FOX, they will need their absolute best Superstars to provide entertaining content every week. The ratings will obviously be increased when WWE’s best wrestlers feature on SmackDown. In that case, there could be changes to the roster as WWE could opt to bring in the likes of Seth Rollins, Braun Strowman, and Drew McIntyre to the blue brand to improve its reputation. However, many budding stars trying to claw their way to the top will be adversely affected if this happens. WWE should build their current SmackDown Superstars instead, and look to keep them around.

19 Happens: Andrade “Cien” Almas Push

Andrade “Cien” Almas is getting the slow-grind treatment from WWE, who might be making him lose matches on SmackDown Live, but are grooming him for a future push. Vince McMahon sees a future star in Almas, whose amazing in-ring ability and charisma make a great act. While it would be naïve to predict whether Cien can attain an Eddie Guerrero or Rey Mysterio level of popularity, if he continues his good work, he’ll get a stronger push on the blue brand. He could even be one of SmackDown’s top babyfaces soon. Cien has all the tools to improve SmackDown’s ratings and should be built strongly after moving to FOX.

18 Doesn’t Happen: The Authority

Unlike its sister brand, SmackDown Live doesn’t have a heel authority, with both Paige and Shane McMahon being babyfaces. WWE could up the ante by reforming The Authority on the brand. Despite the group being hated by fans, The Authority got a lot of heat and helped put over talentduring their time together. There may not be a Seth Rollins or J&J Security, but WWE can replace them with others. Triple H and Stephanie are enough to rile up fans and put over babyfaces. However, one can hope this doesn’t happen as it’ll be lazy booking from WWE, who will recycle the same thing and frustrate fans with this change.

17 Happens: Build Storylines Towards TV Rather Than PPVs

So, another intriguing change being discussed is that FOX could make WWE build storylines and feuds towards their TV programming rather than Pay-Per-Views. This means that WWE will probably build their angles to pay off SmackDown shows, rather than PPVs. This means there will be bigger, more important matches taking place on SmackDown, and could result in many title changes too. This will definitely add to the reputation of the brand and could be a great move to improve their programming. WWE should definitely go in this direction after SmackDown moves to FOX.

16 Doesn’t Happen: Ronda Rousey

The SmackDown Women’s Division is booming right now, with the rise of Becky Lynch proving how the brand is capable enough to produce top stars of its own. However, after FOX pressures them to bring more “legitimacy” to their Women’s Division on SmackDown, WWE might be forced to change the roster. The biggest star of their Women’s Division is Ronda Rousey. However, bringing Rousey to SmackDown won’t be a wise decision. It’ll be even worse if they replace her with Becky and force her to move to Raw in the switch. Ronda is perfect on Raw right now and WWE should stick with their SmackDown Women’s roster.

15 Happens: Paul Heyman Becomes Part Of Creative

It’s well known among wrestling fans about the brilliance of Paul Heyman when it comes to booking storylines. The amazing work he did for SmackDown in the mid-2000s helped it successfully win the rating battle with Raw. However, after that, Heyman hasn’t really been given a big creative role. However, he has been helping WWE book certain storylines, predominantly involving Brock Lesnar. If WWE wants to boost their ratings and improve their storylines on SmackDown next year, giving Heyman a prominent role in creative is the way to go. He’ll do a fantastic job with the kind of talent SmackDown has right now and could create some amazing feuds.

14 Doesn’t Happen: The Brand Extension Ends

Since news of the FOX deal was announced there have been rumors of how the Brand Extension will end. Apparently, WWE’s decision to make every PPV dual-branded was a big hint that the Brand Extension will end. This will mean that WWE will go with the earlier routine, in which all their stars appear on both Raw and SmackDown. Despite being called a failure, the Brand Extension has really helped SmackDown regain its image. This “war” internally among the two sets of creative has resulted in some excellent storylines for SmackDown and a healthy competition between the two brands. WWE should not end the Brand Split, as it’ll ruin the uniqueness SmackDown has attained.

13 Happens: Tag Team Division Receives A Bigger Spotlight

While SmackDown Live might be lacking in tag teams right now, their division has done an amazing job in producing terrific feuds and matches over the years. The likes of The Usos and The New Day have done a great job in keeping the excitement alive for tag team wrestling. SmackDown’s Tag Team Division definitely needs more packing with prominent NXT tag teams, but it also deserves more recognition after moving to FOX. WWE can really entertain their fans with more tag team wrestling if they bulk up that division and give more opportunities to different teams.

12 Doesn’t Happen: Move To Friday Nights

Fox Sports is not only going to be the home for SmackDown Live in 2019, but they will continue broadcasting other sports like the NFL and MLB. As a result, they will have to shuffle SmackDown into a slot which will be available for them. There have been rumors stating FOX might consider moving SmackDown to Friday nights next year. That can be bad for the show, which will lose much of its ratings if they move to Friday. Not many fans even watch pro wrestling on Friday nights ,and one can hope this change remains an insignificant rumor.

11 Happens: Strong Style Encouraged

One of the changes FOX wants to make is to focus on the wrestling side of things, over entertainment, as they view WWE as a sport. As a result, the foolish antics of the blue brand could be eliminated as WWE will need to focus on improving their match quality. A thing which could succeed is to encourage a “stronger style” of wrestling. Something which has been implemented on NXT. No, we don’t mean just Shinsuke Nakamura being given a big push (even though he should), but a style which involves more powerful strikes and receive  better reactions from fans. WWE should encourage a more hard-hitting style on SmackDown, which could allow their talents to put on more realistic matches.

10 Doesn’t Happen: Hulk Hogan Becomes General Manager

Hulk Hogan made his long-awaited return to WWE, appearing at Crown Jewel as the host of the show and getting a pretty impressive reaction from the crowd. Hogan is now officially back with the company, meaning that he could be used in any way deemed necessary. While he’s unable to be an in-ring perfromer, WWE still values Hogan, and could slowly transition him into a regular. The Hulkster is even rumored to be SmackDown’s next General Manager, which would be a pretty bad decision. Hogan’s poor work as an authority figure at Impact Wrestling doubled with his controversial nature could cause a backlash from the fans, who can hope he doesn’t become the blue brand’s GM next year.

9 Happens: Old SmackDown Set 

During the golden days of SmackDown, it used to have a really unique stage and production set, which made it look a thing of its own. The fans of the old will remember SmackDown having the fist on top of their stage. While pyro doesn’t seem to be returning to WWE regularly anytime soon, FOX could convince WWE to bring back the set. Not only would it create great nostalgia, but will make the blue brand so much better to look at. The impressive style of the set coupled with that fist made SmackDown the show to watch in the 2000s.

8 Doesn’t Happen: AJ Styles Replaced

While AJ Styles is the biggest reason for SmackDown's amazing work in recent years, he’s also gained much prominence backstage. Vince McMahon now sees him as one of the faces of his company rather than only of the blue brand, which is the reason for his strong championship reign. Prior to SmackDown moving to FOX, WWE will draft many top stars to SmackDown and to help Raw stay afloat, Styles could be sent as leverage. However, fans wouldn’t want that change at all, as Styles is the reason for SmackDown's success.

7 Happens: Signing More Independent Stars 

WWE has seen a huge amount of financial benefit from their deal with FOX, as one-billion dollars will help them not only improve their show but also lure in some of the best talents in the world. In order to improve SmackDown, WWE will try their best to raid the best talents from New Japan Pro Wrestling, Ring of Honor and Impact Wrestling to beef up the blue brand. The likes of Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, and Cody Rhodes will be in their targets. While it’s to be seen whether WWE can lure the Independent scene’s top talents, a change-up to the roster and major additions being made will be appreciated by everyone.

6 Doesn’t Happen: Return Of More Part-Timers

The go-to option for WWE boosting their ratings always seems to be bringing back old-timers who were successful in another era to help regain the interest of fans. WWE often turn to The Undertaker and Triple H to help boost ratings their nostalgia factor. After getting the kind of money they did in the FOX deal, WWE will push harder to bring back popular part-timers. However, this shouldn’t happen. Not only would their returns take away the spotlight from the current stars, but it would also undo all the good work creative has been doing with building SmackDown as the “land of opportunities” for everyone.

5 Happens: Veterans Finally Rewarded

SmackDown has become all about AJ Styles dominating the main-event scene for over a year now. While he’s done great work with as WWE Champion, The Phenomenal One’s success has been at the expense of others’ sorrow. The likes of Samoa Joe, Shinsuke Nakamura ,who both deserved the WWE Championship, had to take a backseat. However, that’ll change once SmackDown moves to FOX. One change which should happen is that these experienced, hard-working candidates finally get the main-event success they deserve. Be it a heel or babyface reign, the likes of Joe, Nakamura, Daniel Bryan, and The Miz deserve to win the WWE Championship next year for their dedication towards improving the product.

4 Doesn’t Happen: Brock Lesnar

FOX will force WWE to feature their biggest stars on SmackDown Live to get more viewers, which is why ending the Brand Split is being considered. If they don’t go with that, they will bring some of their biggest stars over to SmackDown to help its reputation. Someone who can bring in the casual viewers is Brock Lesnar, who is currently dominating the Universal Championship scene. The Beast initially attained fame on SmackDown, so it’d be a sweet homecoming for him. However, the fans do not want to see that as he’ll start dominating the WWE Championship scene and make it boring. Lesnar’s part-time nature makes his work disinteresting and fans wouldn’t want him on SmackDown.

3 Happens: A More Serious Approach

WWE’s “sports entertainment” is not something which has entirely won over FOX, as the network wants to make a big change to the product when they start broadcasting SmackDown next year. According to rumors, they want to WWE to drop the comedy acts and go with a more serious direction for their storylines. This means WWE needs to lose their foolish antics and focus on creating unique storylines and hard-hitting matches. FOX wants to integrate Smackdown Live into their “sports” schedule and feel the comedy takes away from the sports aspect. This could actually be a fantastic change, as it’ll help focus on the amazing wrestling ability of their in-ring talents.

2 Doesn’t Happen: Three Hours

via stillrealtous.comThe major reason for SmackDown’s superiority over Raw in recent times is because of it being a compact show, which isn’t too long or too short. SmackDown is just perfect at two hours long, making for an exciting show everyone can watch in its entirety. However, there are rumors of SmackDown becoming a three-hour long program. Apparently, Fox could want a three-hour slot for the blue brand and make it seem similar to Raw. This would be a bad decision, as it’d make SmackDown exhausting to watch because of the long time frame. Hopefully, this change doesn’t happen, as it’ll feel too much like Raw and turn people away.

1 Happens: The New “A-Show”

Due to the amount of money put into SmackDown’s broadcasting, the show's reputation has since sky-rocketed to the top. WWE now value SmackDown and are building their top stars. While Vince McMahon is known to regard Raw as his “A-Show,” he’s probably more flexible on making changes now. With Raw struggling to gain ratings, SmackDown could become the premier show of WWE. Vince could have his biggest stars feature on SmackDown and all the top storylines take place there. The fans would love for SmackDown to become “The A-Show”, as it deserves the recognition.