Why is WWE SmackDown not as big as Raw?

Monday Night Raw has always been the flagship show of the WWE. In recent times, we have seen SmackDown deliver some quality content that kept up its reputation on an equal standing if not better. The likes of Kofi Kingston, Daniel Bryan and AJ Styles have constantly produced tremendous matches which showcase wrestling talent over entertainment while Raw’s tag team division is laughable compared to SmackDown’s, which features some of the best in the company such as The New Day, Bryan and Rowan, Asuka and Kairi Sane, the Hardy Boyz, etc. However, Raw enjoys a completely different level of popularity and viewership compared to its Tuesday night (soon-to-be Friday night) counterpart. Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why Raw trumps over Smackdown.

Superstars

The best of the best in the company always perform for the Raw brand. Becky Lynch is currently the biggest star in the company, and while Kofi Kingston does have the edge over Seth Rollins in terms of popularity, the WWE is looking to elevate their position by forcing their relationship onscreen and making them a power couple, which will undoubtedly make Rollins a much, much bigger superstar alongside Lynch. In the latest WWE news, Baron Corbin and Lacey Evans attempted a sneak attack on both the champions, which fell flat on their face but they did manage to get a winner gets all mixed tag team against Rollins and Lynch at the Extreme Rules. A win for the title-holders at Extreme Rules will cement the position of the company’s superstars in Raw.

Entertainment

SmackDown hands down produce better wrestling content than Raw, but this seemingly positive nature of SmackDown tends to make it second best to Raw. What Raw lacks in wrestling content, it overcompensates with its entertainment. With a three hour long duration, Raw is so much more than wrestling, often placing entertainment over wrestling. While hardcore wrestling fans will obviously favor SmackDown, the daily average fan will be more fascinated with the dramatized storylines of Raw.

Roster Depth

AJ Styles was one of the biggest stars of SmackDown, who actually provided competition to Daniel Bryan and Kofi Kingston making WWE SmackDown results far more delivering than Raw. But now that Styles has moved on to Raw and Bryan is pursuing the Tag Team title with Erick Rowan, SmackDown does look kind of look empty as Kingston has to make do with Samoa Joe and Dolph Ziggler, who in their own respect, are great wrestlers but will not command the presence as that of AJ Styles. The Superstar Shake-up was introduced to promote equal star powers in both the brands, but Smackdown has been left with the new talents and few star powers.

Flagship show

It’s just as simple as that. Raw has been the flagship show of WWE, and Vince McMahon’s company will always put Raw ahead of SmackDown in terms of star power, promotion, titles, etc. Vince clearly supports RAW more than SmackDown because RAW is the longer and more famous brand and SmackDown is the shorter less famous brand.