(Photo by Mark A. Wallenfang/Getty Images)
Last night on Raw, Vince McMahon made a huge announcement stating that before selling Raw back to him, Donald Trump brokered a 15-superstar trade between Raw, Smackdown and ECW.
You have to admit—This was clever ploy by the WWE to keep viewers watching, as you have to wonder who Raw's newest superstars will be.
Guest GM Batista added fuel to the fire by announcing that three of the new stars would face Randy Orton in a "Gauntlet Match".
The three stars were revealed to be Jack Swagger, Evan Bourne and Mark Henry.
Later we found out Raw also acquired Gail Kim and Alicia Fox.
Smackdown received Matt Hardy, Finlay, and The Hart Dynasty while ECW received Shelton Benjamin, Goldust, William Regal and The Bella Twins.
These moves will have lasting effects on the WWE and it's shows, but who fared the best?
Who were the winners and losers from the trades that were made?
Winners
Shelton Benjamin
AkD rejoice! I think that by virtue of every major ECW star moving to Raw or Smackdown (more on that later), Shelton Benjamin may finally get that World Title he so greatly deserves. So what if it's the ECW Championship?
Jack Swagger
Swagger is certainly on the rise as one of the top young stars in the WWE. By moving to the "flagship show" he'll have the opportunity to face some of the WWE's best. Now, the other 10 million people in the WWE Universe will actually get to see the talent that this man has.
Gail Kim
With Mickie James, Maryse and Beth Phoenix already on the roster, Gail Kim has a nice batch of ladies to face in the ring on Raw. A potential Kim/Phoenix feud would be fun to watch.
Smackdown
Smackdown is slowly becoming (if not already) the WWE's best show. They have talented wrestlers that bring you great action each and every Friday night. Add The Hart Dynasty to the mix, and you just injected Smackdown with a hot young faction that is on the rise—even more reason to watch on Friday's.
Losers
ECW
By virtue of this trade, ECW has literally lost almost all of it's main event level talent. Christian is probably the last man standing. Tommy Dreamer is the ECW Champion and I still don't consider him a main event star. ECW did gain Shelton Benjamin, who has to get a push in ECW, right?
Matt Hardy
It seemed as if Matt Hardy had been on Smackdown forever before finally being drafted to Raw. Well, that experiment didn't last long, as Hardy has been moved back to Smackdown. Without ever being involved in a major feud of any kind, it's a shame Hardy wasn't given a chance on Raw.
The Bella Twins
I don't know who the bigger loser is—the Bella Twins or the WWE Universe. The Bella Twins are really bummed out that they'll no longer have anyone to talk to backstage. Meanwhile, the WWE Universe is bummed out that we'll see a countless number of Brie/Nikki Bella versus Katie Lea Burchill matches.
Well there you have it. The winners and losers from the WWE's recent big trade. We'll see if the people named above will live up to their billing.
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