2010 WWE Draft Wrap: The Future Is Now

The latest version of WWE's annual draft isn't even 24 hours old, but the ramifications are already being felt. The message Vince McMahon sent last night was loud and clear:

The future of the WWE begins Friday night.

The top healthy and established Smackdown superstars, Edge and Chris Jericho, were sent to Raw. Rey Mysterio has about two more years left before he retires and the clock is always inching closer to midnight on the historic career of The Undertaker.

Friday night's top heel? CM Punk, newer to the main-event scene than Edge, Jericho, Mysterio, and Taker. Smackdown's top face? After Mysterio and Undertaker, the field is wide open.

Maybe that's what Vince McMahon wanted. Despite draining Smackdown of virtually every established star, this may be the best draft in WWE history. The future of Wrestlemanias, Royal Rumbles, and Summerslams will be altered by the development of future stars on Friday nights.

Stars in waiting are lined up on Smackdown. Kofi Kingston and Christian look to be the future faces of WWE programming. Drew McIntyre and CM Punk may soon be joined by Dolph Ziggler at the forefront of the heel movement.

In my six-part draft preview, I said the future stars must be pushed now. The chances Vince McMahon read my plea are incredibly slim, but the best news for every WWE fan is McMahon saw the same thing I did.

Smackdown should have a level of excitement the brand hasn't seen in years. There should be no stale feuds or stale champions (i.e. John Cena) for the indefinite future. The world title picture on Friday nights should receive a massive makeover, with new challengers stepping up to face Jack Swagger in the short-term. 

Looking at the long-term view, the outlook is even better. McIntyre, Ziggler, Christian, and Kingston should all get, at worst, a run into the world title picture. At least one of them is seemingly guaranteed to hoist the world title for the first time in his career.

Smackdown isn't the only show receiving a positive boost. Raw will be just as well off, but in a much different way.

The competitors for Super Cena's WWE title have worn thin lately. With the retirement of Shawn Michaels and the impending departure of Batista, the only real challengers left are Randy Orton and Sheamus. 

Enter Edge and Chris Jericho.

In one night Raw doubled it's world title players, while acquiring a potential future world champion in John Morrison.

Upon Triple H's return, Raw will have Cena, Trips, Orton, and Sheamus standing atop the heap. Waiting in the wings could be The Miz, John Morrison, and Ted DiBiase.

Orton is the future of WWE, and Sheamus looks poised for a long run at the top as well. Cena's history of injuries may cut his career shorter than most in the WWE might like, and Triple H is clearly on the tail end of his illustrious career.

When Triple H and Cena eventually leave the main event picture, it could be a combination of Miz, Morrison, and DiBiase stepping up to fill the shoes atop WWE's flagship show.

Monday night proved Vince McMahon still knows how to run a professional wrestling business. He's made some questionable choices during the years, no doubt, but he's made just as many intelligent ones.

The way last night's draft played out was clearly one of the latter, and the company is much better off because of it.