Backstage Report On Who’s Getting Traded in the Superstar Shakeup

The Superstar Shakeup has us all aflutter following WrestleMania, and there have been months of rumors about who’s getting traded where and why.

The big rumor in recent months was that AJ Styles would be moving to Raw and Roman Reigns would be going to SmackDown. But a recent backstage report suggests that now this is only half true.

According to this week’s Wrestling Observer Newsletter (subscription required), AJ Styles is indeed expected to move to Raw, but Roman “isn’t going anywhere.” The other major change expected is for the New Day to hit SmackDown. These were described as the “key changes” for the Shakeup, so it seems unlikely we’ll see any other big shifts near the top of the card.

Reporter Dave Meltzer also speculates based on this week’s results that a trade of Charlotte Flair and Alexa Bliss would make sense, though there’s no confirmation on that point.

The New Day moving to SmackDown makes perfect sense, since they’ve really exhausted their options on Raw and the blue brand desperately needs something to elevate fan interest in the tag division.

Mr. McMahon promises to shake up Raw and SmackDown LIVE: Raw, April 3, 2017

But a move for AJ Styles will be the controversial choice, since he’s been instrumental in making SmackDown the fan favorite show since the brand split. Along with Cena’s temporary leave, that will put SmackDown without its two most popular stars for at least a few months. Shinsuke Nakamura is certainly on Styles’ level when it comes to in-ring performance, but it remains to be seen how a mainstream audience will react to him removed from the knowledgeable crowd’s thunderous response after WrestleMania.

The biggest takeaway? We’re a long ways off from seeing Nakamura vs. Styles on a WWE stage.