After it was reported a few weeks ago that WWE SmackDown will return to a three-hour format from next year, the reason for this schedule change has now been reported.
Dave Meltzer wrote about the situation in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, stating that the reason for the format change is that the USA Network wants the show to return to its original three-hour format. The reason for this is that it will improve USA Network’s average weekly ratings, as they chose to change the show back to two hours in July after it originally expanded to three hours in January.
According to Meltzer, WWE SmackDown returned to having two-hour episodes so that USA could enhance the ratings of new shows, The Rainmaker, and Everything On The Menu with Braun Strowman, which both performed well, but not as well as SmackDown did across a three-hour episode.
Meltzer noted that the return to three-hour shows for SmackDown will last as long as the USA Network wants it to.
What Is Happening On The Next Episode Of WWE SmackDown?
The lineup for the December 5 episode of WWE SmackDown, which takes place in the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, has not yet been announced. However, we do know that the finals of the “Last Time is Now” tournament will take place with the winners of the semi-final bouts on tonight’s episode of Raw going head-to-head on December 5.
Other than the finals match in the tournament, Cody Rhodes, Tiffany Stratton, Randy Orton, Charlotte Flair, Drew McIntyre, and Sami Zayn appear as the featured Superstars on the WWE’s official webpage for the event.
