First hour of Raw & SmackDown to air commercial-free next week
As part of USA Network’s week of limited commercials, both Raw and SmackDown this coming week will be commercial-free for the first hour of each show.
WWE made the announcement earlier today, also noting that Monday’s show will be the first time Raw has ever aired live on Christmas. In previous years, when Christmas fell on a Monday, the show was taped ahead of time.
John Cena will return on Monday’s Raw from the All-State Arena in Chicago. SmackDown will also be from the same venue.
When it comes to live attendance, historically, Christmas was one of the best days to draw a crowd, but WWE has not booked live shows on Christmas in recent memory. The week after Christmas house show tour is also traditionally WWE’s strongest week of the year, drawing well above usual crowds and playing mostly major arenas.
A week after the Christmas episode, Raw will also air live on New Year’s Day.
Dave Meltzer is the founder and lead writer on the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the weekly constant when it comes to news and reviews in pro wrestling and mixed martial arts for more than 40 years. Dave also co-hosts Wrestling Observer Radio with Bryan Alvarez and had had bylines for The National, Yahoo Sports, MMA Fighting and others.