WWE Rumors: The Brand Split Is Returning With Shane McMahon Vs. The Authority – Another Draft Coming?

For six years, the WWE brand split, or brand extension, has been dead as the company merged back into one main entity. Six years ago, Shane McMahon also left the company until just recently, when he returned and ended up facing The Undertaker inside Hell in a Cell at WrestleMania 32. With his return, the rumors have started that WWE will once again split into two separate shows, and it appears as if that may still be the plan.

The stipulation for the Hell in a Cell match was that Shane McMahon would gain control of Monday Night Raw. If he lost, he got nothing. As recapped by WWE.com, Shane-O Mac came out on Raw to say goodbye since he had lost his match, but Vince McMahon stopped him from doing that.

Vince felt a little bad for Shane and decided to see how it would be if he put his son in charge of Monday Night Raw for at least one evening. It was then that Shane got control of Raw and put on a pretty great show that included numerous NXT debuts and a main event match to determine a new number one contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship.

This immediately made the stipulation at WrestleMania 32 completely pointless. One would think that if Shane McMahon had won, then the stipulation of The Undertaker never appearing at another WrestleMania again certainly would have been upheld. Well, at least until about January.

Now, Shane was given a chance to control Raw, and the stipulation has been thrown out the window. Does this mean the brand extension is coming, though?

PW Mania is reporting that WWE is seriously considering putting Shane McMahon in charge of or “run” one show, and The Authority (Triple H and Stephanie McMahon) “run” the other show. It’s not known which show would be run by whom, but this plan is said to be in the preliminary stage at this time.

One would think that Vince McMahon wouldn’t give Shane Raw, but after Monday’s show, he may change his mind.

If the brand extension does return in WWE, then it could be time for another draft to see which show gets which talent. Should this happen, it would be interesting to see if the talents of NXT are included in the draft, but maybe that’s why there have been so many call-ups in the past week.

This past week alone, fans have seen the WWE main roster call-ups of Apollo Crews, Baron Corbin, Enzo & Cass, and The Vaudevillains.

Maybe there would be a lot more NXT call-ups if there ends up being a brand extension and another draft. Perhaps NXT would simply be included in one show or the other as it is hard to think that Triple H would give up his baby.

It’s quite interesting that the WWE brand split rumor has come up again as an even more intriguing rumor started earlier this week. Reddit user and WWE guru, Falcon Arrow, noted that the angle with The Authority could be taking a break from WWE television soon. In his words, “from what I know they are going bye bye for a while very soon.”

It should be noted that Triple H and Stephanie McMahon were not on Monday Night Raw or on camera for the SmackDown taping on Tuesday.

The WWE brand extension (brand split) may never return, but there are strong rumors of it, and it’s something that may soon become a reality. Yes, it goes against any and all storylines that have happened in the past month, but it’s not like that hasn’t happened before. Shane McMahon may take over one show while The Authority (Triple H and Stephanie McMahon) may take over another, but will fans like Monday Night Raw vs. SmackDown?

[Image via WWE]