2005 WWE Draft Lottery

2005 WWE draft lottery
John Cena,the first draftee in the 2005 WWE draft.
General information
Sport	Professional wrestling
Date(s)	June 6–30, 2005
Overview
League	World Wrestling Entertainment
Teams	Raw SmackDown!

The2005 World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) draft lottery,the thirdWWE draft,took place over a four-week period from June 6–30.

Every wrestler from Raw and SmackDown! was eligible to be drafted, includingannouncers,commentators,andgeneral managers.There were ten draft picks and an eleven-person trade conducted between thepromotion'stwo main brands:RawandSmackDown!,where twenty-two wrestlers were drafted and traded overall.Draft picks were drawn at (kayfabe) random onWWE's two-hour main television programs, each Monday onRaw(onSpike TV) and each Thursday onSmackDown!(onUPN).Post-draft trades were revealed on WWE's official website, wwe.com.

Background

On the April 18, 2005, episode ofRaw,WWE chairmanMr. McMahonscheduled a draft lottery for the following month in May.However, on the May 16 episode ofRaw,McMahon postponed the draft to June.He noted that there were no exceptions from the draft, including the injured and thechampions.

Selections

Draft lottery

Pick No.	Brand (to)	Wrestler	Role	Brand (from)	Day of selection
1	Raw	John Cena(then-WWE Champion)	Male wrestler	SmackDown!	June 6 (Raw)
2	SmackDown!	Chris Benoit	Male wrestler	Raw	June 9 (SmackDown!)
3	Raw	Kurt Angle	Male wrestler	SmackDown!	June 13 (Raw)
4	SmackDown!	Randy Orton	Male wrestler	Raw	June 16 (SmackDown!)
5	Raw	Carlito	Male wrestler	SmackDown!	June 20 (Raw)
6	SmackDown!	Muhammad HassanandKhosrow Daivari	Male wrestlers	Raw	June 23 (SmackDown!)
7	Raw	Big Show	Male wrestler	SmackDown!	June 27 (Raw)
8	Raw	Rob Van Dam	Male wrestler	SmackDown!
9	SmackDown!	Christian	Male wrestler	Raw	June 30 (SmackDown!)
10	SmackDown!	Batista(then-World Heavyweight Champion)	Male wrestler	Raw

Post-draft trades

Pick No.	Brand (to)	Wrestler	Role	Brand (from)
1	Raw	Mark Jindrak1 René Duprée Danny Basham Kenzo Suzuki2 Hiroko2 Chavo Guerrero3	Male/female wrestlers	SmackDown!
	SmackDown!	William Regal Candice Michelle Sylvain Grenier Simon Dean Stevie Richards	Male/female wrestlers	Raw

• 1 – Jindrak made only one appearance on Raw.
• 2 – These people were released from their contracts prior to their debut on Raw.
• 3 – Guerrero made his return on the July 4 edition of Raw repackaged asKerwin White.The gimmick was later abandoned in November 2005 after the death ofEddie Guerrero.

Later-on (and other) supplementals & later-on (and other) trades

Pick No.	Brand (to)	Wrestler	Role	Brand (from)	Notes
1	Raw	Torrie Wilson	Female wrestler	SmackDown!	Was traded toRawfor the first time in her career after the release of her long timeSmackdown brandrivalsDawn Marieand then Raw brandedNidia(Nidia was released before Torrie was traded to Raw.). Also while on SmackDown Torrie andCandice Michellefeuded withMelinaandJillian Hall.
2	SmackDown!	Christy Hemme	Female wrestler	Raw	Feuded on-and-off with Melina (with Jillian Hall as Melina's ally andStacy Keibleras Hemme's ally) after traded and after Stacy along with her was traded and was later on released after.
3	Raw	Johnny Nitro	Male wrestler	SmackDown!	Was later on traded to Raw early 2006 after he andJoey Mercurylost theWWE Tag Team ChampionshipsasMNMtoLondrickatJudgement Dayof year 2006.
4	SmackDown!	Stacy Keibler	Female wrestler	Raw	She and Christy Hemme were traded to SmackDown in exchange for Torrie Wilson andCandice Michelle.She was later on released after losing to Jillian Hall on an episode ofWWE Velocityin a singles match.
5	Raw	Melina	Female wrestler	SmackDown!	Was traded to Raw early 2006 after losing to longtime SmackDown Diva ally Jillian Hall at WWE Judgement Day of year 2006 and the fall apart of MNM. Also won theWWE Women's ChampionshipagainstMickie Jamesafter traded to Raw.
6	SmackDown!	Ashley Massaro	Female wrestler	Raw	Was traded to SmackDown early 2006 after losing to Mickie James at WWERoyal Rumbleof year 2006 asTrish Stratuswas Special Guest Referee, she and Trish Stratus also feuded against Torrie Wilson, Candice Michelle andVictoriawhile on Raw. Also while on SmackDown was a part of and managed tag team stableLondrickand also stepped in the ring with the lights ofKristal Marshall,Michelle McCool,Jillian Hall and 2006Diva SearchwinnerLayla El.
7	Raw	Candice Michelle	Female wrestler	SmackDown!	She was traded back to Raw to feud against Trish Stratus & Ashley Massaro alongside her buddies Torrie Wilson and Victoria,Vince's Devils.Also won the WWE Women's Championship against Melina atVengeance: Night of Championsof year 2007 after traded back to Raw.

Aftermath

This was the first draft in which champions brought their titles to their new show if they were selected. AfterJohn Cenawas drafted to Raw, along with theWWE Championship,SmackDown! was left without aworld titlefor the remainder of the month of June.As a result, on the June 23, 2005 episode,General Manager,Theodore Long,announced the creation of new world title, called the SmackDown! Championship.The new champion would have been determined in a six-man elimination match betweenThe Undertaker,Muhammad Hassan,Christian,Booker T,John "Bradshaw" Layfield(JBL) andChris Benoit,which JBL won on the June 30, 2005 episode ofSmackDown!.After JBL won the match, Long declared that the SmackDown! Championship was not needed because the then-World Heavyweight Champion,Batista,had been drafted to SmackDown!.

See also

• List of WWE personnel