WWE SmackDown Adding Extra Hour After RAW Netflix Transition Only Temporary

With Monday Night RAW set to move to Netflix in January 2025, there’s been a lot of speculation about what changes are coming to WWE’s programming. One of the biggest rumors? That Friday Night SmackDown could extend to a 3-hour show on the USA Network next year, but there is now clarification in that regard.

Reports from WrestleVotes Radio initially suggested that WWE was considering adding an extra hour to SmackDown to build on its success. They noted that the change would kick off with the January 3, 2025 episode of SmackDown, aligning with RAW’s move to Netflix.

“Before we move off of SmackDown, our first real WrestleVotes tidbit here, as we get going on this backstage pass regarding SmackDown, is that we have learned that starting on the January 3 show 2025, Smackdown will indeed shift to three hours. The other big news here is there are rumors that once the show ends, it will be available on Netflix, which we haven’t heard elsewhere. Those are the internal talkings right now is that probably the day after Smackdown will be available on Netflix. But the real nugget here is that starting January 3, that show will be three hours.”

Is a 3-Hour SmackDown Set in Stone?

Not quite. According to Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer, WWE hasn’t made any final decisions. He reported that WWE is still discussing the run time of both RAW and SmackDown starting in 2025, and nothing has been finalized at this point.

“Those at WWE only have said that the run time of both RAW and Smackdown starting in January are both open to discussions and nothing is final.”

So, while there’s talk of SmackDown becoming a 3-hour show, we’ll have to wait and see what WWE decides as these conversations continue.

However, according to WrestleVotes Radio on their Backstage Pass Patreon page, after the six-month period, SmackDown is planned to return to its usual 2-hour format.

“Something else we wanted to touch on quickly when we mentioned that SmackDown will be moving to three hours. As of right now, the chatter internally is that is only for 6 months. [3 hours] is gonna start in January when Raw moves to 3 hours. The plan right now is that 6 months down the road, SmackDown then goes back to 2 hours.”

More SmackDown—Good or Bad?

Fans have mixed feelings about this possible change. Some are excited about the idea of more SmackDown content each week, while others think keeping the show at 2 hours helps maintain a faster pace and tighter storytelling.

What are your thoughts on the possibility of Friday Night SmackDown extending to a 3-hour format? Do you think more content would enhance the show, or would it risk diluting the storytelling and pacing? Share your opinions in the comments!