Guide Note

WWE SmackDown! is the Friday night professional wrestling TV show for World Wrestling Entertainment.

Fast Facts

1. Airs: Friday nights, 8/7c
2. Premiered: August 26, 1999
3. Created by Vince McMahon
4. Current Network: The CW
5. Originally broadcast on Thursdays
6. Switched to Fridays on September 9, 2005

After being off network television for several years, the WWE had a 2-hour one-off SmackDown! show on UPN in 1999. The show, which featured the main event of Stone Cold Steve Austin and The Rock facing Triple H and The Undertaker, was a ratings win for the network, and the show was picked up for a Thursday night series.

By 2005, the show's success began to dwindle, and was moved to Fridays. Ratings steadily improved, and the show continues on the CW Friday nights.

On February 26, 2008, the WWE announced the show would move to MyNetworkTV.

When the WWE bought out rival organization WCW, it effectively wiped out its only competition in major professional wrestling. To maintain fan interest in the company, Vince McMahon proposed a "brand extension," where certain wrestlers would appear only on SmackDown! and the WWE's other show, Raw.

Though often seen as a second-tier show to Raw's continued success, SmackDown! currently features several big names on its roster, including The Undertaker, Batista, Big Show, Rey Mysterio and divas Torrie Wilson and Michelle McCool.