WWE RAW Set to Return to 3 Hours with Upcoming Netflix Move – WWE fans were excited to learn that Monday Night Raw will be returning to a two-hour format starting on October 7th, 2024. This marks the first time since 2012 that the show will be two hours long. The change comes during a transition period as WWE prepares to move Raw from USA Network to Netflix, with the new Netflix deal kicking in January 2025.
According to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Radio, the decision to shorten Raw’s runtime came from USA Network, not WWE. Meltzer confirmed that when Raw moves to Netflix, it will revert to a three-hour format. He explained that USA Network likely made this call to boost ratings, as the third hour traditionally lowers the show’s average viewership.
Meltzer: “It’s a three-hour show when they move back to Netflix. Yeah, I had it confirmed a few minutes ago….The basic situation is that it was a USA Network call, not a WWE call. I am not sure why. It will boost the ratings of the show because they won’t have that third hour that drags down the average, but I’m not sure exactly why USA made the call.”
Bryan Alvarez: “Well, maybe they had a plan for the 10 o’clock hour, and then, because originally it was just Raw, was done. And then they signed the Netflix deal and found out, ‘Well, shit, we got three months. We’re gonna be off the air in September, four months.’ And so they made a deal with USA. And maybe USA was like, ‘We already have something to 10, yeah, but we can do 8 to 10.’”
Meltzer: “It could be. It was USA Network made the call.”
Alvarez: “Or maybe they didn’t want to pay for three hours.”
Meltzer: “No, it didn’t have to do that because they weren’t paying for hardly anything for this.”
The change is expected to benefit the show’s ratings during its remaining run on USA Network.
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WWE RAW Set to Return to 3 Hours with Upcoming Netflix Move
