Triple H Confirms SmackDown Will Return to a Two-Hour Format – WWE’s decision to extend SmackDown to three hours has raised questions about its long-term viability, but it appears that the show will not remain in its extended format. In a recent appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque confirmed that SmackDown will eventually return to its previous two-hour runtime.
“For right now (It’s three hours), and then it switches back to two,” Levesque said, addressing the future of the show’s duration.
According to Bryan Alvarez, there have been discussions within WWE about moving SmackDown back to a two-hour format, potentially starting in June 2025. While WWE has capitalized on the extended SmackDown time slot since it moved to USA Network in September 2024, it seems the three-hour format may not be sustainable in the long run.
Triple H has spoken extensively about show runtimes in multiple interviews. On the SI Media Podcast, he explained that the ideal length for a wrestling show falls somewhere between two and three hours. He acknowledged the challenges of finding a perfect balance, stating that a two-hour show often lacks the “real estate” needed to tell all the stories and feature every character, while a three-hour show can occasionally feel too long.
As WWE navigates the complexities of show lengths, tonight’s RAW is expected to run for approximately three hours and twenty minutes, offering a glimpse into how extended runtimes will be handled moving forward. With SmackDown reportedly shifting back to two hours next year, it will be interesting to see how WWE adapts the pacing of both flagship programs to suit their evolving formats.
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Triple H Confirms SmackDown Will Return to a Two-Hour Format
