WWE Superstar Shake-Up: Grading Every Superstar’s Outcome From 2018

Baron Corbin from SmackDown Live to Raw

Baron Corbin’s experience as a member of SmackDown Live was a mixed bag, to say the least. While he had strong moments like a reign as US Champion and winning a Money in the Bank Ladder Match, Corbin also failed on his cash-in attempt and took a difficult loss to John Cena at SummerSlam 2017.

Once he moved to Raw, Baron Corbin found himself in a position of authority only a few months later as “Constable of Raw.” As a representative of Stephanie McMahon, Corbin essentially made himself a hugely important part of Raw whether anyone wanted him to be or not. Even as Raw struggled, Corbin’s stock remained solid, ultimately leading to his defeat of Kurt Angle at WrestleMania 35.

Grade: A, Whether you like Baron Corbin or not, there’s no denying the move to Raw was good for his career. Corbin found a different aspect of his character as an authority figure, and like it or not holds a huge win over Kurt Angle.

Jeff Hardy from Raw to SmackDown Live

Jeff Hardy returned to WWE alongside his brother Matt at WrestleMania 33, capturing the Raw Tag Team Titles in a huge tag team ladder match. After a strong run, the tag team reunion came to a halt when Jeff Hardy was sidelined with a shoulder injury in September of 2017. He finally returned to action only one week before last year’s WWE Superstar Shake-Up.

On the first night of the Shake-Up, Jeff Hardy had a huge moment when he defeated US Champion Jinder Mahal for the title after Mahal had been moved to Raw. The next night, Hardy and the title moved to SmackDown Live. He had a decent reign as champion and a solid year, even reuniting recently with Matt Hardy as the duo captured the SmackDown Tag Team Titles for the first time in their lengthy careers.

Grade: A, Jeff Hardy’s return to WWE surely felt like a nostalgia act with a ceiling at first, but the move to SmackDown allowed Jeff to show his skills once again as a singles star. He even found his way back to tag team action, and now ends this year of action once again with tag team gold.