Are you familiar with the scarcity principle? It suggests that the more of something that is readily available, the less people want it. Oppositely, the scarcer something is, the greater the interest in it. WWE creative could benefit from reviewing the scarcity principle, because, let's be real, the run time for SmackDown has just gotten to be too long.
And with news that the show is set to start 2026 with an 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. timeslot yet again, here are a couple of reasons why SmackDown would be better off with its trimmer two-hour run time.
Makes Raw feel more important
SmackDown wasn't intended as a secondary show at launch; when it debuted in 1999, it was to satisfy wrestling fans' craving for more weekly entertainment from their favorite Superstars. Of course, back then, the draft didn't exist either, so you could see The Rock on Monday and Thursday nights.
Today, WWE runs things differently. With its move of Raw to Netflix and keeping SmackDown on cable, it kind of does feel like the Blue Brand is the B-team. And so why should the show be given the same amount of hours as Raw? Trimming it back to two hours makes the three-hour Raw feel more substantial.
Wrestling overload
Is there such a thing as too much wrestling? That depends on who you ask. But let's be honest; if you tune in to all the wrestling shows throughout the week, including Raw on Monday, NXT on Tuesday, and AEW Dynamite on Wednesday, by the time you get to SmackDown, it's easy to feel a little burnt out.
Plus, SmackDown is on Friday nights, when other activities might take precedence over watching wrestling. Moving SmackDown back to Thursdays and making it two hours would be the best move. It's like a precursor to Friday and something to pump you up but without taking away precious time from the weekend itself.
And yes, then SmackDown would be competing with Thursday Night Football, but that is only for half the year. Besides, Raw competes with the NFL every Monday night from September to February.
Of course, even if WWE wanted to move SmackDown to a different night, it's not entirely their choice. They'd have to negotiate with USA, so it's understandable why the show has been on Friday for so long.
Lacks the roster to support a longer run time
Between Raw and SmackDown, the latter has some holes in its roster. Sure, you've got Cody Rhodes, but he's sort of just...there from week to week. He's a more fascinating character when he's on the hunt for a championship than when he actually has the belt around his waist.
SmackDown no longer has exclusivity over Roman Reigns, and even if it did, he's on so infrequently that you would feel like you were wasting your time tuning in each week just to see him. And while SmackDown's roster does have some substance, from The Miz to LA Knight, Sami Zayn, Giulia, and Ilja Dragunov, these Superstars could still stand out even if SmackDown was only two hours.
Ultimately, shortening SmackDown and keeping it to two hours could reduce late-week viewers' fatigue and make it more approachable to watch since it's not such a time commitment. Let's hope that the last hour gets sliced off sooner rather than later, or that if it's kept, it at least supports Superstars who need the screentime.