More WWE Stars To Leave Raw

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Since WrestleMania 42, various talents have been moving between the three brands of Monday Night Raw, Friday Night SmackDown and WWE NXT.

After winning the WWE Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 42, Rhea Ripley has moved from WWE Raw to SmackDown.

Following in Ripley’s footsteps, there could be even more names from the Raw roster who are leaving in the weeks and months to come.

Here are seven more WWE stars to potentially leave Raw.

7. GUNTHER

On the May 1 episode of Friday Night SmackDown, GUNTHER made a surprise appearance on the blue brand to attack Cody Rhodes.

After laying out Rhodes with a sleeper, GUNTHER held up the Undisputed WWE Championship to show his intentions.

Then on the May 8 Friday Night SmackDown, “The Ring General” looked to sign a contract for an Undisputed WWE Championship match against Rhodes at Clash In Italy 2026.

With this contract not yet signed, fans could see GUNTHER make a move to SmackDown officially where he has what it takes to defeat “The American Nightmare” and hold the top prize on the blue brand moving forward.

6. Nattie

To start 2026, Nattie underwent a change where she embraced “The Lowkey Legend” character she has played outside of WWE.

Nattie has since betrayed Maxxine Dupri and beaten her up on several occasions, but she has not been featured as of late.

After months without an appearance on the WWE main roster, Nattie may make the move to leave Monday Night Raw.

While most of these names will jump to SmackDown, Nattie could instead go to NXT after teasing this with her segment with Jaida Parker on the May 5 edition of WWE Raw.

5. Rusev

Since returning to WWE in 2025, Rusev has been looking for championship gold and bigger opportunities.

As of late, Rusev has had his sights on the WWE Intercontinental Championship, but if he comes up short, this could lead to a massive change.

Rusev moving from Monday Night Raw to another brand would give “The Bulgarian Brute” a brand new scenery to explore.

Heading to Friday Night SmackDown could see Rusev positioned as a more featured talent and potentially entering the upper echelon against the likes of Cody Rhodes, Trick Williams and Sami Zayn.

4. Lyra Valkyria

Since getting called up to the WWE main roster, Lyra Valkyria has been a member of the Monday Night Raw brand.

In the past two years, Valkyria has become the inaugural WWE Women’s Intercontinental Champion and a former WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion.

While she is currently in pursuit of another reign as Women’s Tag Team Champion with Bayley, Valkyria has a brighter future than her partner and could get a fresh start on SmackDown.

Mixing it up with the likes of Rhea Ripley, Tiffany Stratton and Jade Cargill, Valkyria can become revitalized by going out on her own on the blue brand moving forward.

3. Sheamus

Back in November 2025, Sheamus was scheduled to take part in “The Last Time Is Now” tournament, but he was pulled due to a shoulder injury.

After undergoing shoulder surgery, Sheamus has been on the shelf for over six months now.

“The Celtic Warrior” could be on his way back to in-ring competition and might want to switch brands upon his return.

Sheamus returning and heading to Friday Night SmackDown would be a nice change of pace and could see him becoming a threat for championship gold once again.

2. IYO SKY

At WWE Backlash 2026, IYO SKY defeated Asuka. Post match, SKY and Asuka shared an emotional and tearful embrace.

With this feud now in the books, “The Genius of the Sky” can focus on regaining championship gold or reuniting with her best friend.

IYO heading to Friday Night SmackDown to reform RHIYO with Rhea Ripley would be fitting considering the recent issues “Mami” has found herself in over the past few weeks.

Considering Jade Cargill and Fatal Influence have taken aim at the current WWE Women’s Champion, Ripley could call upon IYO to move to SmackDown to help her out at her current rivals.

1. CM Punk

At WWE WrestleMania 42 Night Two, Roman Reigns defeated CM Punk to retain the World Heavyweight Championship.

After this loss, Punk cut a promo about always being ready because “you never know when a title opportunity will fall out of the sky.”

This led to a confrontation with Cody Rhodes where Punk teased going after the Undisputed WWE Championship.

Punk moving to Friday Night SmackDown could see him start the build to a highly anticipated showdown with Rhodes with the title that might take place as soon as WWE SummerSlam 2026 or a longer leadup to WrestleMania 43 next year.

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